City offers practical experience to future urban planners
23 September 2025
Over the past two weeks, the City of Cape Town’s Spatial Planning and Environment Directorate hosted 39 third-year Urban and Regional Planning (URP) students from the University of Venda. The visiting students were paired with 32 Cape Peninsula University of Technology URP students to survey Muizenberg as a nodal area for their Metropolitan Dialogue fieldwork exercise. On the final day, the students presented their findings as well as recommendations for an improved Muizenberg experience.
'It was truly inspiring to host these aspirant planners from Univen and CPUT. Many of them are destined to shape the future of our cities through policy and implementation in the public sector. I am particularly pleased that Muizenberg, a vibrant community currently undergoing a significant beachfront refurbishment, was chosen as the focus of this Metropolitan Dialogue. May these students continue to pursue excellence with curiosity, courage, and compassion, and may they always remember that the work they do can transform communities for the better. They have the potential to transform South Africa by building inclusive, sustainable, and resilient cities that serve all our people. Ro livhuwa (thank you) for choosing Cape Town as your learning ground,’ said the City’s Deputy Mayor and Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews.
On Friday, 19 September 2025, the students presented their findings and recommendations following two weeks of surveying, interviewing residents and City staff. They were also introduced to the history of Muizenberg that was first inhabited by the Khoisan and developed into a Dutch military outpost in the 18th century. The students were also informed of the reinvestment and urban regeneration since the 1990s, with a focus on heritage, mixed-use development, tourism and public accessibility.
The student presentations honed in on the impact of climate change, coastal erosion, environmental literacy, as well as how to bolster economic activity, improve pedestrianisation and increase safety measures.
‘The student presentations were fantastic. It is always great to see other people’s perspectives on Muizenberg. I was glad to hear them touch on the issue of crime and grime, which the Muizenberg Improvement District office is working on,’ said Councillor Izabel Sherry.
The University of Venda identified the City of Cape Town as a potential living lab for its 2025 cohort of Urban and Regional Planning students to enable them to understand metropolitan planning issues in globally competitive cities.
‘We are located inland, but we also want to learn beyond our borders. Learning across boundaries is very critical. Coastal metropolitan areas assist with producing graduates who are cognisant of coastal planning discourses. Students will still go home and refine their work, so that they can give the City of Cape Town’s Urban Planning and Design Department documents that they can reference every day in projects that touch lives and make a difference,’ said the University of Venda’s Prof James Chakwizira.
High resolution photographs are available here.
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
