22 Amanda Breytenbach and Emmarencia Deminey delivered a guest lecture on the State of BIM in SA through a webinar facilitated by the IID. The two-hour public presentation to industry saw over 200 attendees form Architecture, Interior Design and related professions. In Jewellery Design, third-year students were involved in a WIL project in collaboration with De Beers. The project focused on diamond familiarisation, diamond cutting and polishing and jewellery retail. The students were allocated to various companies associated with De Beers and given tasks based on the abovementioned areas as part of the WIL project. Dr Reshma Maharajh from Graphic Design collaborated with the University of Cologne on the ‘Cultural Interventions’ project. Additionally, third year and BA Honours students in Graphic Design took part in an initiative led by the Retail and Service Design special interest group of the Design Research Society (DRS). As part of this initiative, students attended public lectures by leading designers before participating in a workshop where they collaborated with peers from the USA, UK, Belgium, Italy, South Africa, and Sweden to design a retail space. Community Engagement Projects The GSA advanced its commitment to community engagement and socially responsive design through key collaborations. Unit 17 partnered with Growthpoint to integrate social impact into commercial architecture, while Units 21 and 28 developed site-specific interventions in Johannesburg. In collaboration with Keleketla! Library, the GSA supported the proposed Keleketla! Lab, set to launch in 2025. The school also hosted actor and advocate Malik Yoba, who spoke on community engagement in New York, highlighting design’s role in social justice. The GSA played a key role in conceptualising and planning the ArchitectureZA (AZA) Conference with SAIA and GIfA, which will take place in 2025. The event will explore architecture’s role in tackling social and environmental challenges. The school also led efforts to create a Nexus—linking academia and industry—to advance research and knowledge-sharing on AI and other emerging technologies shaping architectural practice. Since 2013, the Graphic Design Honours Participation Design unit, led by Ms. Christa van Zyl, has driven community engagement, delivering 10–20 projects annually. In 2024, collaborations included the African Reclaimers Organisation (ARO), Girls and Boys Town South Africa, UJ’s Centre of Ecological Intelligence, Johannesburg Zoo Education Centre, and others. Notably, the unit helped secure funding for ARO, while Girls and Boys Town integrated project research into their 2024 online campaigns. The Department of Industrial Design continues to engage with industry through project briefs and competitions that provide students with real-world exposure and opportunities for product manufacturing and distribution. Additionally, the department partnered with Dr Ruth Lipschitz from Design Studies and Marianne Lomberg from Nestlé Purina to design and construct shelters for the FADA Cat Commune. Alumni and Stakeholder Engagements Arts & Culture received R2 755 200 from The Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality, and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority (CATHSSETA) for their internship programme. An overwhelming 1,354 applications were received for the 37 internships offered in 2024 of which 17 of the successful candidates were UJ alumni. Including UJ Arts & Culture, interns were hosted by 14 professional arts and culture organisations as well as other departments and divisions of UJ. The University of Johannesburg Choir’s 50th Celebration Concert presented an opportunity to engage alumni to participate in the celebration that led to 77 previous choristers attend a reunion at the Arts Centre and joined the 2024 UJ Choir on stage to perform together at the end of the celebration concert. The Visual Art Department was also awarded R800 000 from CATHSSETA for 10 student bursaries at R80 000 each. This supported and empowered second year students who were heavily indebted and without funding to continue their degrees. The UJ Art Gallery secured R500 000 from MTN SA Foundation for the MTN | UJ New Contemporary Awards Programme and R5 000 from Sanlam for an event at the UJ Arts Gallery attended by UJenius students.
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