26 Community Engagement Community engagement is embedded in teaching and learning across the faculty. Visual Art Honours students collaborated with the African Reclaimers Organisation (ARO) in Johannesburg. Graphic Design’s Honours Participatory Design module, led by Ms Christa van Zyl, partnered with Industrial Design and multiple external stakeholders including Electronic Engineering at UJ, the Bokone Bophirima Craft and Design Institute, the Melville Arts Festival, the Nelson Mandela Museum, and the UJ Centre for Ecological Intelligence. The module also contributed to the development of a digital e-business clinic application (Biz-App) to support SMMEs and cooperatives in collaboration with UJ’s College of Business and Economics. Dr Reshma Maharajh further supported outreach initiatives in Lenasia and the Fresh Fruit foyer initiative. Industrial Design staff and students contributed to community projects including the UJ Cat Commune Project with Nestlé Purina PetCare, aimed at improving the wellbeing of the university’s feral cat population through design solutions; the project received a 2025 Excellence in Community Engagement Award. First-year students also designed and produced wooden toy cars for donation to early childhood centres in Gwakwani and surrounding areas. The Graduate School of Architecture participated in the Interspecies Design Exhibition at Glen Austin Pan, presenting spatial strategies addressing ecological regeneration, climate change, land invasion and environmental degradation. Second-year BArch students undertook a community-engaged learning project in the Ekhukanyeni area of the former Kwa-Ndebele homeland, working with community leaders, learners and local authorities to explore development potential. Fashion Design students participated in a sewing and pattern-making training programme through the ARO-UJ Reclaiming Praxis Network, which promotes environmental awareness, economic inclusion and social justice. The FADA Gallery initiated the FADA4Kids partnership with the Sophiatown Arts Akademy to encourage youth engagement with art, while Graphic Design maintained outreach collaborations with the Trevor Huddleston Centre and community initiatives in Lenasia. Alumni and Stakeholder Engagement UJ Arts & Culture entered into 32 industry partnerships and collaborated with 21 internal stakeholders, including two international partnerships. The Department of Architecture hosted public lectures with construction industry partners. Visual Art students collaborated with alumni artists such as Usha Seejarim and engaged with Artist Proof Studio and the Latitudes Art Fair. Jewellery Design staff and students participated in residencies and exhibitions at NIROX Sculpture Park and other galleries. Martina Dempf undertook a residency culminating in the exhibition Mastering Disaster – Nature and Fiction, while Thato Radebe and Khanya Mthethwa curated Designing the Past, Wearing the Future. Thato Radebe also served as a judge for the Rand Refinery Silver mentorship programme. Transformation Transformation remains central to the faculty’s teaching, research and institutional culture. The Architecture programme’s Rural Urbanscapes Studio integrates spatial justice into the curriculum by combining urban analysis with engagement in marginalised rural and former homeland contexts. The cross-departmental Wom+n in Tech initiative supported a female student team developing a pedal-powered breast pump, which won the national competition. A further Industrial Design team placed second nationally, and both teams will represent South Africa at the international finals in Texas in 2026. While student enrolment has diversified, improving representivity among academic staff and leadership remains a priority. During 2025 the faculty strengthened recruitment and development through nGAP appointments, assistant lecturer posts and participation in the Academic Advancement Mentoring Programme (AAMP). The faculty will continue to build a leadership pipeline through mentorship, capacity development and targeted support for designated groups. 2024/25 Women in Tech launch
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