NWU-CLES, SDSA and BCGA formalise collaboration on Urban Law, governance and local government practice
The South African Research Chair in Cities, Law and Environmental Sustainability (CLES) at North-West University, Spatial Data Services Africa (SDSA) and BC Gildenhuys & Associates (BCGA) are pleased to announce a new formal collaboration aimed at strengthening the interface between research, law, policy and municipal practice.
Through a Memorandum of Understanding, the parties will work together to advance a joint research agenda in Urban Law and Policy, while placing particular emphasis on translating research and legal knowledge into practical value for municipalities.
The collaboration will include joint research and publications, policy papers, seminars and training programmes, as well as the development of practical tools and approaches that can support improved municipal planning, governance, budgeting and service delivery.
The partners have already moved from agreement to implementation. A joint planning session was held this week to map out the priorities and work programme for the next 18 months, with a strong focus on a limited number of initiatives where the combined academic, legal, planning, data and municipal-finance expertise of the parties can make a tangible contribution.
The collaboration brings together CLES's expertise in local government, environmental law and governance with the applied municipal, spatial-planning, infrastructure-investment, financial and decision-support capabilities of SDSA and BCGA.
We look forward to sharing the first outputs of this collaboration over the coming months.