Seminar “Southern Urbanism by Jhono Bennett

On March 30th, Jhono Bennett led a seminar for a group of Swiss and Southern architecture students. The seminar was hosted by ETH’s Unmasking Space team, a student led organization dedicated to engaging with critical questions within architecture and design.
Jhono’s seminar was designed to create a space for reflection and discussion among participants from different parts of the world. Jhono shared some initial findings from their doctoral research, and guided the group through a co-produced a series of mind maps through rich, engaging discussions and reflections.
One of the main objectives of the seminar was to encourage participants to think about the role of positionality and situatedness in urban design. The course material included some insightful reads, such as “Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective” by Donna Haraway, “Notes on a Southern Urban Practice” by Gautam Bhan, and “City of Walls” by Teresia Caldeira.
The discussions during the seminar were diverse and enlightening, covering various topics such as inclusive design approaches, spatial justice, critical positionality, and urban planning in cities. The participants were a diverse group of students, each bringing their unique perspectives on the subject matter. The discussions are being continued in a reading/doing group on Southern Urbanist Practice led by Jhono and UCL colleagues.