Un-Visioning the Future of Cities

Dr. Geci Karuri-Sebina is a multi-disciplinary scholar-practitioner currently occupied in several capacities working at the intersection between people, place and technological change, focusing on the global south. We discuss her work, stakeholder collaboration, smart cities, inclusive cities, what she would change if she had a magic wand and her vision for cities in 2040.

Join the Future Cities Africa Newsletter
Ask how you can collaborate with Future Cities Africa

Key Takeaways

Introduction

  • Geci expands on her education, background, and work history:
  • Her involvement with South African Cities Network (SACN) and Singularity University.
  • She advises on the Current State of Cities Report with SACN.
  • We talk about the Integrated Urban Development Framework (IUDF) - iudf.co.za.

Stakeholder collaboration

  • We struggle with the urgency to get things done, for many it has been too long.
  • Some level of fatigue setting in with many city officials.
  • In the urban space, the agenda is not clear it keeps evolving and needs constant engagement.
  • Invest more in skill and facilitating stakeholder engagements.
  • We need more openness.
  • Realise it is for the long haul.

Her definition of a Smart City

  • First, focus on the contextualized vision of the city that you are in and find answers to imagination, governance, and the systems and processes you want to put in place.
  • Tech is an enabler.
  • Tech on its own can’t save us, it could however destroy us.
  • Geci uses Barcelona as an example of a great smart city.

How she would get us to inclusive cities if she was president

  • Empower people in the right positions that have inclusion on their agenda and that have the confidence and creativity to do it.
  • Geci further explains getting the ‘correct mix’ to enable inclusion.

What she would change if she had a magic wand

  • How government works in the extent to which officials feel they have space and the responsibility to be doing more.
  • Get people to understand that our futures are interlinked.

Her vision of cities in 2040

  • A couple of scenarios and not a single vision.
  • There is a chance it is more or less the trajectory we are on now.
  • There is a change we are doing things a bit better than now.
  • Geci explains 3 ideas she believes will get us to a future that looks different and more exciting:
  • New imaginaries.
  • New processes.
  • New institutions.

Advice for students

  • Jobs are changing and it is exciting times.
  • There is no predetermined road anymore.
  • Be bold and have an attitude of learning.
  • Be your conscious self in that learning moment.
  • The purpose of education is learning.
  • You can bring weird and wonderful things to this world.


About Geci Karuri-Sebina
Geci is a multi-disciplinary scholar-practitioner currently occupied in several capacities working at the intersection between people, place, and technological change, focusing on the global south. She is an Associate with South African Cities Network; an Adjunct Professor at the University of Cape Town’s African Centre for Cities; a Research Fellow at the Wits School of Governance; a global faculty member of Singularity University; and a curator in The Emergence Network. She is also involved in writing and editorial roles for a few international futures, innovation, and planning publications.

She holds Bachelors degrees in Computer Science and Sociology (Coe), Masters degrees in Architecture & Urban Design and Urban Planning (UCLA), and a Ph.D. in Urban Planning / Innovation Systems Studies (Wits)

Previously, Geci worked with various government and science council entities including South African Cities Network, National Treasury, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), and the UCLA Advanced Policy Institute. Geci also served as a panelist on the Ministerial Task Team on the Fourth Industrial Revolution, an expert advisor on the Presidential Task Team on Land Reform, the South African Council of Planners (SACPLAN), and the Johannesburg Development Agency board.

See: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gecik/

Join the Future Cities Africa Newsletter

Share this discussion

Share Geci Karuri-Sebina - Un-Visioning the Future of Cities on Linkedin Share Geci Karuri-Sebina - Un-Visioning the Future of Cities on Facebook Compose a Tweet about Geci Karuri-Sebina - Un-Visioning the Future of Cities on Twitter Share Geci Karuri-Sebina - Un-Visioning the Future of Cities via Whatsapp

You might also be interested in some of our other discussions

Podcast By Thulani Kuzwayo about Living Future Collaborative SA & Thinking Beyond Our Current Actions
Living Future Collaborative SA & Thinking Beyond Our Current Actions

Thulani Kuzwayo is Co-Founder of PaperThinkLAB. He is an experienced sustainability professional who also served as the WorldGBC Africa Regional Network Chairperson. We chat about his inspirations and the Living Future Collaborative South Africa, challenges for African cities, stakeholder collaboration, trends and opportunities in a Covid world and what happens after, his vision for future cities and the importance of thinking beyond our current actions.

Play Now
Podcast By Vino Govender about What Will Help Us Become Smarter Cities?
What Will Help Us Become Smarter Cities?

Vino Govender is Executive for Strategy, Mergers & Acquisitions and Innovation at Dark Fibre Africa. We explore the typical architecture and technological layers of a ‘Smart City’, his definition of a ‘Smart City’ in the African context, what will help us become smarter cities, improving Public-Private sector collaboration, how the Internet of Things will impact Africa over the next 5 years, the one thing he would change with his magic wand and what he hopes to see happen over the next 5 years.

Play Now
Podcast By Sheldon Quarmby about Improving service delivery to citizens and digitising cities to succeed in the future
Improving service delivery to citizens and digitising cities to succeed in the future

Sheldon Quarmby is Founder and CEO of Interfile, the company behind solutions like uFiling and SARS eFiling. We chat about how individual tax returns on SARS eFiling was born, Sheldon's worst nightmares of Covid-19, benefits and challenges of uFiling, digitising our cities to succeed in the future, rapid urbanisation and the future of jobs.

Play Now
Podcast By Daniel Claassen about Get in the Time Machine: What Will Cities Look Like in 2040?
Get in the Time Machine: What Will Cities Look Like in 2040?

A collection of interviews with 12 thought leaders.

Play Now
Podcast By Peter Griffiths about What Africa’s City Brand and Investment Profiles Tell Us About its Urban Future
What Africa’s City Brand and Investment Profiles Tell Us About its Urban Future

Peter Griffiths is a Global Urban Futures Expert who helps people see and imagine cities differently. In this Master Class on city branding we dive into why brand is so critically important and how to leverage it for maximum impact, how brand impacts people's lives, African cities to be treated as peers internationally, and so much more.

Play Now

Get the latest newsletter delivered to your inbox

Don’t miss a discussion, sign up and be the first to know.