Rivers

In September 2022, we held the Riparian Urbanism Symposium, hosted in collaboration with Water For The Future. Researchers, creatives and collaborators who work with, on, and in the Jukskei’s riparian biome – including artists, activists, natural scientists, hydrologists, ecologists, urbanists, designers, historians, anthropologists, policy makers, social scientists, healers – were invited to describe, analyse and theorise how Johannesburg and its residents relate to the temperamental Jukskei. The symposium illustrated the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to deepen social and scientific understandings of and interactions with the Jukskei river.

The Jukskei has changed Johannesburg as much as Johannesburg has changed it. This symposium was an assessment of Johannesburg’s history, development, and culture from the banks of the river that runs through it. Riparian refers to the interface between the river and the banks that define, direct and are eroded by it. Urbanism calls attention to those beings – human and nonhuman – who live at the aquatic-terrestrial boundary, how they use and manage the capricious river, and the city and urban landscapes that frame those interactions.

Although this symposium was conceived of as an academic event, it is through community engagement and public-private partnerships that the activist work to rejuvenate the Jukskei River is made possible. As such, in collaboration with Water For The Future, a key partner for this event, community involvement was critical in integrating public engagement and interaction with the research that was presented. This was intended in the spirit of open-source approaches to research and knowledge dissemination, and to invite anyone interested in the themes the symposium addressed to benefit from listening in and engaging.

Since the conclusion of the Symposium, the Convenors reflected on the rich and varied offerings of science, culture, and art that were contributed. Symposium presenters have been invited to make contributions to a special issue edited publication by an academically accredited press with local and global reach to share the profound interest generated by the symposium with a much wider audience.

It is envisioned that the publication will include various submission formats such as essays, research reports, interviews and creative outputs that speak to the interdisciplinary discussions that arose from the symposium. The special issue is scheduled for release soon.

A journal article, written by Dr Jessica Webster and Prof Mehita Iqan, offering some reflections on the Jukskei, can be found here.

If you have any enquiries about the publication or the symposium, please send an email to scicomm@sun.ac.za.