Karen Puren

A SENSE OF PLACE AND SPATIAL PLANNING IN THE VREDEFORT DOME, SOUTH AFRICA

ABSTRACT Because of its recently acquired world heritage status and the anticipated influx of tourists into the area, the Vredefort Dome World Heritage Site in South Africa is currently experiencing pressure for development. Sudden and radical changes to the spatial environment may have a detrimental effect on local inhabitants who have a long history with the site and who have developed a strong place identity. Intangible aspects, such as the sense of place of an area, are currently not integrated in spatial planning in South Africa. This paper aims to explore personal and symbolic meanings, as part of the sense of place of local inhabitants in the Vredefort Dome World Heritage Site. An interdisciplinary and mixed-method research approach was followed in this study to explore and understand what constitutes a sense of place for local inhabitants in the area. In essence, the qualitative study revealed that inhabitants have a deep and personal relationship with and within the area, which contributes significantly to their sense of emotional security and a strong place identity. The quantitative study indicated how the unique relationship with the environment is concretised into spatial environmental characteristics, areas for development and conservation, and preferences and deficiencies in the built environment. In general, the research found a strong conservation-oriented attitude with regard to the natural rural character of the site, especially in the inner core. Basic guidelines in the form of a spatial planning framework, in which the sense of place is anchored, are proposed in order to strengthen the sense of place of the study area.

“…Here We Help Each Other”: Sense of Community of People Subjected to Forced Removals

This study examined the sense of community of people with experience of forced removals in a South African setting. The participants were 200–108 men (54%) and 92 women (46%) between 18 and 61 years of age and selected using systematic random sampling from the Khuma community. Data were collected using a Sense of Community Index-2 and the Mmogo-method®, a visual representation procedure. The questionnaire data were statistically analysed and the qualitative data were thematically and visually analysed. Findings suggested that places were important to sense of community in meeting their needs for survival, to maintain intergenerational relationships, and to facilitate community interactions.

Using the Mmogo-method to Explore Important Places and Their Meaning in Two Communities: The Importance of Context

The Mmogo-method is based on the assumption that experiences and meanings develop in relation to the contexts in which people function, informed by broader environments. The aims of this chapter are: first, to demonstrate how the physical context and the broader environments informed individuals’ and groups’ subjective experiences in relation to places and the symbolic meanings attached to them; second, to demonstrate how the method could be applied to diverse groups of people using the same open-ended prompt; and third, to demonstrate the value of the Mmogo-method for spatial planners. The research was conducted in two heterogeneous South African mining communities, Khuma and Stilfontein, in the North West Province, both dating from the 1950s. Khuma was established as a consequence of natural and forced migration, and Stilfontein developed as an affluent, socially stratified town. Data were collected from the two communities on different days by applying the Mmogo-method. Participants were provided with the same open-ended prompt requesting them to make visual presentations of places of importance in their communities, and to discuss the meanings implicit in these places. The physical context informed participants’ identification, and socio-cultural meanings in relation to place were obtained. People in Khuma supported a developmental approach to future spatial planning of the environment, while those in Stilfontein supported a preservation orientation to places of importance. The use of the Mmogo-method enabled diverse groups to participate in the same research method on the same topic, while allowing different meanings to emerge. Planners will be able to make use of the implicit affective dimensions of sense of place (place attachment) and through interactive groups to obtain consensus – functions that are useful for spatial planning purposes.

Sense of place: using people’s experiences in relation to a rural landscape to inform spatial planning guidelines

ABSTRACT This paper explores the interplay between people and a distinctive rural locality namely Vredefort Dome World Heritage Site, South Africa to inform spatial planning guidelines. A transdisciplinary, qualitative research methodology was followed. First, participants’ experiences in relation to the rural landscape were obtained using photographs, interviews and focus groups. Experiences related to physical and emotional safety, relaxation and tranquillity, hope and curiosity, and relational experiences with people and a divinity emerged. Drawing on these interactional experiences, participants (divided into multi-disciplinary groups) made visual collages of how to maintain the sense of place. Guidelines developed included two-dimensional site planning guidelines: (i) a sense of arrival; (ii) development zones; (iii) conservation zones; (iv) compatible land uses; (v) a low density, spatially dispersed development pattern and (vi) footpaths. Three-dimensional design guidelines included: (i) unity in style with a diversity of detail designs; (ii) restricted buildings sizes; (iii) building heights of maximum two storeys; (iv) specified building materials and (v) prescribed colour codes. The paper contributes to existing sense of place research by proposing an integrated, contextual and participatory approach as a possible way forward to make the sense(s) of place explicit by integrating these in spatial planning guidelines.