Valentina Manente

About

“The first time I approached a socially driven project in my career was for my bachelor thesis at the Faculty of Architecture in the University of Parma, when I designed a multifunctional pod that was meant to accommodate people in need by being cheap, easily buildable and transportable. From then on, I always pursued programs, initiatives and jobs that were socially involved: while attending the international master course Architecture at Politecnico di Milano, I decided to develop my Master thesis proposal on community upgrading through public spaces in the South African slum of Khayelitsha in Cape Town, where I worked with Shack Dwellers International for five months.

After graduating from Politecnico di Milano, I returned to South Africa to extend my knowledge on informality by working at the Johannesburg based firm Urban Works. Moreover, I was given the opportunity to tutor at the Graduate School of Architecture at the University of Johannesburg for two years, where I came in touch with the topics of Rogue informal economies and Radical Landscapes. These experiences altogether gave me great insight into the inequalities of African cities, posing a challenging question about the role of slums in the future of the Global South and the importance of urban inclusion.”

Valentina’s PhD project is entitled, “The Urban Agriculture Nexus in informal settlements: an investigation on the benefits of urban food growing in the barrios of Bogotá”, under the supervision of Dr Silvio Caputo (KSAP) and Professor Jaime Hernandez-Garcia (Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota).

Supervision

Dr Silvio Caputo (KSAP) and Professor Jaime Hernandez-Garcia (Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota)