This collection includes files related to fieldwork activities under Phase 2 ‘Community Participation through Action Research’. The collection involves data in the form of photos, transcripts of focus group discussion and interviews with community members and external stakeholders from eThekwini municipality, spreadsheets to map anonymised responses from community events. Previous studies on in-situ upgrade of informal settlements in Durban had explored the impact of community participation on local inhabitants using case study research and ethnographic data. Phase 2, however, sought to lay the foundation for an evidence base of integrated environmental and construction management strategies (technical know-how) through engaging with community stakeholders (participatory design). Phase 2 (data in this collection) adopted a novel action research based methodology to enable participatory activities using mixed methods. This strategy ensured that the research maps the key role of community stakeholders in driving urban transformation taking into account the diversity inherent in all communities and the differences arising from age, gender, association and power differentials within them. Action research participants were community stakeholders, which include: local inhabitants; community leaders; community organisations; support NGOs; and local authorities. These actors participated in individual and group activities to discuss their experience of bottom-up upgrading strategies. Another unique aspect of the adopted methodology compared to previous studies was that it sought to empower community actors to become direct beneficiaries of the developed upgrading mechanisms, once the research is completed. Local inhabitants were not be just objects of study but acted as grassroots co-researchers, co-investigators and key agents for self-reliance co-producing knowledge and involved throughout the research process, which ultimately led to their technical, management and communication skills being enhanced.This project focuses on 'informal settlements' in South Africa (SA), which are often characterised by the lack of basic services and infrastructure (eg safe sanitation, reliable electricity), poorly performing building materials (eg wood, cardboard, metal sheets, mud) without any building plans approved and often on illegally-accessed and hazardous land. The idea that the communities in informal settlements should be involved in improving their homes and neighbourhoods is often discussed in the international development community. However, the tools and processes needed to ensure a successful upgrade of environmental and construction management are poorly understood, and top-down policies used by central and local government in SA have not been successful to date. If communities can improve their neighbourhoods through participatory techniques, enhancing construction skills and using available materials, then there could be local, regional and national environmental, social and economic benefits. The research seeks to explore the underpinning barriers and enabling drivers for communities to upgrade their informal settlements in SA. The central question for this research is how can participatory approaches be utilised in an environmental and construction management strategy to achieve self-reliance in informal settlements in Durban. This question will be investigated under six discrete project phases. Phase 1: Local Context and Gap Analysis (UKZN) -Examining factors that have helped communities in Durban upgrade their housing and communities, and barriers to upgrading. Phase 2: Mapping Urban Transitions through Community Participation (Westminster) Through a participatory action-research methodology, the project team will produce findings on bottom-up construction and environmental management in Namibia Stop 8 (NS8) with the involvement of the community living there. NS8 is a good practice case study in Inanda, Durban. Phase 3: Integrated Closed-Loop Environmental Management Systems (UCL with UKZN) - Exploring the potential of closed-loop systems where wastewater generated from NS8 can be reused for agriculture. - Investigating the processes, partnership models and business models required to ensure resilient infrastructure is provided. Phase 4: Skills Enhancement in Construction (Westminster) - Mapping the skills developed and enhanced through the 'self-build' approach adopted in NS8. - Transferring lessons from the UK Government Construction 2025 Strategy. Phase 5: Developing and Testing an Integrated Collaborative Toolkit (Westminster and UKZN) - Bringing together the key findings of individual Phases 1 to 4, this toolkit will take the form of a dynamic decision-making model, which will map potential ways for communities, businesses, and policymakers to collaborate. It will also identify the resources required, skills developed, and the business models created for mobilising private sector involvement and economic growth. Phase 6: Project Management, Communication and Dissemination (Westminster with UKZN)

The focus was to produce a rich, detailed exploration of ‘best available practice’. Three studies were chosen deliberately (explicitly biased) according to the information they can provide; hence, random sampling was not be employed. With the help of uTshani Fund (NGO in Durban), this approach was investigated by the project team in the three case study sites; namely: Namibia Stop 8, Piesang River and Havelock. For the primary data, the target audience includes people involved in the bottom-up participatory upgrading of the selected case studies. Participants were households, representative members from community organisations (FEDUP, uTshani Fund), and local authorities (eThekwini municipality). The data collection methods used in Phase 2 (this collection) include: direct observations from transect walks (using photos), focus group discussions, interviews and community events. Triangulation between various methods generated a richer understanding of the bottom-up upgrading processes adopted in the case studies.