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We are an urbanism practice, consultancy and think tank

Learn about our story,
people and values


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Our organisation’s roots can be traced back nearly 13 years to a blog and social media platform called Future Cape Town.

Our Future Cities was originally and affectionately called "Future Cape Town"; a blog and social media platform created in 2010 with the intention of sparking a broader debate and questioning the future development and direction of Cape Town.  This included inviting young people to write blogs, hosting events, and posting on social media. The objective at the time was to use these tools to advocate for a more vibrant and inclusive public realm, progressive urban policies and thought, and to democratise city-building processes.

Late in 2013, Future Cape Town expanded to include the sub-brands Future Johannesburg, Future Lagos, and Future London, forming what is now known as Our Future Cities. During the early years, our digital platforms quickly amassed over 100,000 social media followers and over 120,000 unique annual website views. As a result it was the top-ranked future cities and sustainability blog in Africa in 2015 and one of the top 20 globally in Urban Planning in 2016. The platform was also featured in the exhibitions "Making Africa" at the Guggenheim Bilbao and "City as a Vision" in France.

Beyond  the digital sphere, Our Future Cities began collaborating on projects and ideas that left their mark on cities in a variety of ways and contexts and this is where our core services and skills were formulated and developed.

In cities like New York, Paris, Barcelona, Casablanca, Toronto, Rio de Janeiro, Bogota, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, and London, Our Future Cities has been invited to speak about its work. Our work and insights have also been featured in local and international media as well in contributions to various books and publications.

This new period as a practice, consultancy, and think tank has been an exciting transition because it has allowed us to work with clients, partners, and practitioners from every sectors in new cities and more diverse contexts.

While the last decade and more has been a period of immense change, we still hold the belief that working collectively today creates better cities tomorrow.

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Our manifesto guides our values and purpose in everything we do.

  1. 01
    We’re shaping the future of cities by addressing our important urban challenges.
  2. 02
    Working with governments, business, knowledge institutions and communities to achieve meaningful change and lasting impact.
  3. 03
    Incorporating foresight in everything we do - even if we seem to be ahead of the times.
  4. 04
    With our home in the Global South serving as our laboratory, we are led by strong research, creative experimentation, and diverse perspectives.
  5. 05
    We recognise that big ideas and new solutions must transcend disciplines, dimensions and scales.
  6. 06
    And that it is not about buzzwords or the latest trend.
  7. 07
    It is about how we commit to progress; the small steps and the big leaps.
  8. 08
    To transform spaces, systems and policies.
  9. 09
    Because our future on this planet is tied to the future of our cities and towns.
  10. 10
    We need sustainable and equitable cities that are also exciting, vibrant and loved.

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Led by respected urbanist and our CEO, Rashiq Fataar, we bring together people from different disciplines who share a passion for finding way to address urban challenges.

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A few of our clients and partners across the world

Accelerate Cape Town / Berkeley Group / Social Life / Transport for All / BMW Guggenheim Lab / Siemens / New Cities Foundation / Ecobici / European Cyclists’ Federation / Philips Livable Cities / City of Cape Town / Woolworths / Blok / The Greater Tygerberg Partnership / The British Council / This Big City / Watershed / Urban Lime / Fourth Space / DesignSpaceAfrica / The Netherlands Consulate in Cape Town / The V&A Waterfront / SA Cities Network / Urban-Think Tank / ICLEI Africa / eThekwini Municipality / dhk Architects / Vivid Economics / UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office / Northeastern University / University of Botswana / Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design / World Design Capital 2014 / The Cape Town Partnership / Cape Town Tourism / Pidgin Perfect / University of Cape Town

Rashiq Fataar
rfataar@ourfuturecities.co
Rouen Smit
rouen@ourfuturecities.co
37 Parliament Street
Church Square
Cape Town City Centre
Cape Town, 8000
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