#cocreateSA fund announces the winning SA-Dutch sustainability projects

The projects all focus on sustainability issues including water management, healthcare, agro processing and food security. Cape Craft and Design Institute, Khusel'indalo South Africa, Engineers Without Borders, Isidima Design & Development, Khaya Power and Red Plan are the South African parties that all teamed up with a Dutch partner, submitted their project proposals during the open call and got selected by the jury. With the help of the Fund, these partnerships can now bring their project to life.

The #cocreateSA Fund was initiated by the Kingdom of the Netherlands during World Design Capital Cape Town 2014. For this second round of funding, 25 project proposals from South African-Dutch partnerships were submitted during an open call between April and June 2015. The jury, consisting of Laurine Platzky (Deputy Director-General of the Western Cape Government), Howard Gabriels (COO of Wesgro) and Nyami Mandindi (former CEO of Royal HaskoningDHV), selected six projects from the submissions, awarding each project with R100,000 starting capital.

Bonnie Horbach, Consul General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Cape Town: "Last year, during the inaugural #cocreateSA Fund, the submissions were very good and promising. I'm very proud that we have been able to again attract ambitious projects during our second round of funding." By establishing the #cocreateSA Fund in 2014, Horbach introduced her signature view on modern foreign diplomacy. "For me, it's all about building relationships, putting the demand at the core of our discussions and focusing on long-term commitments and partnerships", says Horbach, "and I am happy to see these six projects are each based on these principles".

The winning projects

Agri-Design

Partners: Cape Craft and Design Institute (SA) and a consortium of Dutch partners (NL)

Agri-Design aims to bring value to the agri processing sector through a design-driven approach to product development and beneficiation. The project will bring together local and Dutch companies involved in agri-processing, and foster collaboration by leading a design process with the two companies to explore what new products can be created with their combined expertise.

Developing a curriculum in Sustainable Rangeland Management

Partners Khusel'indalo (SA) and Wageningen UR, Centre for Development Innovation (NL)

This training programme aims to build the skills and performance of rural farming communities so that sustainable farming can become a recognised tool for food provision, ecosystem maintenance, predator management and the repair of degraded rangelands.

Alternative cooking technologies for sheep head traders

Partners: Engineers Without Borders (SA) and The Royal Netherlands Society of Engineers (NL)

Daily exposure to toxic smoke from traditional cooking practices can cause lung diseases and eye injuries. Sheep head traders in Cape Town's Nyanga township have requested help in finding a technical solution to their space, health and pollution problems, resulting in a fuel-efficient cooker.

Backyard Bioponics

Partners: Isidima Design & Development (SA) and OKRA Landscape Architects (NL)

The project aims to create an integrated, multi-functional and optimised system of grey-water management and urban agriculture for the BT Section in Cape Town's Khayelitsha township, where public furniture elements and playground devices handle and clean grey and storm water, which can then be re-used for irrigation.

FAAB Cook Stove

Partners: Khaya Power (SA) and Delft University of Technology, Dept. of Industrial Design (NL)

The FAAB Cook Stove allows you to cook in a safe manner on biomass such as briquettes, wood pallets and cow dung. The stove's solar-powered battery can charge a phone, a light or other small electrical appliances.

Rainfall For Drought

Partners: Red Plan (SA) and DssFactory (NL)4

This collaboration will introduce innovative methods of rain water harvesting for domestic use and crop production in the rural Mtubatuba area, using a simple communication tool availed to the community to provide information on available alternatives of water storage techniques based on simple rainfall harvesting.