"The East City Design Precinct (ECDI) will become the premier African environment for design innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship within the next 10 years. It will showcase design excellence, incubate emerging talent, and enable new innovations to develop. "  - Proposal for the East City Design Initiative 2009

The ECDI is an economic development strategy, where design and innovation is seen to play a predominant role in the repositioning of Cape Town's regional economy, providing an essential platform for a diversifying services sector. Cape Town's specific case begins with the recognition that the city is already established as a leader in creativity and design in South Africa with over 1000 creative agencies located in the Central City. The purpose of this Central City citylab seminar is to stimulate active discussion around the proposed East City Design Initiative.  Zayd Minty of the Cape Town Partnership will lead the discussion - All Welcome!!

About the Speaker: 

Zayd Minty is a cultural producer and researcher based in Cape Town. He currently works for the Cape Town Partnership on Creative Cape Town, a strategy area supporting and nurturing the creative and knowledge economy of the central city.  As an independent producer he curated a number of contemporary art  projects, festivals, dialogic forums and conferences.  He has written for various publications including Art South Africa and Urban Studies.  In 2008 he worked on a research document for Isandla Institute entitled Culture and the Right to the City: Diversity in the Cultural Ecology of Cape Town