LSU in South Africa
ID 3759 Special Studies in Interior Design (3 credit hours)
Open to students in the College of Art + Design
Program Director: Marsha R. Cuddeback
LSU in South Africa is an opportunity to experience, first hand, the rich history, cultural diversity, and geographic landscape of South Africa. Students explore global citizenship and engage in local community development. The core of this 18-day program involves participating in a community-based project in one of the many townships in the Western Cape Province. Students collaborate with residents and community partners in a design-build project that serves to enhance the quality of life for township residents.
In previous programs students worked in Red Hill (2010), a sprawling rural township community, and Masiphumelee (2012), a compact urban township community, both south of Cape Town. Community projects included reconstruction of a preschool playground, design and construction of raised vegetable gardens, design and installation of a rainwater harvesting system, design and installation of a children’s puppet theater, and planning for a future community building among others.
Day-long excursions are interspersed throughout the program including visits to Cape Town’s City Center, the Victoria and Albert Waterfront, District Six, and Bo-Kaap; Robben Island and Table Mountain, World Heritage Sites; Boulder’s Beach, home to the African penguins; the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point promontory at the extreme southwestern tip of the continent; Kayamandi, Mitchell’s Plain, and Khayelitsha townships; and the historic Cape Dutch architecture located in the hilly region of the Cape Winelands. The program concludes with a safari and traditional South African Braai in Pilanesberg National Park north of Johannesburg, featuring a unique variety of flora and fauna rarely found living side by side, including the big five.
Visit Facebook for more information about this experience.