Natalie Schöbitz is a doctoral candidate at Critical Urbanism at The University of Basel (Switzerland). She holds an MSc in City Design & Social Science from LSE and studies housing on the side at ETH Zurich.
Hi. I’m Natalie. Welcome to my personal website. I am a South African living in Zurich, Switzerland. I work to improve urban issues from a political and technological perspective. Previously that has looked like, designing digital urban planning workflows for more effective, wholistic planning. And currently, that looks more like; generating new knowledge and writing about urban climate change in African cities. I am passionate about inclusion and equality, mostly in relation to housing and infrastructural issues. I know what you’re thinking, how can someone be passionate about infrastructure? Well, reach out and I’d be more than happy to tell you exactly how.
Doctoral Candidate
2022 - current
MAS ETH Housing
2020 - current
In 2022 I was awarded the G3S Startup Stipend to realize a research project titled “When it Rains, it Pours” - exploring the conflicting logics or sustainable and economic development in the African city of Mombasa, Kenya. The project in supervised by Prof. Dr. Jon Schubert at the University of Basel’s Urban Studies division.
The MAS focuses on the assessment of housing challenges and on the affordability, effectiveness and sustainability of a wide range of housing and neighbourhood development strategies pursued by municipalities, cooperatives, local governments, non-governmental and governmental authorities and international organisations in different countries and contexts. Natalie’s research has thus far focused specially on the role of COVID-19 in shifting housing policy approaches in South Africa.
Esri R&D Center Zurich
2018 - current
Natalie is the product engineer for ArcGIS Urban, a web-based 3D application that supports scenario planning and impact assessment. ArcGIS Urban enables the digital transformation of city and regional planning to encourage collaboration with community stakeholders and help all groups work towards a more sustainable future. Natalie is responsible for the UX research and design of urban planning workflows, media outreach, documentation and collaboration with city planning departments.
LSE - MSc City Design & Social Science.
2017 – 2018
The MSc City Design and Social Science focuses on the relations between the physical and social organisation of cities and urban environments. We see design as a field of research, knowledge and practice that shapes urban environments, responds to urban problems, and integrates social, spatial and physical approaches to the city. I completed the program with distinction. My independent project focused on housing policy and residential research in eThekwini, South Africa. My modules included: Urban Africa, Cities People and Poverty in the South, Cities by Design, City Making: The Politics of Urban Form a Studio project and an Independent project.Additionally, I completed The Program for African Leadership and German A2/B1.
Etc.
always - forever
Outside of work, I like to create. Whether that’s filming city scenes, crocheting a scarf or sketching the buildings I visit in the cities I love. I almost always have a podcast in my ears (currently swooning over City Road and Free Birth Society) and try my best to keep up with The New York Times Best Seller List. On good days you might find me in Warrior 1. On really really good days you might find me running along the lake. But, like, really good days.