In recent years the centre has focused on ’urban materialities’ and the place of the poor in South African cities, including how material realities of contemporary cities (their built environments at different scales, access to urban goods and central spaces, consternations about urban physical and political orders) affect urban citizens, particularly marginalized groups.

CUBES activities include collective research programmes, individual members’ expertise and institutional partnerships.

CUBES organises urban research-oriented events, conferences, exhibitions and the Faces of the City Seminar series (run weekly, jointly with the NRF Chair on Spatial Change and the Gauteng City Region Observatory, GCRO).

CUBES hosts workshops involving junior and senior researchers to enable focused discussion and mutual learning on identified research themes.

CUBES runs community-oriented City Studios, which link research, engagement/activism and teaching/learning in the School.