Admission requirements
There are no specific admission criteria. But, in view of the final attainment levels envisaged, minors are most suitable for third-year bachelor's students.
Description
The Urban Action Lab is the course of the minor where students translate their research designs into applied, community-engaged projects with real societal relevance. Working in mixed teams of Moroccan and Dutch students, participants conduct four to six weeks of intensive fieldwork in the Rabat–Salé agglomeration. They will each focus on specific themes such as housing, water and ports, landscape, mobility, heritage, etc.
Under the supervision of the course coordinator and tutors, teams apply the methods and frameworks developed in earlier courses to generate original data, engage with local actors, and co-create tangible outputs. Emphasis is placed on collaboration, reciprocity, and societal continuity. Indeed, the projects are designed not only for academic learning but to contribute meaningfully to ongoing dialogues between universities, local communities, and national institutions.
The course adopts a challenge-based learning model: students identify pressing urban issues in conversation with local inhabitants, other stakeholders and policymakers, investigate them through participatory methods, and formulate actionable recommendations. Writing skills will be trained in a specific workshop. Final outcomes may take the form of policy briefs, visual portfolios, exhibitions, short films, or reports, all of which contribute to a collective Urban Atlas of Rabat–Salé. The lab concludes with public presentations to stakeholders in Morocco, followed by the completion of final reports for assessment and potential publication.
Course objectives
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
1. Conduct and manage independent and team-based field research on urban challenges in Morocco, in also more generally.
2. Synthesize theoretical, methodological, and empirical insights from the previous courses into coherent, practice-oriented outputs.
3. Engage constructively with local communities, public institutions, and policymakers through participatory and ethical collaboration.
4. Co-create innovative solutions and scenarios for sustainable urban futures using design and analytical tools.
5. Produce and communicate a policy brief (or an equivalent applied deliverable) that demonstrates societal impact and relevance.
6. Contribute to the collective Urban Atlas of Rabat–Salé through the visualisation, documentation, and dissemination of their findings, and related generic skills.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
Fieldwork
Tutorials
Writing workshop
Assessment method
| Partial Assessment | Weighing |
|---|---|
| Policy brief | 40% |
| Final written report | 30% |
| Public presentation | 20% |
| Individual reflexive note | 10% |
Assessment remarks:
Group project output – policy brief
Final written report – collective synthesis and analytical reflection
Public presentation – oral and visual presentation to stakeholders
Individual reflexive note – critical account of learning process and teamwork
Resit, review & feedback
If the final grade is below 5.5, the student has to revise the policy brief and the final written report.
If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results and before the second exam moment takes place an exam review will have to be organized.
Reading list
Registration
Admitted students will be enrolled for the courses by the Education Administration Office Herta Mohr by the end of August / beginning of September.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the information bar on the right.
For questions about enrolment, admission, education programmes offered by NIMAR, contact the coordinator.
Remarks
Important: this course is taught at NIMAR in Rabat, Morocco.