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I am Jérôme Chenal, an architect and urban planner working on African cities: research, teaching and projects.
Biography, roles, teaching, background, press kit and contact: it is all on this page.
Biography
Jérôme Chenal is an architect (EPF, 1999) and holds a doctorate in science from EPFL (2009). A Senior Scientist at EPFL, accredited to supervise doctoral theses, he has directed the Urban and Regional Planning Community (CEAT) since 2014 and the Excellence in Africa Center (EXAF) since 2018.
His research focuses on urban design, planning and management, particularly in African cities. He is the author of La ville ouest-africaine. Modèles de planification de l’espace urbain (MētisPresses, 2013) and co-edited Quelques rues d’Afrique (2009) and Learning from the Slums for the Development of Emerging Cities (Springer, 2016). His bibliography lists more than 400 references.
An international consultant since 2000, he has worked in many African countries, from Senegal to Kenya and from Mauritania to South Africa. He founded Jérôme Chenal SàRL in 2004 and directs the consultancy Naxa Global.
He co-directs the Master of Advanced Studies in urban planning of EPFL and the University of Geneva and teaches the planning of African cities through the “Villes africaines” MOOC series. He chairs the board of the African Cities Lab and the Biennale Africaine d’Architecture et d’Urbanisme (BAAU), edits the African Cities Journal and sits on the board of Université Senghor in Alexandria. He hosts the video podcast African Cities Voices.
Areas of expertise
- Urban design
- Urban planning
- Urban management
- Public space
- Housing
- Development studies
- Visual anthropology
Countries of work (selection)
- Senegal
- Côte d’Ivoire
- Cameroon
- Morocco
- Mauritania
- Mali
- Benin
- Congo
- DR Congo
- Rwanda
- Kenya
- Tanzania
- Zambia
- South Africa
Roles
- DirectorUrban and Regional Planning Community (CEAT), EPFLsince 2014
- DirectorExcellence in Africa Center (EXAF), EPFLsince 2018
- Senior ScientistEPFL, accredited to supervise doctoral thesessince 2015
- Chair of the BoardAfrican Cities Labsince 2020
- PresidentBiennale Africaine d’Architecture et d’Urbanisme (BAAU)
- EditorAfrican Cities Journal
Boards, committees and networks
- Chair of the Board, IDEE21since 2010
- Board member, Université Senghor, Alexandriasince 2025
- Board and scientific committee member, Swiss Centre for Scientific Research Foundation (CSRS), Abidjansince 2020
- Scientific committee and Western Europe regional expert committee, Agence universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF)since 2018
- Advisory committee on solar energy and energy efficiency, Canton of Vaudsince 2014
- Member of the Board, REG Foundation
- Founding member, R-EMU — research network on urban planning professions
- Member, Développement territorial networksince 2016
- Member of SIA (Vaud section) and FSU, Swiss Federation of Urban Plannerssince 2000
Teaching
Continuing education, online courses and teaching at EPFL. Around a hundred master’s theses supervised since 2014.
Continuing education programmes
- since 2017Co-director, Master of Advanced Studies (MAS) in urban planningEPFL and University of Geneva
- since 2017Head of the CAS “Urban project and spatial planning”EPFL and University of Geneva, with Géraldine Pflieger
- since 2017Head of the CAS “Operational urbanism and urban operators”EPFL and University of Geneva, with Laurent Matthey
- since 2017Director, Certificate of Open Studies (COS) “Management and planning of African cities”EPFL
“Villes africaines” MOOCs (in French)
- Introduction to urban planning — Coursera, also an EPFL master course (AR-462)
- Upgrading informal settlements — with Isagha Diagana, University of Nouakchott
- Environment and sustainable development — with N’Diékhor Yemadji, University of N’Djamena
- Urban mobility and transport — with Pape Sakho, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar
- Urban management and planning — edX and African Cities Lab
Courses at EPFL
- Introduction to spatial planning (2018–2022)
- Global Issues: Mobility (2021–2025)
- Urban planning in the Global South (AR-364), bachelor
- Land subdivisions in Africa (AR-268), bachelor
- Housing and sustainable urban development (AR-465), master, with Jean-Claude Bolay and Yves Pedrazzini
- Tools of urban planning, doctoral course in Architecture and Sciences of the City (2016–2017)
Books
La ville ouest-africaine
Modèles de planification de l’espace urbain
Jérôme Chenal
MētisPresses, Geneva, 2013
See the bookLearning from the Slums for the Development of Emerging Cities
Jean-Claude Bolay, Jérôme Chenal and Yves Pedrazzini (eds.)
Springer, GeoJournal Library, 2016
See the bookQuelques rues d’Afrique
Observation et gestion de l’espace public à Abidjan, Dakar et Nouakchott
Jérôme Chenal, Yves Pedrazzini, Guéladio Cissé and Vincent Kaufmann (eds.)
Les éditions du LaSUR, Lausanne, 2009
See the book
Background
- 1999Architect EPF (MArch)Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1999–2000Urban planning associateRWB consulting engineers
- 2000–2004Project manager, international departmentUrbaplan — architecture, urban planning and infrastructure
- 2003Postgraduate certificateUrban ecology, governance and resource management — University of Lausanne
- 2004Founded Jérôme Chenal SàRLUrban planning expertise; international consultant since 2000
- 2004–2012Research associateUrban Sociology Laboratory (LaSUR), EPFL
- 2009Doctor of Science (PhD)EPFL — thesis “Urbanization, Urban Planning, and City Models in West Africa: Dynamics and Challenges of Public Space”
- 2010–2012Visiting researcherDevelopment Planning Unit, University College London — housing supply in India and Senegal
- 2012–2013Project manager, Urban System EngineeringEPFL — setting up an urban engineering programme
- 2014Director of CEATEPFL
- 2015Senior ScientistEPFL, accredited to supervise doctoral theses
- 2018Director of the Excellence in Africa CenterEPFL — EPFL’s major Africa projects
- 2021Director of Naxa GlobalConsultancy — Switzerland, Nepal, Morocco
Initiatives
- African Cities Network The African Cities family: Lab, Journal, Junior, Experts, Voices, Wiki Archi, Innovation and SenseCity Africa.
- African Cities Lab Online courses, MOOCs and a community to act on urban change. Jérôme Chenal chairs its board.
- African Cities Journal A bilingual scholarly journal on African cities.
- African Cities Voices The video podcast: architects and practitioners on how African cities are made.
- Naxa Global Consultancy led by Jérôme Chenal since 2021: territories and digital transformation (Switzerland, Nepal, Morocco).
- Jérôme Chenal SàRL Urban planning expertise in Africa, founded in 2004 in Lausanne.
Press kit
Texts and a portrait to introduce Jérôme Chenal in an article, a conference programme or a press release.
Short bio · 45 words
Jérôme Chenal is an architect and urban planner. A Senior Scientist at EPFL, he directs the Urban and Regional Planning Community (CEAT) and the Excellence in Africa Center (EXAF). He chairs the board of the African Cities Lab and focuses his work on African cities.
Long bio · 207 words
Jérôme Chenal is an architect (EPF, 1999) and holds a doctorate in science from EPFL (2009). A Senior Scientist at EPFL, accredited to supervise doctoral theses, he has directed the Urban and Regional Planning Community (CEAT) since 2014 and the Excellence in Africa Center (EXAF) since 2018.
His research focuses on urban design, planning and management, particularly in African cities. He is the author of La ville ouest-africaine. Modèles de planification de l’espace urbain (MētisPresses, 2013) and co-edited Quelques rues d’Afrique (2009) and Learning from the Slums for the Development of Emerging Cities (Springer, 2016). His bibliography lists more than 400 references.
An international consultant since 2000, he has worked in many African countries, from Senegal to Kenya and from Mauritania to South Africa. He founded Jérôme Chenal SàRL in 2004 and directs the consultancy Naxa Global.
He co-directs the Master of Advanced Studies in urban planning of EPFL and the University of Geneva and teaches the planning of African cities through the “Villes africaines” MOOC series. He chairs the board of the African Cities Lab and the Biennale Africaine d’Architecture et d’Urbanisme (BAAU), edits the African Cities Journal and sits on the board of Université Senghor in Alexandria. He hosts the video podcast African Cities Voices.
Contact
For interviews, talks, teaching or collaborations:
Interviews and talks in French and English.