Helen Rourke

DAG’s innovative work on inclusive cities, the passion and dedication of the DAG team, and our dynamic community partners inspire me daily to work in service.

Helen is a Programme Director at the Development Action Group. Helen has over seventeen years of experience in the urban development sector. She is the current project lead for a National Programme on Land Value Capture in partnership with the National Treasury Cities Support Programme and Lincoln Institute of Land Policy geared to providing technical support and training to metros. Over the last five years Helen has worked in partnership with the City of Cape Town and local civics around neighbourhood regeneration and social housing in the inner city which has resulted in the delivery of the first transitional housing project in Cape Town. She has extensive expertise in informal settlement upgrading and regularisation, including the coordination of the NUSP socio-technical assistance to the City of Cape Town for 32 informal settlements and pioneered the Hangberg in situ upgrade in 2008.