The ideation process is one of the most challenging components of the design process for students in Higher Education. Many students struggle with a lack of inspiration and confidence due to the need for perfection, which demotivates them to share or develop their ideas fully. Traditional ideation techniques often feel repetitive or restrictive, resulting in frustration and disengagement.

In exploring the significance of metropolitan open space systems in building meaningful city brands, the researcher utilised Visual Narrative Inquiry to explore the opinions, perceptions and lived experiences of Durban residents and its’ metropolitan open space system. As a design-based practitioner, the researcher grappled with finding suitable ‘meaning-making’ methodologies that would answer to both the academic rigour required of a master’s dissertation as well as their own needs to visually make sense of the ideas, theories, models, and metrices.