scholarly journals Sanitation Upgrading as Climate Action: Lessons for Local Government from a Community Informal Settlement Project in Cape Town

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8598
Author(s):  
Alma Elisabeth Peirson ◽  
Gina Ziervogel
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Institutional Contexts ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

In light of the increasing call for climate action, there is a growing body of literature studying the ways in which informal settlements in the Global South are adapting to the impacts of climate change. In these particularly vulnerable communities where the existing infrastructural vulnerabilities faced by residents are exacerbated by the hazards of climate change, multi-level approaches involving more inclusive forms of governance are needed for the implementation of climate action. Drawing from the case of a sanitation upgrading project in the informal settlement of Murray, located in Philippi, Cape Town, this paper adds to current understandings of multi-level rapid climate action in informal settlements by endeavouring to address two gaps in this body of literature. Firstly, this paper demonstrates a link between climate change and sanitation which has received little attention by showing that improving sanitation infrastructure makes communities more resilient to extreme weather events associated with climate change. Secondly, the paper addresses how and by whom rapid climate action can be implemented in complex socio-institutional contexts such as informal settlements where the impacts of climate change are felt particularly strongly. This paper identifies what enabled and constrained climate action in the Murray informal settlement in an attempt to provide lessons for local government from the case of the sanitation upgrading project. Bottom-up initiation of multi-level climate action is dependent on fragile partnerships which require the support and involvement of a skilled and dedicated local government. Nevertheless, co-operative and transparent engagements across levels hold the potential to contribute to transformative adaptation through the establishment of new partnerships and forms of governance which recognise community groups as legitimate stakeholders and acknowledge the importance of lived experiences and mentalities.

scholarly journals TRANSFORMASI ADAPTASI BANGUNAN DI PERMUKIMAN INFORMAL TEPI SUNGAI KAHAYAN

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 57
Author(s):  
Nindita Kresna Murti ◽  
Atiek Suprapti ◽  
Agung Budi Sardjono
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Global Environment ◽  
River Bank ◽  
Building Adaptation ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The City ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

Abstract: Many informal settlements in Indonesia have been unable to survive, this is due to changes that occur in the neighborhood. This change resulted in the not surviving of informal settlements, but this did not affect the informal settlements in the city of Palangkaraya, settlements on the banks of the Kahayan river were even more developed, and began to develop towards the mainland.As climate change and the global environment increase, there is a tendency for people to conceptualize adaptation in residential buildings as a process of survival and how adaptation is practiced by people who face the negative impacts of climate change, for example in informal settlements on the Kahayan river bank, where residents adapt to building their homes to be able to withstand environmental changes. Where the neighborhood is located there are tides of the river, as well as other environmental factorsThis study is to find out how the Kahayan River settlement communities can survive, with changes that occur in the environment by analyzing using 6 strategies in building adaptation, namely: Adjustable, Versatile, Refitable, Convertible, Scalable, and Movable (Robert Schmid, 2009). Adaptation that occurs in these settlements, namely on building houses that follow climate change, times, and the environment.Keyword: Informal Settlements, Kahayan River Edge, Adaptation, Transformation.Abstrak: Permukiman Informal di Indonesia banyak yang sudah tidak dapat bertahan, hal ini di karenakan adanya perubahan yang terjadi di lingkungan permukiman tersebut. Perubahan ini berakibat tidak bertahannya permukiman informal, namun hal ini tidak mempengaruhi permukiman informal di Kota Palangkaraya, permukiman yang berada di tepi sungai kahayan ini malah semakin berkembang, dan mulai berkembang menuju ke daratan.Seiring dengan meningkatnya perubahan iklim dan lingkungan global, ada kecenderungan masyarakat untuk membuat konsep adaptasi pada bangunan rumah tinggal sebagai proses untuk bertahan dan bagaimana adaptasi dipraktikkan oleh orang-orang yang menghadapi dampak negatif perubahan iklim, sebagai contoh pada permukiman informal yang berada di tepi sungai Kahayan, di mana warga beradaptasi pada bangunan rumah mereka untuk dapat bertahan terhadap perubahan lingkungan. Di mana lingkungan permukiman ini terdapat pasang surut air sungai, serta faktor lingkungan lainnya.Penelitian ini untuk mengetahui cara masyarakat permukiman tepi Sungai Kahayan dapat bertahan, dengan perubahan yang terjadi di lingkungan dengan menganalisa menggunakan 6 strategi dalam adaptasi bangunan, yaitu: Adjustable, Versatile, Refitable, Convertible, Scalable, dan Movable (Robert Schmid, 2009). Adaptasi yang terjadi pada permukiman ini, yaitu pada bangunan rumah yang mengikuti perubahan iklim, jaman, dan lingkungan.Kata Kunci: Permukiman Informal, Tepi  Sungai Kahayan, Adaptasi, Transformasi.

scholarly journals Policy options for addressing climate change, with a focus on ecosystem based adaptation: a case study of Guyana

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramesh Lilwah
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Public Awareness ◽  
Extreme Weather ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Resource Sector ◽  
Adaptation Method ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

Close to ninety percent of Guyana‟s population live along a low lying coastal plain, which is below sea level and very vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. While the national government has not yet developed a comprehensive climate policy, the potential impacts of climate change is considered in several sectoral policies, much of which emphasize mitigation, with little focus on adaptation. This research examined the current priorities for adaptation by a review of the policies within the natural resource sector to identify opportunities for adaptation, especially ecosystem based adaptation. A Diagnostic Adaptation Framework (DAF) was used to help identify approaches to address a given adaptation challenge with regards to needs, measures and options. A survey questionnaire was used to support the policy reviews and identified four key vulnerabilities: coastal floods; sea level rise; drought and extreme weather events. The application of the DAF in selecting an adaptation method suggests the need for more data on drought and extreme weather events. Coastal flooding is addressed, with recognized need for more data and public awareness for ecosystem based adaptation

scholarly journals Cascading impacts of climate change and the rights of children in Africa: A reflection on the principle of intergenerational equity

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rongedzayi Fambasayi ◽  
Michael Addaney
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Intergenerational Equity ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Sustainable Future ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

SUMMARY This article explores the manner in which climate action at the African regional level protects and promotes children's rights with considerations being had to the principle of intergenerational equity. It establishes that while the concept of intergenerational equity is entrenched in the international and African regional climate change framework for the protection of children, neither the Convention on the Rights of the Child nor the African Children's Charter mentions the concept. However, CRC and the African Children's Charter oblige states to take into consideration the views of children and protect their best interests in climate action (to ensure intergenerational equity) and in achieving a sustainable future. Using a doctrinal research method, the article examines the regional legal and institutional responses to the cascading impacts of climate change and how they safeguard children's rights to a sustainable future. It proceeds to critically analyse child rights-responsive provisions in the African Children's Charter that could potentially enhance the utility of the principle of intergenerational equity in the context of climate action in Africa. The article argues that the principle of intergenerational equity could, in theory, be used as a useful tool for the protection and promotion of the rights and interests of children from climate change impacts. Key words: children's rights; climate change; climate justice; future generations; intergenerational equity

scholarly journals Direct and indirect health impacts of climate change on the vulnerable elderly population in East China

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 295-303
Author(s):  
Pelin Kinay ◽  
Andrew P. Morse ◽  
Elmer V. Villanueva ◽  
Karyn Morrissey ◽  
Philip L. Staddon
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Elderly Population ◽  
Labour Productivity ◽  
Heat Stroke ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Extreme Weather ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
East China ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

The latest scientific advances on the impacts of climate change on the health of the elderly in East China were reviewed consulting peer-reviewed publications from 2000 to 2017. The direct impacts of climate change result from rising temperatures, heat waves, and increases in the frequency of complex extreme weather events such as windstorms, floods, and droughts. The health and social consequences of these events are far reaching, ranging from reduced labour productivity and heat-related deaths through to direct physical injury during extreme weather events, the spread of infectious diseases, and mental health effects following widespread flooding or prolonged drought. Research has indicated that climate change will have the greatest impact on vulnerable groups of people, including the elderly population. However, there is a dearth of empirical evidence, a lack of focus on vulnerable segments of the population (especially elderly), limited understanding of how health status will change in the future, and lack of acknowledgement of how different regions in China vary in terms of the consequences of climate change. The main risk in East China that climate change may exacerbate is flooding (sea level rise, coastal and riverine, flood risk). However in some regions of East China such as in the provinces of Anhui, Jiangsu, Hebei, and Shandong the biggest climate change risk is considered to be drought. Main health risks linked to climate change are evident as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases (heat stroke, exhaustion, and asthma), often caused by interactions between heat wave episodes and concurrent poor air quality.

scholarly journals Associations between Knowledge of the Causes and Perceived Impacts of Climate Change: A Cross-Sectional Survey of Medical, Public Health and Nursing Students in Universities in China

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 2650 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lianping Yang ◽  
Wenmin Liao ◽  
Chaojie Liu ◽  
Na Zhang ◽  
Shuang Zhong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Regional Universities ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

This study aimed to measure the knowledge and perceptions of medical, public health, and nursing students about climate change and its impacts, and to identify associations between the knowledge and perceptions. Data were from a nationwide cross-sectional survey of 1387 students sampled in five different regional universities in China (April–May 2017). The knowledge and perceptions of the participants were collected by self-administered questionnaires. We found that most respondents believed that climate change is generally “bad” (83%) and bad for human health (88%), while 67% believed that climate change is controllable. The vast majority of respondents acknowledged illness conditions resulting from poor air quality (95%), heat stress (93%), and extreme weather events (91%) as potential impacts of climate change. Nevertheless, only 39% recognized malnutrition as a consequence of food deprivation resulting from climate change. Around 58% of respondents could correctly identify the causes of climate change. The knowledge of the causes of climate change was not associated with the ability to recognize the health consequences of climate change. However, the knowledge of causes of climate change was a significant predictor of increased awareness of the negative impacts of climate change between the medical and nursing students, although this was not the case among their public health counterparts. Poor knowledge about the causes of climate change is evident among students in China. They are able to recognize the direct links between weather events and health, but less likely to understand the consequences involving complicated pathways. Research and training into the underlying mechanisms of health impacts of climate change needs to be strengthened.

The MobiSan approach: informal settlements of Cape Town, South Africa

2010 ◽  
Vol 61 (12) ◽  
pp. 3078-3090 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Naranjo ◽  
D. Castellano ◽  
H. Kraaijvanger ◽  
B. Meulman ◽  
A. Mels ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
User Satisfaction ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Operating Cost ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Shallow Groundwater ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Basic Sanitation ◽  
Reducing Costs

Pook se Bos informal settlement and the Cape Town Water & Sanitation Services Department are partnering on an urban sanitation project with a Dutch Consortium consisting of Lettinga Associates Foundation (LeAF), Landustrie Sneek and Vitens-Evides International. The aim of the project is to improve the basic sanitation services provided in informal settlements through the implementation of the MobiSan approach. The approach consists of a communal Urine-Diversion and Dehydration Toilet (UDDT) built in a former sea shipping container. The system is independent of water, electricity or sewerage connection and it is maintained by full-time community caretakers who also act as hygiene promoters. The project seeks to link sanitation services with hygiene promotion in informal settlements while enhancing user satisfaction and reducing costs in providing basic sanitation services. This paper describes the preliminary experiences and lessons learnt during the implementation and evaluation of the MobiSan prototype and discusses its potential for replication. The MobiSan has proved to be an appropriate option by means of dealing successfully with shallow groundwater table, land availability and high settlement densities. In addition it has been demonstrated to be cost-competitive in terms of operating cost compared to chemical toilets.

scholarly journals Youth-Led Climate Change Action: Multi-Level Effects on Children, Families, and Communities

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 12355
Author(s):  
Carlie D. Trott
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
After School ◽  
Physically Active ◽  
Left Behind ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
After School Program ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
Mental And Physical Health

Empirical studies of children’s climate change action are rare, especially beyond the formal classroom and among pre-teen youth. This mixed-methods study examined the multi-level impacts of climate action by ten- to twelve-year-olds following an after-school program that used participatory methods to encourage children’s action at household and community levels. Through surveys and focus groups, children reported engaging in a variety of climate-protective actions to reduce their energy use and waste, with some children becoming more physically active as they left behind electronics to play outdoors. Children also provided abundant examples of sharing their climate change knowledge and inspiring action among family and friends, as well as being influential in school and community settings. Findings of the present study shed light on the importance of action opportunities in climate change educational settings, not only for children’s mental and physical health, but for its transformative potential through children’s intra- and intergenerational influence.

scholarly journals "Property Purgatory"

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben Dudley Tombs ◽  
Janet Stephenson ◽  
Ben France-Hudson ◽  
Elisabeth Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Institutional Arrangements ◽  
Storm Events ◽  
Physical Damage ◽  
Value Loss ◽  
Practical Challenge ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

Climate change will place increasing numbers of homeowners in ‘property purgatory’, a state of financial insecurity arising from the foreseeability of eventual damage and uncertainty about means to recover their losses. The impacts of climate change-induced sea level rise and storm events are now certain, and exposed properties will likely incur insurance, mortgage and value loss. These effects could occur prior to physical damage, and existing inequities will be magnified. Current legal and institutional arrangements offer no clear pathway for those affected to recover funds in order to relocate themselves. We position property purgatory as an immediate practical challenge for those affected seeking to recover their losses, and as a legal question regarding undefined responsibilities of central and local government.

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