Climate geoengineering technologies are being increasingly investigated by Earth system science researchers to mitigate climate change. Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI) is one such option that is popularly debated as a potential measure to offset anthropogenic warming, while signatories of the Paris Agreement make efforts to reduce emissions and limit warming to 1.5°C. Most modelling studies to date have assessed the projected impact of SAI on global and regional scales, while a little has been done at country scale. Similarly, research into the effectiveness of varying injection characteristics is limited especially in a developing world. As a developing country rife with inequality, poverty, and disease burden, South Africa is highly susceptible to the increasing frequency and magnitude of temperature and precipitation extremes due to anthropogenic warming. The aim of this study is to investigate how SAI deployment would influence temperature and precipitation extremes over South Africa's climatic zones in the future (2075–2095). Climate model simulations from the Geoengineering Large Ensemble (GLENS) project are used to conduct a comparative analysis of what a future with and without SAI (under Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5 (RCP8.5) would look like in South Africa. Using a selection of extreme temperature and precipitation indices from the “Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices” (ETCCDI), the impact of three SAI feedback experiments (GLENS, Equatorial SAI and Lower SAI) is investigated to provide insight into the effectiveness of different injection characteristics. The results indicate that in a future without SAI, the frequency of hot nights (TN90P: +45-60%) and hot days (TX90P: +15-50%) would increase, with north-east SAF projected to become the most vulnerable to extreme warming. Heavy precipitation days (R10MM) and total precipitation (PRCPTOT) are projected to decrease across most SAF's climatic zones (–0.5-2 days/year and –20-70 mm/year, respectively). The KwaZulu-Natal coast is the only region with projected increases in the number of heavy precipitation days and total precipitation (up to +2.5 days/year and +70 mm/year, respectively), and subsequent flood conditions. Overall, all three SAI feedback experiments (to varying degrees) are projected to reduce temperature and precipitation anomalies over SAF. SAI is projected to trigger a nationwide cooling effect with increased frequency of cool nights (TN10P: +1-4%) and cool days (TX10P: up to +3%). This could alleviate heat-induced strain on human health, agricultural production, and the harsh effects of climate extremes on South Africa's most vulnerable communities. The projected general reductions in PRCPTOT (–10-60%) and R10MM (–1-4 days/year) could have negative implications for water security and agricultural production for the country. Injecting sulfate aerosols into the Equatorial and Lower stratosphere could cause larger decreases in precipitation extremes than in the feedback experiment. These findings should be read with caution as they are specific to the types of SAI deployed in the GLENS project.

Coastal communities are dependent on marine resources which provide their households with food and income. Fishing communities are considered the poorest of the poor and face many challenges that render them vulnerable. Climate change further exacerbates these challenges making fishing communities amongst the most vulnerable groups to coastalrelated risks including sea-level rise and extreme weather events. Often, these fishing communities are neglected and excluded from policies and decisions concerning coastal and fisheries management as well as climate change adaptation. Management is often fragmented across institutions that are mandated to govern coastal resources and coastal areas. The study uses Buffeljagsbaai as a case study lens to understand the nature of coastal risks faced by marginalized coastal communities on the south west coast of the Western Cape Province in South Africa. It investigates how coastal risks related to climatic, social and economic factors affect livelihoods and examines the roles of various institutions in responding to, engaging with, and supporting the Buffeljagsbaai community as they confront coastal risks. Qualitative data collection methods were used to address the objectives of this study and included semi-structured interviews with community members and officials in relevant government institutions, as well as facilitated a community focus group discussions and participant observation. The analysis revealed coastal- related risks have a major impact on the livelihoods of coastal communities. However, over time, the community has diversified their livelihoods in order to adapt to these risks. Findings reveal that women in the case study site have developed more diverse livelihoods making them more resilient to climate change than the fishermen, who are largely dependent on fishing and are consequently more vulnerable to coastal- related risks. In addition, the community has not been given access to coastal resources and where permits have been issued, these have many restrictions. As a result, the community has resorted to “poaching” to provide food and an income for their households. The government institutions that are responsible for various aspects of resource management, disaster risk reduction, poverty alleviation and socio-economic development, are largely absent in the community. The lack of government presence in and support to this community, also referred to as limited statehood, has led to distrust and the reliance on non-governmental organisations and other stakeholders to fill this gap.

Screening is an essential stage within the environmental impact assessment (EIA) process. In this stage, the type and scale of the environmental assessment are determined based on the potential environmental impacts of a development. The South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFFE) has implemented a national web-based spatial screening tool which became mandatory when applying for environmental authorisation as of October 2019. The screening tool identifies environmental sensitivities and prescribes the relevant specialist assessments associated with a development footprint. Since the introduction of the screening tool, environmental assessment professionals' (EAProfs') perceptions regarding the functioning of the tool remain undetermined. Therefore, this research project aims to undertake a preliminary assessment of EAProfs' perceptions of the screening tool's accuracy and utility. A mixed-methods approach involving interviews and an online survey was used to collect qualitative and quantitative data from EAProfs, respectively. The research findings reveal mixed perceptions of the screening tool but with some more unequivocal findings. The results suggest EAProfs generally do not believe the screening tool accurately assigns sensitivity ratings for the various biodiversity themes. In terms of utility, the research found that EAProfs hold a neutral opinion meaning they do not believe the screening tool is useful or not useful, as per the survey. The interviews revealed that several EAProfs believe that the screening tool increases the time and costs of the EIA process, adding nuance to the survey results. Based on these findings, a recommended solution to the accuracy issues is to implement a specialist feedback loop. Additionally, better communication from the DFFE on the process of assigning sensitivity ratings could also enhance perceptions. A potential way forward is for the screening tool to adopt a less prescriptive and more voluntary approach, as used by CapeFarmMapper and Ireland's Environmental Sensitivity Mapping Webtool. Lastly, this research opens avenues for further work on how the accuracy and utility of the screening tool can be improved.

Kelp are large seaweeds that provide a variety of contributions to humans and the environment. In South Africa, kelps forests are expanding as a consequence of climate change. In light of this expansion, assessing perceptions and values around kelp may contribute to the implementation of successful marine resource management initiatives. The lack of consideration of non-market values is a gap in kelp valuation studies with kelp ecosystems and their use rarely valued outside of classical economic valuation frameworks. This study aims to fill this research gap, with the intention to elicit perceptions about other value dimensions related to kelp. The study investigates the attitudes and perceptions of value of three groups of actors' (Recreational Users and/or Coastal Community Members, Environmental Managers and Conservationists, and Kelp and/or Abalone Industry Actors) towards kelp in the Western Cape region of South Africa. This is done using the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services' (IPBES) conceptual framework, that considers: (i) kelp as a facet of nature, and (ii) kelp's contributions to people as foci of value that contribute to quality of life. The results of the study indicate that the perceived value of kelp extends far beyond its economic value as a harvested resource. Rather, actors highly value kelp's ecological and social contributions, and have strong relational values towards kelp, recognizing its role in enhancing their quality of life and well-being. Areas of dissonances in valuing kelp's contributions — such as differences in perceptions around kelp's ability to increase one's safety from extreme natural events, or its importance as a source of food and feed for domestic animals — are attributed to individuals' held values as well as their socio-demographic characteristics and situational contexts. While actors did not display significant negative perceptions around kelp, Kelp and/or Abalone Industry Actors indicated frustrations with kelp management strategies and kelp concession permit allocation processes. In turn, 27% of Kelp and/or Abalone Industry Actors perceived inequality in the kelp sector, contributing to a reduction in their appreciation of kelp. The dissertation makes a case for integrated marine resource management solutions aimed towards just and sustainable futures through the recognition of the plurality and complexity of values around kelp. A critique of the IPBES conceptual framework as a methodology is also included, suggesting that its utility is dependent on the objectives of its application. It is recommended that NCP should be considered within the context of governance and access dimensions to elicit a holistic view on assigned values and perceptions towards nature.

Entrepreneurial approaches advocated as pathways for addressing development goals of unemployment and inequality have been heavily criticised. Critical development scholarship argues that entrepreneurship for development contributes to the deepening hegemony of neoliberal logics (market and finance). I argue that there is scope to problematise the claims of the power and centrality of neoliberal economic logics by viewing these logics in relation with social ones such as trust, morality, reciprocity, exchange, justice (among others). Towards these ends, I focus on social entrepreneurship given the assertions of it being a hybrid field combining the logics of the private sector (markets, finance) with those of the state and civil society (socio-economic change) to deepen efficiency in addressing development goals. Specifically, I focus on a qualitative study based on ethnographic principles of thick description of the meso in-between scales (that is between macro-perspectives on social entrepreneurship and micro-realities of social enterprise practice) in postcolonial emerging economies of South Africa and India. The meso-scale is made up of intermediary organisations providing support services, networking spaces and knowledge to start and grow enterprises geared towards development goals. An analysis of these intermediaries enabled a view into three interlinked issues that I demonstrate in the thesis. One, applying and deploying entrepreneurial approaches like social entrepreneurship produces significant tensions as practitioners attempt to align with economic logics of market and finance, while dealing with complex development challenges. Two, the daily work of intermediaries is fraught with confusions as they attempt to balance out economic and social logics, often resulting in visible leanings towards measurable categories to manage the arising difficulties. Finally, as intermediaries navigate entangled economic and social logics, the ambivalent nature of their work emerges. It is precisely this inchoate and ambivalent nature of practice that problematises the centrality of neoliberal economic logics within development, leading to considerations that power between economic and social logics is negotiated relationally, in an on-going, uncertain manner.

Humanity is going through a complex process of historical transformation in which the consolidation of a new paradigm – Sustainable Development – is required in order to tackle current unprecedented global crises such as Climate Change and the COVID-19 pandemic. In congruence with this harsh reality, the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development can be regarded as an urgent call aimed at individuals, communities, institutions and nations, centred on the imperative need to create the structural foundations of a socially just and environmentally safe world. This research explores different ways in which contemporary music and arts festivals might operate as platforms for enhancing Sustainable Development. The central idea is to explore the way in which music and arts festivals, through strategies of socio-environmental awareness and education, community building and social participation, contribute to the consolidation of sustainable development as a new paradigm. This specific research is centred on the analysis of three organizations, Greenpop and Cape Town Carnival based in South Africa and Green Music Initiative based in Germany: organizations that actively participate in the arrangement and operation of different music and arts festivals. This selection was based on the belief that the analysis of cross-cultural cases enriches the understanding of the way in which festivals can effectively contribute to the process of encouraging the emergence and consolidation of a more sustainable world view. These three organizations are currently facing challenges and opportunities that arise from local and global processes of environmental damage and social exclusion. The key learnings of this research reflect the important role that festivals, through their promotion of creativity and community building, play in the generation of socio-environmental knowledge, in the generation of social cohesion and social capabilities, also in the experimentation and action of possible solutions to environmental global crises such as climate change and land use change. In its final section, this document also presents some of the key learnings that the festival industry has developed from the current COVID-19 pandemic and reflects upon the way in which these learnings can strengthen its role in the consolidation of the sustainable development paradigm.

Climate change has been shown to influence extreme rainfall and flooding events over many river basins, yet there is a dearth of information on how to mitigate future risks and vulnerabilities in the Incomati River Basin (IRB), a basin known for extreme devastating flood events. This thesis investigates the potential impacts of climate change on extreme hydrological events that induce flood in the Incomati River Basin (IRB). A series of climate and hydrological simulation datasets were analysed for the study. The climate simulation datasets were acquired from the Global Meteorological Forcing Dataset (GMFD) and the CO-ordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment (CORDEX), but the hydrological simulation datasets were generated with the latest version of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (called SWAT+), using GMFD and CORDEX as the climate forcing data. The CORDEX dataset was biased-corrected with GMFD, using the Quantile Delta Mapping (QDM) method. The SWAT+ was calibrated and evaluated over the basin to investigate the role of objective functions in SWAT+ calibration, four sensitivity experiments were performed using four objective functions (hereafter, 1-NSE or RMSE, 1-R 2 and PBIAS). To study the influence of the bias correction of CORDEX on hydrological simulations, the SWAT+ simulations were performed using the original and biased-corrected CORDEX datasets as the climate forcing. The impacts of climate change on the mean hydroclimate variables and on characteristics of extreme hydrological events (i.e. the intensity and frequency of extreme precipitation and streamflow events) were examined at four global warming levels (i.e. GWL1.5, GWL2.0, GWL2.5, GWL3.0) under the RCP8.5 future climate scenario. The results of the study show that SWAT+ gives realistic simulations of hydrological processes in the basin, although with notable biases in the simulated streamflow. The SWAT+ calibration over the basin is sensitive to the choice of objective function for the calibration. The calibration converges faster with 1-NSE or RMSE than with R2 or PBIAS. The performance of SWAT+ in simulating the streamflow over the basin depends on the statistical metrics used in the evaluation, while the NSE of the model SWAT+ simulation is poor (i.e. NSE ≈ -0.08) over all the stations, the PBIAS is very good (i.e. PBIAS ≈ 13.7%) at some stations. The bias correction of CORDEX datasets substantially reduces errors in the climate datasets and improves the quality of SWAT+ simulations over the basin. Moreover, it also reduces the level of uncertainty in the simulations. With global warming, a future increase in temperature is projected over the basin, but a decrease in annual precipitation is indicated over most part of the basin except at the south-west tip of the basin (i.e. around Nooitgedacht Dam), where precipitation is projected to increase. The changes in hydrological extreme events generally follows the precipitation pattern, in that, while less intense and less frequent extreme precipitation and streamflow events are projected over most parts of the basin, more intense and more frequent precipitation and streamflow are indicated in the vicinity of the dam. However, the projection also suggests that an increase in extreme precipitation and streamflow activities surrounding this water body could induce extreme streamflow events downstream of the basin. The results of this thesis have applications in mitigating the impacts of climate change on extreme hydrological events in the basin.

In recent years, the rapidly diminishing costs of renewable technologies have rendered solar photovoltaics (PV) price competitive at a range of scales. Globally, there has been an increasing proliferation of distributed renewable generation embedded within the electricity network, called Small-Scale Embedded Generation (SSEG). Yet, while such decentralised technologies have taken a central role in discussions on energy transitions in the Global North, their implications in the Global South remain poorly documented. In South Africa, the convergence of a legacy energy system, supply issues, rising electricity prices, and growing environmental awareness as well as rapid urbanisation and persistent poverty is presenting a set of compound challenges for government at all levels and threatens the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon energy system. This study investigates the implications of SSEG on Cape Town's energy transition and assesses the drivers and impacts of regulatory responses. The study adopts a multi-level perspective on sociotechnical transitions deployed at the municipal scale to explore the role of SSEG in a just and sustainable energy transition. This was done along three dimensions using an environmental justice framework proposed by Cock (2004), wherein a green agenda refers to environmental conservation, a brown agenda represents energy impacts on quality of life and development, and a red agenda represents social justice and equality. Achieving a just transition will require attention to each of the three agendas in this framework. Using data from a desktop analysis, policy review and ten semi-structured interviews to investigate the case of Cape Town, the study found that the impacts of SSEG are dependent on the contextual landscape within which this transition is situated. Regulation of SSEG is largely the result of municipal attempts to protect its financial ability to fulfil developmental mandates. Recent regulatory developments have resulted in several unintended consequences which have reduced the extent to which green energy is equitably distributed across the municipal grid, and failed to mitigate revenue impacts of SSEG, and consequently the ability of municipalities to continue developmental agendas. National landscape pressures from increasing electricity prices and continued load-shedding are driving SSEG uptake. In response to these pressures, and municipal regulation, SSEG has adapted to new niches and battery technologies have become increasingly prevalent. Left unregulated SSEG will continue to threaten the financial viability of municipalities and the extent to which the ongoing energy transition in South Africa will be just and equitable. This study contributes to an emerging social-science research agenda into socio-technical transitions and addresses the limited consideration of the implications of disruptive technologies and their regulation at the city regime scale in the Global South.

Evidence-based water resources policy management is bedevilled by the challenge of uncertainty, with increased risk of policy failure and/or unintended or negative policy outcomes. Moreover, there is increased policy management complexity emerging from related systems' interdependencies particularly between the water resources policy management system with other environmental, economic, social and political systems. Such complexity imposes external interference with the performance dynamics of water resources policy management efforts. Consequently, water resources policy management strategies in furtherance of ‘water equity' as the ultimate goal of water resources management policy in South Africa, may be misplaced. As a result, the performance of water resources management policy is unlikely to follow a linear logic of change/impact. The adoption of adaptive policy management strategies to ensure policy flexibility and efficiency is warranted especially for policies managed in the face of deep uncertainty and complexity mainly driven by the interactions and interdependencies between numerous social, economic, environmental and political variables with risk for the emergence of more unpredictable policy outcomes. Successful adaptive policy management, however, must be guided through real-time credible and comprehensive evidence, which is complicated to generate in a context plagued with deep uncertainty and complexity. Using systems mapping as a systems' analysis tool, this study identified a comprehensive list of environmental, economic, social and political variables that interactively determine water resources policy management performance towards ‘water equity'. The different environmental, economic, social and political variables that interactively influence ‘Water Equity' results as identified in this study, help to determine key policy drivers and leverage points that can be monitored and evaluated in pursuit of credible and comprehensive water resources policy planning, implementing and performance evidence. The availability of credible and comprehensive evidence, however, does not imply automatic success of the adopted adaptive strategy. The study found that there are numerous other barriers on different aspects and levels of the policy that would have to be addressed to ensure the contextual success of adaptive and integrated water resources policy management in South Africa. These include, transformational changes in substantive water resources management policy design to ensure proactive intentionality to improve water resources policy management in the face of deep uncertainty; designing institutional policy governance structures that demonstrate clear appreciation of the heterogeneous water resources management needs across the country; and active commitment to fully and timely implementation policy decisions in a manner that ensures continuous learning, capitalises on policy performance opportunities, defends working policy strategies and facilitates real-time policy corrections.

The role of collaborative urban planning approaches in addressing wicked problems and fostering climate resilience is receiving growing attention. Strong and robust governance systems, that value collaboration, are likely to contribute to managing the complex challenges African cities face. Collaboration in urban planning presents an opportunity for engaging numerous state and non-state actors to work towards more robust and durable solutions for cities. There are various factors and mechanisms that can be adopted and used in cities to encourage effective collaboration in urban planning. Maps are one such mechanism. Maps can firstly, be used to facilitate collaboration and open up conversation amongst people and secondly, can be used to analyse and understand the city. Through ICLEI Africa's Urban Natural Assets: Rivers for Life (UNA Rivers) project, urban planners and environmental officers from Malawi's Lilongwe City Council identified the need to better incorporate urban natural assets in Lilongwe City's city planning processes. This thesis aimed to determine how the process of collaborative mapping of urban natural assets might contribute to collaborative governance between state and non-state actors in the City of Lilongwe. In order to fulfil this aim, there were three objectives: a) to assess the steps and process employed in the collaborative urban natural asset hotspots mapping process; b) to investigate the role, experiences and perceptions of the actors involved; and c) to examine how and to what extent the collaboratively produced urban natural asset hotspots map has been able to inform urban planning and foster collaborative governance. To meet these three objectives this study drew on existing documents relating to the collaborative mapping process, in-depth, semi-structured interviews with targeted participants and a focus group discussion with the UNA Rivers project team members from ICLEI Africa. The results indicate that the steps in the collaborative mapping process were influenced by various factors. Firstly, the selection of participants was strategic and targeted to include key individuals who worked in departments pertaining to city planning and environmental decisions. Secondly, the data collection process undertaken to locate and map the urban natural asset hotspots in Lilongwe was influenced by the limited GIS capacity within the Lilongwe Council, which resulted in the appointment of a consultant from Conservation Research Africa by ICLEI Africa to undertake the data collection and GIS mapping process. Several conditions were found that enhanced participants' experience of the collaborative mapping process. These conditions, included flexibility in role and responsibilities of actors; the inclusion of diverse stakeholders and opinions; keeping the numbers of participants in a collaboration to a manageable size; the opportunity to build relationships and trust. The visual representation of the urban natural asset in the form of a map was well received. However, despite the numerous benefits of the collaboratively produced urban natural hotspots map, participants listed a number of reasons that it was not used extensively. These reasons include outdated city planning laws and regulations that do not refer to the map; politics surrounding the enforcement of these laws and regulations even if they were to be updated; the lack of capacity, especially in the GIS department, in order to update the maps; Lilongwe city does not have ownership of land meaning there are often intimidation tactics by developers; and limited funding to implement and mainstream the map in decision making processes. However, while the actual map might not be used to its full potential, the collaborative process changed the way certain decisions are being made in the Lilongwe City Council, especially in relation to city planning practices. This in itself is a noteworthy outcome and showcases the value of maps in aiding collaborative governance.