In this dissertation I argue that the notion of environmental justice is recognised by section 24 of the Constitution, forms part of our law, and could play a role in South African socio-economic rights litigation as a transformative tool. I assert that because environmental justice recognises the intrinsic links between the distribution of basic resources and the environments in which poor people continue to find themselves in post 1994 South Africa, it has the ability to enhance and strengthen the enforcement of socio-economic rights. Environmental justice can do so by, among other things, focussing the court‟s mind on questions of justice and equity in the context of previous unjust environmental decision-making. In chapter 1, I explore the origins of environmental justice as a conceptual framework and as a movement that first emerged in the United States, and was subsequently embraced in the early post-apartheid era in response to immense environmental injustices experienced by South Africa‟s poor black majority as a result of apartheid. I discuss how many of these injustices not only „linger on‟ in post 1994 South Africa, but have also arguably become more entrenched, representing a failure on the part of the hopeful environmental justice movement of the early post-apartheid era. I highlight some of the reasons for this failure, which include the fragmented nature of the environmental justice movement, changes in government policy in relation to environmental issues, and the inadequate implementation of environmental laws intended to ensure public participation. In spite of these set backs, I argue in chapter 2 that there remains room for environmental justice to play a role in transformative constitutionalism. I then demonstrate that, despite environmental justice having been incorporated into our law, it has failed to capture the imagination of lawyers engaged in socio-economic rights litigation. Sustainable development and human rights discourses have thus far been the dominant voices in socio-economic rights litigation, at the expense of environmental justice, and its transformative potential. In chapter 3, I analyse Mazibuko v City of Johannesburg, which concerned the right to free basic water under section 27 of the Constitution. In my analysis of Mazibuko, I align myself with those who criticise the court‟s approach as anti-transformative. I do so by demonstrating that the court ii „technicised‟, „personalised‟, „proceduralised‟ and so, „depoliticised‟ the applicants‟ challenge to the government‟s policy. In this way, the court endorsed the „commodification‟ of water, and a „neo-liberal paradigm‟ towards access to basic water. I point to how linking environmental justice to the right to access to basic water could have encouraged the court to adopt a more redistributive and transformative approach. Finally, in chapter 4, I conclude by considering the future role of environmental justice in socio-economic rights litigation to enhance the ability of the environmental right to challenge poverty and effect transformation in the lives of poor people in South Africa. / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / Public Law / Unrestricted

Stories are a vehicle through which experiences and events are communicated amongst people. Stories have the potential to influence people’s understandings and beliefs, and essentially, promote a societal and cultural change. Grounded in literature pointing to the value of narrative in supporting learning and the need to explore new modes of communicating science, this study explores the potential of narrative in science education. The aim was to explore the use of a Story-Based Learning Design in a Grade 4 Science and Technology classroom. Using a qualitative case study research design the researcher took on the role of participant-observer. Data were collected through observations, learner verbal and written descriptions of a final product and teacher reflective interviews. The findings of this study illustrate the value of stories, as learning tools, in science education. In this regard pertinent conclusions were derived, namely, that stories attract learners and have the potential to be used as a vehicle for learning scientific concepts and the target vocabulary, that stories enable learners to make meaning of abstract concepts and relate it to their world and finally that the use of the imagination assists learners to visualise concepts making learning relevant.

This study was concerned with selecting methods drawn from ecology and ethology that could be applied to evaluating the behaviour of people in downtown public places. Time-sampling and behavioural mapping proved to be useful objective methods of observing and recording people's activities in four public places in Vancouver, British Columbia. Information on user activities was applied to evaluate the relationship between behaviour and the physical environment in a park, a square and two plazas. In each place there were examples of the impact of environmental factors such as sun direction, shadow patterns, wind tunnels, and edge conditions on the location and the intensity of user activities. Too often the design of urban spaces has not been sympathetic to the reactions of people to their surroundings. This inadequacy has brought about a lack of use of these spaces. Traditional techniques of behavioural research have not been able to improve this situation. The observational approach developed here is capable of providing objective information on the ways in which physical surroundings affect people's activities. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate

The thesis analysis business environment in Namibia regarding PEST analysis. That means it focuses on detail description of political, economic, socio-cultural and technological environment. Namibia gained independence in 1990 and belongs among the more developed Sub-Saharan countries. The analysis desrcibes the development of namibian economy in last 20 years with accent put on recent years.

Field research methodology was employed to describe how the personal practical knowledge of three art teachers has helped shape their junior secondary artrooms. Through interviews, photographic analysis, and participant observation a description of each site is provided to show that some aspects of each teacher's practical knowledge find expression in the artroom environment. Each artroom had its own distinctive features, but what held these three sites in common was the way in which practical knowledge functioned in the design of the flexible elements of the room's environment. Each teacher employed specific coping strategies to manage the classroom and increase their sense of comfort in their professional role. An image of an artroom was held by each teacher which both directly and indirectly influenced their decisions about artroom design. The findings were used to construct a conceptual framework relating practical knowledge and the artroom to the teacher's personal history and the limitations imposed on the artroom by school life and the room's physical limitations. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Leaves 275 to 280 do not exist / Graduate

The effect of separated home background on students' perception of the school environment as measured by the School Environment Assessment Scales (SEAS) is explored. Three hypotheses are advanced. The first proposes that students from separated homes will have a different perception of the school environment when compared with students of intact homes. The second suggests that there will be a difference in perception depending on the age of the student when parental separation took place. The third hypothesis indicates that there will be a difference in perception between male and female students of separated homes. In the first part of the study, 120 students from separated homes are compared with 120 students from intact homes. Results from this comparison demonstrate that there is a statistically significant difference at the .01 probability level between these two groups of students on Authoritarian Press, one of the eight SEAS scales. Contrary to expectations; students from separated homes perceived the school environment as less authoritarian. On the seven remaining SEAS scales, there is no statistically significant difference between these two groups. However, there is some indication that students from separated homes perceived a few more aspects of the school environment in a more favorable way. This more positive perception, even though conjectural in nature, cannot be neglected; implications of this trend are explored. In the second part of the study, intra-group comparisons on 117 students from separated homes on two variables, age at onset of parental separation and sex, are examined. There is no statistically significant difference on any of the SEAS scales between students whose parents separated when they were age 0-6, and students who were over age 6. On the variable sex, the female group scored significantly higher on two scales. On the Heterosexual Social Expression Scale, the level of significance reached the .01 level. On the Creative Self-Expression Scale, the level of significance reached the .05 level. Females perceived themselves as being more encouraged to interact with members of the opposite sex, and as being more encouraged to express themselves creatively. On the other six SEAS scales, there is no statistically significant difference between male and female groups. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

No description available.

In examining the opportunities that lie within the larger context of Haitian development efforts, mending the strained environment upon which Haiti’s fragile rural agricultural sector depends must be a priority. Though related to other pieces of the Haitian reconstruction puzzle, the question of mending the Haitian environment comes down largely to the best way trees can be incorporated into Haiti’s existing agricultural systems. With this in mind, the purpose of this thesis was to complete an analysis of the work and practices of the community organizations of Borgne, Haiti. The organizations of Borgne have mobilized toward environmental development and the preservation of remaining natural resources through a community-wide tree-planting initiative that provides thousands of trees per year to local residents. Beyond an ethnographic assessment, this thesis explores greater implications of the project as a grassroots development model that may potentially be replicated by other communities and organizations throughout Haiti. Field research was completed on site in Borgne in the summer months of 2010. The primary methods employed in data collection were Participatory Action Research and semi-structured interviewing.

No description available.

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