Towards new configurations of urban energy governance in South Africa’s Renewable Energy Procurement Programme

Davies, Megan; Swilling, Mark; Wlokas, Holle Linnea

doi:10.1016/j.erss.2017.11.010

Cited by 31 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Areas of concern noted include engagement with local communities, the issue of defining the boundaries (50 km) of community benefit, and how to manage circumstances where nearby projects have overlapping community benefit zones. Similarly, Davies et al [ 78 ] propose that REIPPP projects should have enhanced social impacts, should be better integrated with the local economy, and that there should be greater coordination between REIPPP projects. They pose an interesting question—whether REIPPP projects should have to pay local taxes and rates to local authorities, in addition to community benefits.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An inter-disciplinary approach to the energy transition in South Africa

Todd

McCauley

2021

Discov Sustain

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The compelling need to tackle climate change is well-established. It is a challenge which is being faced by all nations. This requires an approach which is truly inter-disciplinary in nature, drawing on the expertise of politicians, social scientists, and technologists. We report how the pace of the energy transition can be influenced significantly by both the operation of societal barriers, and by policy actions aimed at reducing these effects. Using the case study of South Africa, a suite of interviews has been conducted with diverse energy interests, to develop and analyse four key issues pertinent to the energy transition there. We do so primarily through the lens of delivering energy justice to that society. In doing so, we emphasise the need to monitor, model, and modify the dynamic characteristic of the energy transition process and the delivery of energy justice; a static approach which ignores the fluid nature of transition will be insufficient. We conclude that the South African fossil fuel industry is still impeding the development of the country’s renewable resources, and the price of doing so is being met by those living in townships and in rural areas.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An inter-disciplinary approach to the energy transition in South Africa

Todd

McCauley

2021

Discov Sustain

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“…However, in 2008, South Africa went through a supply crisis that pointed to its unsustainable dependency on coal. Being the largest greenhouse emitter in Africa, South Africa is pursuing initiatives such as the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Program (REIPPP) to meet demand and mitigate environmental degradation [12].…”

Section: Sustainable Energy For All?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As such, Energy transition studies focus on the socio-technological, spatial and even political interactions between micro, meso, and macro levels of energy governance and access. Borrowing from the multi-level perspective approach, such studies look at how energy regimes at the meso levels are challenged by niche innovations at the micro-level and by policy and capital landscapes at the macro-level [12,36].…”

Section: Co-designing Energy Solutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mediating household energy transitions through co-design in urban Kenya, Uganda and South Africa

Ambole

Musango

Buyana

et al. 2019

Energy Research & Social Science

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Approaches to providing sustainable energy in cities have generated considerable interest in academic and policy circles. The development of this body of work, however, has not shed much light on the modes of intermediation that are needed to reconfigure urban energy systems towards sustainability in energy-poor countries. This paper focuses on the role of academics as knowledge intermediaries who can trigger cross-sector collaborations around innovations for a sustainable energy transition in African cities. The research presented here was generated by an interdisciplinary research team made up of partners in Kenya, Uganda and South Africa. The research partners set out to better understand how sustainable energy transitions can be achieved through collaborative efforts between community members, experts and policy actors in the three countries. This paper provides evidence-based reflections on how the research partners used participatory methods to facilitate solution co-design and knowledge co-production over a period of two years under the Leading Integrated Research for Agenda 2030 in Africa (LIRA 2030) program. A key knowledge outcome of the research partnership is an improved understanding of how transdisciplinary research across the sub-region can be used to unearth the socio-spatial, cultural and political dimensions of energy in relation to other urban services such as health and housing. Based on this understanding, the paper proposes transdisciplinary co-design as a promising approach to providing sustainable energy in urban informal settlements in Sub-Saharan Africa."…leaders in government, the private sector and civil society to drive further, faster action toward achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 7, which calls for universal access to sustainable energy by 2030, and the Paris Climate Agreement, which calls for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to limit climate warming to below 2 degrees Celsius." [3].Launched at the UN General assembly in 2011, SEforALL has three main objectives of: "ensuring universal access to modern energy services, doubling the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency, and doubling the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix." (ibid).This paper focuses on the role of academics in this push for sustainable energy for all. As knowledge intermediaries, academics are well placed to facilitate cross-sector collaborations around innovations for sustainable energy transition, more so in the case of African cities that are some of the fasted growing in the world [4]. We reflect on our own work as knowledge intermediaries and integrators by situating our

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“…Already South Africa has been criticised for its insufficient progress towards the attainment of the country’s NDC targets [16] . There is concern about its renewable energy programme, including ongoing delays [17] , a poor outcome relative to the intended targets for economic development [18] , and general deficiencies in the implementation of off-grid solar home systems [19] , [20] , [21] . The government has also significantly alleviated the impact of a recently introduced carbon tax, and is failing to adequately resource the realisation of its NDCs [10] .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%