Towards sustainability in South Africa : a study of local government sustainability planning in the Cape Metropolitan Area
type: CreativeWork
description: The popular use of the term sustainability represents a consensus around the fact that society must change its path towards ecological destruction and the consequent decline in human's quality of life. Sustainability facilitates the integration of environmental issues, previously seen as radical and disruptive, into mainstream political, social and economic discourse. The term therefore represents a transitional tool which will lead society from its current non-sustainable phase to greater sustainability. At present the most successful action for change is being initiated from the local level through local sustainability planning. Sustainability planning represents an alternative approach to local government decision-making based on the principles of sustainability. Many countries are experiencing success with local sustainability planning initiatives such as Healthy Cities and Local Agenda 21. These initiatives represent generic approaches to sustainability planning. This thesis contends that a more successful approach could be gained through tailoring strategic planning to local contexts. The challenge is to design a framework that meets the needs of the specific socio-economic, legislative and institutional contexts of a given area. South Africa's discriminatory socio-political history has resulted in major social and environmental legacies, especially amongst the marginalised and poor sectors of society. These legacies must be understood and addressed in order to carry-out successful sustainability planning processes. Since 1994 sustainability in South Africa has received significant attention in the legislation which has emanated from the democratic government. The legal framework for sustainability is provided by a progressive Constitution [Act 108 of 1996]. The Constitution provides clear objectives for environmental management. Furthering the framework for environmental management set out in the Constitution is the National Environmental Management Act [Act …
abstract: The popular use of the term sustainability represents a consensus around the fact that society must change its path towards ecological destruction and the consequent decline in human's quality of life. Sustainability facilitates the integration of environmental issues, previously seen as radical and disruptive, into mainstream political, social and economic discourse. The term therefore represents a transitional tool which will lead society from its current non-sustainable phase to greater sustainability. At present the most successful action for change is being initiated from the local level through local sustainability planning. Sustainability planning represents an alternative approach to local government decision-making based on the principles of sustainability. Many countries are experiencing success with local sustainability planning initiatives such as Healthy Cities and Local Agenda 21. These initiatives represent generic approaches to sustainability planning. This thesis contends that a more successful approach could be gained through tailoring strategic planning to local contexts. The challenge is to design a framework that meets the needs of the specific socio-economic, legislative and institutional contexts of a given area. South Africa's discriminatory socio-political history has resulted in major social and environmental legacies, especially amongst the marginalised and poor sectors of society. These legacies must be understood and addressed in order to carry-out successful sustainability planning processes. Since 1994 sustainability in South Africa has received significant attention in the legislation which has emanated from the democratic government. The legal framework for sustainability is provided by a progressive Constitution [Act 108 of 1996]. The Constitution provides clear objectives for environmental management. Furthering the framework for environmental management set out in the Constitution is the National Environmental Management Act [Act …
author: Hassall, Zoë L
language: eng
date published: 2000
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:23:36Z
provider: University of Cape Town
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Department of Environmental and Geographical Science

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/7676