Tourism in Lephalale, South Africa: A Just and Sustainable Future?
While there is a sizeable amount of research surrounding coal mining within South Africa, there is extremely limited literature exploring the ties between extraction, tourism and social justice. This thesis aims to fill this research gap by investigating tourism in Lephalale, South Africa not only as a sustainable substitute to an extractive reliant economy, but also a means to foster community in light of the nation’s new climate goals and decolonizing ambitions. Home to the world’s largest open pit coal mine and remarkable bushveld scenery, Lephalale’s economy is simultaneously underpinned by extraction and eco-tourism. However, through this Feminist Political Ecology analysis, large contradictions arise within Lephalale’s development agenda. Paradoxically, coal extraction serves as the backbone of the region, yet the sheer power of the mining industry suppresses municipal autonomy and potential visions of a sustainable, just future. Tourism, predominately in the form of game farming, is currently positioned to offset the environmental harms of mining but is also highly problematic, as its exclusive nature conceals the continuation of colonial oppression and ecological depletion. Resultantly, this thesis challenges the normative development paradigm within Lephalale and looks to foster community-based solutions, sourced from local participants’ alternative imaginations of the future.
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