Browsing by Author "Taylor, Anna"

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    A flood of communications in a drought: a frame analysis of the City of Cape Town's communications during the 2017-2018 water crisis
    (2020) Hill, Erin; Scott, Diane; Taylor, Anna
    Like many other urban areas around the world, Cape Town, South Africa relies on governmental management authorities to ensure water supply. Recently, a three year drought from 2015 to 2018 caused a major water shortage, threatening water supply to the city. In response, the City engaged in multiple mitigation efforts, amongst which was a major communications campaign to inform the public and encourage conservation behaviour. Drawing on literature on water crisis management and framing theory, this thesis analyses how the water crisis was framed in communications made available online by the City of Cape Town (CCT) to the public between March 2017 and March 2018. To answer this question, the project adopted a frames study approach to determine the types and characteristics of communication items released by the City of Cape Town, as the water managing authority, during the recent water crisis. The study established that a range of frames were employed by the CCT in communicating the drought. Through an analysis of the trends in the framing of the water crisis messages the study further identified the shifts in framing and messaging throughout the water crisis response period. Six key frames were identified, namely ‘the City success story'; ‘obscurity and ambiguity'; ‘consumption is key'; ‘the situation is controllable'; ‘together we can beat the drought'; and ‘us versus them'. It was found that while there may have been a lack of strategic planning regarding public communications which resulted in conflated messages, the City's communications campaign was nonetheless effective in that it correlated with a significant drop in private – individual and household – water consumption which delayed Day Zero (when water supply would be cut-off and daily water rations would only be available at collection points for the public). The key implication of this study is that despite contradictions, idiosyncrasies and lack of planning, a heterogenous range of messages in communicating a crisis can reach and evoke appropriate responses from multiple audiences of the public.
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    A systematic review of climate adaptation planning in African cities
    (2023) Madhi, Yasirah; Taylor, Anna
    In recent years the need for climate change adaptation has become increasingly important. Adaptation planning is understood to be the process by which actors identify, develop, test, and prioritise strategies and measures to reduce climate risk. In Africa, climate projections predict higher temperature increases than the rest of the globe. Africa is a rapidly urbanizing continent and its urban population is expected to rise to 59% by 2050. Thus, reducing climate risks and leveraging any emerging climate-related opportunities in cities will be a key component of tackling climate change across the continent. In the last few decades, the number of publications on climate adaptation has been increasing considerably. This growing body of climate adaptation research is in need of consolidation in order to draw meaningful lessons from place-specific and hazard-specific studies. This study aimed to collate and review peer-reviewed literature on climate adaptation planning in African cities in order to consolidate fragmented information and establish what is known about how climate adaptation is occurring at the urban scale. Using the systematic review process, relevant documents on the topic were identified and extracted using specific inclusion and exclusion criteria to delimit and broadly characterize the body of literature focusing on climate adaptation planning in an urban African context. Due to the scope and constraints of a minor dissertation, only a sub-set of documents underwent full-text review using thematic content analysis. The code used for thematic analysis was developed through an abductive process using Hunter et al. (2020) and Ford et al. (2015)'s coding categories as a framework. A total of 84 papers were considered suitable for inclusion. The geographical distribution of urban adaptation planning literature was established with most papers stemming from southern Africa (56), followed by East (19), West (17), and North Africa (5). No publications dealt with urban climate adaptation in Central Africa. The country with an overwhelming number of publications was South Africa (40). The majority of the literature was authored by researchers based in institutions outside of Africa (54%). Papers were broadly categorised into articles that tested, developed, prioritised, or identified strategies to reduce climate risk. The papers testing strategies to reduce climate risk were chosen for full-text analysis. South Africa was excluded from the final sub-set in order to focus on assimilating knowledge from elsewhere across the continent. 11 papers underwent the coding processes. Flooding was identified as the main climatic driver of adaptation and most papers emphasized the need for stakeholder engagement and communication. This study showed the value of applying a systematic review methodology to identify trends and consolidate research on the planning aspects of climate adaptation in African cities. It argues for extending the full-text thematic analysis to the entire set of literature identified to strengthen theory development based on empirical knowledge from urban African contexts.
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    Climate change impacts and adaptation in South Africa
    (2014) Ziervogel, Gina; New, Mark; Archer van Garderen, Emma; Midgley, Guy; Taylor, Anna; Hamann, Ralph; Stuart-Hill, Sabine; Myers, Jonny; Warburton, Michele
    In this paper we review current approaches and recent advances in research on climate impacts and adaptation in South Africa. South Africa has a well-developed earth system science research program that underpins the climate change scenarios developed for the southern African region. Established research on the biophysical impacts of climate change on key sectors (water, agriculture, and biodiversity) integrates the climate change scenarios but further research is needed in a number of areas, such as the climate impacts on cities and the built environment. National government has developed a National Climate Change Response White Paper, but this has yet to translate into policy that mainstreams adaptation in everyday practice and longer-term planning in all spheres and levels of government. A national process to scope long-term adaptation scenarios is underway, focusing on cross-sectoral linkages in adaptation responses at a national level. Adaptation responses are emerging in certain sectors. Some notable city-scale and project-based adaptation responses have been implemented, but institutional challenges persist. In addition, a number of knowledge gaps remain in relation to the biophysical and socio-economic impacts of climate change. A particular need is to develop South Africa's capacity to undertake integrated assessments of climate change that can support climate-resilient development planning.
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    Investigating the potential for utilising a water equity metric to benchmark differential access in Global South cities: a case study of Cape Town
    (2024) Hoosen, Naadiya; Taylor, Anna; Atkins, Ffion
    In the wake of the day-zero drought the City of Cape Town (CCT or the City) has made the commitment to become water sensitive in its Water Strategy (CCT, 2019). According to the United Nations SDG 6.1, universal access to water has to take priority in any form of water policy. This is reflected in the principles of water sensitive design where equitable and universal access to water is a core tenet. This study assessed the state of equity in the domestic water sector of the City of Cape Town using the Gini Coefficient and the Palma ratio. Both these metrics were selected to determine how access to water and water consumption were distributed averagely throughout the population with the Gini coefficient, as well as between the most resource rich and resource poor with the Palma Index. This was done to complement the Urban Water Metabolism- a water mass balance analysis done for the City by Atkins et al., (2021). By providing a complimentary metric, much like performance indicators used by Paul et al., (2018), Renouf et al., (2017) and Kenway et al., (2011) to analyse the underlying state of equity within the context of the whole-system. The Urban Water Metabolism provides an overview of the City's water budget and the flows of water throughout the city before it finally exits the system. The addition of these equity metrices to benchmark and compare the state of equity can provide valuable information for decision makers to determine if the implementation of water policy, such as those aimed at making Cape Town more water sensitive, have a positive or adverse effect on equity- a point that becomes especially salient during times of low water availability. 141 suburbs in the metropolitan were assessed using the population and total water consumption for a period between April 2017 to April 2018 to determine a figure for the Gini coefficient and Palma ratio which were found to be 0.30 and 4.18 respectively. The Gini coefficient for levels of access to a flush toilet, as well as access to piped water in a dwelling for the suburb households, was also determined and found to be 0.07 and 0.15 respectively. The results of this study revealed that the Gini coefficient and Palma ratio for the City are substantially higher than the Gini Coefficient of the Western Cape (0.06) and the Gini Coefficient and Palma ratio of South Africa nationally (0.27, 0.95) determined in a study by Cole et al., (2018). This difference in the level of inequity represented by the Gini Coefficient at the national and provincial level may highlight the value of working with data at smaller scales and disaggregating data to provide a more nuanced picture of inequity.
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    Leadership strategies employed in the public sector for promoting urban climate transition: the case of Cape Town, South Africa
    (2025) Hess, Gonzalo; Taylor, Anna
    Despite the success of the Paris Agreement on achieving a global compact between nations to act on climate change, cities have emerged as interesting locations for studying climate leadership due to the failure at the national scale to translate adequate climate actions to meet the goals set. Cities have served as important agents in governance interventions, experiments, and networks, leading the way in resilient, low-carbon, and sustainable urban development, and driving innovative climate governance that spurs climate action. Understanding how to effectively lead the urban climate transition poses a significant challenge due to the involvement of diverse public and private actors who need to engage in collaborative climate action. Additionally, there is a lack of practical knowledge regarding how city actors implement climate leadership, highlighting a research gap in this area. This study examines the leadership strategies and mechanisms present in Cape Town, a city in South Africa with a strong track-record in climate action planning, focusing on co-creational leadership. It contributes to knowledge of urban public leadership by analysing the strategies employed by governing actors to facilitate the transition toward climate-resilient and low-carbon development in Cape Town, South Africa. This qualitative study employed an abductive logic and a single case study approach focused on the City of Cape Town. Semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders were used to explore their challenges, dilemmas, and coping strategies in promoting the urban climate transition. Thematic analysis using NVivo software was employed for data analysis to identify co-creational leadership strategies through iterative coding. Findings indicate that actors involved in pursuing Cape Town's climate goals, whether working in local government entities, private businesses, or international networks, must address specific challenges related to political will, legislation, budgeting, and communication matters to effectively implement the climate action plan and facilitate a successful transition. The dissertation concludes that Cape Town's urban climate transition context reveals collaborative leadership strategies, diverse actor involvement, and institutional constraints. Context-specific leadership and adaptability are pivotal for sustainable urban development. Cape Town's experiences offer crucial lessons for global cities facing climate challenges, emphasizing the significance of tailored approaches. These insights serve as a guide for cities worldwide in driving transformative change towards sustainability within their unique contexts
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    Technical Analysis to Support the Adaptation Component of South Africa’s Second Nationally Determined Contribution
    (University of Cape Town, 2025) Taylor, Anna; Simpson, Nicholas; Sibanda, Darlington; Bhanye, Johannes; Trisos, Christopher; Moyo, Vuyisile; Matiza, Collins; Ouweneel, Birgitt; Cartwright, Anton; Blignaut, James
    Research teams in the African Climate and Development Initiative (ACDI) and the Energy Systems Research Group (ESRG) at the University of Cape Town carried out analyses pertaining to climate change adaptation and mitigation as technical support to government in developing South Africa’s second Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC2) under the Paris Agreement. This technical report presents the adaptation component of the work, reviewing key climate change risks and adaptation efforts to date, proposing seven priority adaptation goals, and estimating the costs and benefits of 36 identified adaptation options that, if implemented well, would make a significant contribution to realising the goals. The seven proposed adaptation goals are: (1) Adapt South Africa’s water and sanitation systems to drying conditions and drought and flood intensification, as water underpins human, plant and animal health and all economic and livelihood activities; (2) Enhance disaster risk management, healthcare and sanitation provision, especially in informal settlements, to reduce impacts of flooding and heat stress on most vulnerable households; (3) Upgrade critical transport infrastructure (roads, rail, ports) to maintain functioning under increased rainfall intensity, heat stress, wind speeds and storm surges; (4) Enhance nutritious food access and affffordability through support to agricultural and fifisheries producers and distributors in adapting to warmer and windier conditions and changes in rainfall; (5) Enhance climate services, with early warning and impact information made accessible to a wide range of users, tailored to different operational, language, gender, age and disability needs; (6) Enhance ecosystem-based adaptation to heat and water stress, protecting South Africa’s natural heritage, biodiversity and improving ecosystem functioning that underpins our cultural identity, food systems, human wellbeing and tourism economy; and (7) Capacitate all spheres of government to implement adaptation through enacting and enforcing all provisions of the Climate Change Act. There is a companion technical report presenting the mitigation component of the work.
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    Urban climate adaptation as a process of organisational decision making
    (2017) Taylor, Anna; Parnell, Susan
    In a world that is increasingly urbanised, cities are recognised as critical sites for tackling problems of climate change, both by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and addressing the impacts of changing climate conditions. Unlike climate change mitigation, adaptation does not have one clear, commonly agreed collective goal. Governing and making decisions on climate adaptation in cities entails contestation over knowledge, values and preferences. Currently, the two dominant conceptualisations of adaptation are as cycles or pathways. Do these models adequately theorise what can be empirically observed in cities as to how climate adaptation is undertaken? Most research on urban climate adaptation emanates from the Global North, where political, scientific, economic and administrative systems are well established and well resourced. There is a dearth of empirical research from cities of the Global South contributing to the development of urban climate adaptation theory. This thesis contributes to addressing this gap in two ways. Firstly, by drawing on both conceptual and methodological resources from the field of organisational studies, notably the streams and rounds models of decision making, organisational ethnography and processual case research. Secondly, by conducting empirical case study research on three processes of city scale climate adaptation in Cape Town, South Africa, a growing city facing many development challenges where the local government began addressing climate adaptation over ten years ago. The three adaptation processes studied are: the preparation and adoption of city-wide sectoral climate adaptation plans; the creation of a City Development Strategy with climate resilience as a core goal; and the inclusion of climate change projections into stormwater masterplans. Data were gathered through interviews, participant observation, focus groups and document review, through embedded research within a formal knowledge co-production partnership between the University of Cape Town and the City of Cape Town government. Processual analysis and applied thematic analysis were used to test models of adaptation and decision making against data from the three case studies. The findings suggest that both the cycles and pathways models of climate adaptation inadequately represent the contested and contingent nature of decision making that prevail within the governance systems of cities such as Cape Town. Based on ethnographic knowledge of how Cape Town's local government undertakes climate adaptation, it is argued that the rounds model of decision making provides conceptual tools to better understand and represent how the process of climate adaptation in cities is undertaken; tools that can be used to enhance the pathways model. The study concludes that progress in adapting cities to a changing climate is currently constrained by both the problems and potential solutions or interventions being too technical for most politicians to deal with and prioritize and too political for most technical and administrative officials to design and implement. It calls for urban climate adaptation to be understood as distributed across a multitude of actors pursuing concurrent, discontinuous processes, and thereby focus needs to be on fostering collaboration and coordination, rather than fixating on single actors, policies, plans or projects.