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Rick has over 40 years experience working in the land sector in Southern Africa. He is part of the Land Portal knowledge engagement team working to research and develop knowledge resources including data stories, blogs and in-depth country profiles for Southern, Central and Eastern Africa.
Rick is also a Senior Research Associate with Phuhlisani NPC - a South African land sector NGO and the curator of specialist Southern African land news and analysis website https://knowledgebase.land
He tweets on land related issues Twitter account https://twitter.com/KnowledgebaseL
He has a PhD from the University of Cape Town. His research in Langa, Cape Town features as the central case study in a recent book Urban Planning in the Global South (2018), co-authored with the late Vanessa Watson, which examines the on-going contestations over land and housing in the rapidly growing cities of the global South.
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Four things that rural mining communities need to know about the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Bill
This LARC factsheet highlights lack of requirements for community consultation, lack of sanction if a Traditional Council does not keep proper records and the inadequate controls on Traditional Council's prerorgative to enter into agreements and partnerships which can facilitate elite capture of mineral resource benefits 'for the benefit of communities'.
Things you should know about land and the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Bill
This draft law will have a massive impact on the lives of the 18 million people who live in South Africa’s former homelands. This LARC factsheet provides an overview of key implications for rural people.
Land rights under the Ingonyama Trust
The Ingonyama Trust was the outcome of a deal between the National Party and the Inkatha Freedom Party during the dying days of apartheid just before the transition in 1994. The Trust was established to manage land owned by the government of KwaZulu, and is currently responsible for managing some 2.8 million hectares of land in KwaZulu-Natal. The land vests in the Ingonyama (or king) as trustee, to be administered on behalf of members of specific communities.
Responses to the linked stressors of climate change and HIV/Aids amongst vulnerable rural households in the Eastern Cape, South africa
Climate change and the HIV/AIDS epidemic are two of the most critical long-term global challenges, especially for Africa and even more so Southern Africa.
Relative contribution of wild foods to individual and household food security in the context of increasing vulnerability due to HIV/AIDS and climate variability
Wild foods are an integral component of the household food basket, yet their quantified contribution to food security relative to other sources in the context of HIV/AIDS, climate change and variability remains underexplored. This study was carried out in Willowvale and Lesseyton which are rural communities in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.
Linking livelihood and ecosytem change in two dryland sites in South Africa over a period of 30 years
The ongoing and rapid change (from global to local level) in climate, populations, governments, cultures, environment, land use and economies are critical issues, especially for poor rural communities found in the dryland parts of southern Africa.
Local safety nets help people cope with shocks and stressors and prevent the deepening of poverty and vulnerability
This policy brief draws on three sources of data from a study undertaken in Lesseyton in Lukanji Local Municipality and Willowvale in Mbashe Local Municipality, in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.The aim was to understand the vulnerability context of households in the two sites and how they coped with multiple shocks and stresses, with an emphasis on various types of safety nets. Methods included a survey that specifically targeted vulnerable households, data from several community workshops and in-depth life history interviews.
Dryland conservation areas, indigenous people livelihoods and natural resource values in South Africa: The case of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
This thesis is based on research conducted in the southern Kalahari region, South Africa among the San and Mier communities bordering Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. It looks at the importance of natural resources to the San and Mier community groups and ascertains the extent of resource use and its value within broader livelihood portfolios. It also focuses on the cultural values of natural resources and interactions among institutions and actors and how these shape natural resource governance and livelihood outcomes.
Municipal commonage: An undervalued national resource
A policy brief reviewing the important contribution of muncipal commonage to the livelihoods of poor househoods and proposing approaches to better utilise this resoource
Understanding social-ecological changes in Fairbairn village, Eastern Cape
Rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa are faced with multiple interconnected challenges such as population growth, environmental change, economic recession and climatic changes, amongst others. Such challenges can play a key role in determining vulnerability and food security, particularly for natural resource productdependent societies that have limited livelihood sources. Studies that consider understanding how society and ecosystems simultaneously interact and respond to new and exacerbated drivers are increasingly needed.