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Showing items 1 through 9 of 19.
  1. Library Resource

    Volume 10 Issue 2

    Peer-reviewed publication
    February, 2021
    United States of America, South Africa, Southern Africa

    In the context of current agrarian reform efforts in South Africa, this paper analyses the livelihood trajectories of ‘emergent’ farmers in Eastern Cape Province. We apply a rural livelihoods framework to 60 emergent cattle farmers to understand the different capitals they have drawn upon in transitioning to their current class positions and associated vulnerability. The analysis shows that, for the majority of farmers, no real ‘transition’ from subsistence farming has occurred.

  2. Library Resource

    Volume 9 Issue 12

    Peer-reviewed publication
    December, 2020
    South Africa, Southern Africa

    The sandy croplands in the Free State have been identified as one of the main dust sources in South Africa. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence and strength of physical soil crusts on cropland soils in the Free State, to identify the rainfall required to form a stable crust, and to test their impact on dust emissions. Crust strength was measured using a fall cone penetrometer and a torvane, while laboratory rainfall simulations were used to form experimental crusts. Dust emissions were measured with a Portable In-Situ Wind Erosion Laboratory (PI-SWERL).

  3. Library Resource

    Volume 9 Issue 10

    Peer-reviewed publication
    October, 2020
    Southern Africa, South Africa, Turks and Caicos Islands

    Roughly 90% of farmers in the Western Cape Province of South Africa have converted to no-tillage systems to improve the efficiency of crop production. Implementation of no-tillage restricts the mixing of soil amendments, such as limestone, into soil. Stratification of nutrients and pH is expected. A soil survey was conducted to determine the extent and geographical spread of acid soils and pH stratification throughout the Western Cape. Soil samples (n = 653) were taken at three depths (0–5, 5–15, 15–30 cm) from no-tillage fields.

  4. Library Resource

    Volume 9 Issue 8

    Peer-reviewed publication
    August, 2020
    Benin, Central African Republic, Ghana, Malawi, Togo, Tanzania, South Africa, Southern Africa

    United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biosphere Reserves strive for a harmonious interaction between humans and nature. As landscapes provide suitable units to mutually address matters of conservation and sustainable development, this study aims to explore the potential and realized contribution of biosphere reserves for landscape governance and management. We emphasize the role of stakeholder participation and cooperation as an overarching condition for integrated landscape approaches.

  5. Library Resource

    Volume 9 Issue 7

    Peer-reviewed publication
    July, 2020
    South Africa, Southern Africa

    Landscape stewardship is increasingly understood within the framing of complex social-ecological systems. To consider the implications of this, we focus on one of the key characteristics of complex social-ecological systems: they are relationally constituted, meaning that system characteristics emerge out of dynamic relations between system components. We focus on multi-actor collaboration as a key form of relationality in landscapes, seeking a more textured understanding of the social relations between landscape actors.

  6. Library Resource

    Volume 9 Issue 6

    Peer-reviewed publication
    June, 2020
    South Africa, Southern Africa

    Nitrogen (N) fertiliser is applied to pastures in dairy farming systems to ensure productivity, but it is an expensive input that could be damaging to the environment if used excessively. In the southern Cape region of South Africa, N fertilisation guidelines for pastures were developed under conditions different to current management practices, yet dairy producers still base fertiliser programmes on these outdated guidelines. This study aimed to determine the efficiencies of N fertilisation.

  7. Library Resource

    Volume 9 Issue 2

    Peer-reviewed publication
    February, 2020
    South Africa, Southern Africa

    Normative guidelines for addressing project-induced displacement and resettlement have been successful in coercing companies and practitioners to comply with international standards and local requirements. However, good practice has not always been effectively implemented, leading to reduced social wellbeing of people in local communities. We assess how the reciprocal relationships between institutional norms and practitioners’ situated perspectives about company-community interactions can improve social management practice.

  8. Library Resource

    Volume 8 Issue 10

    Peer-reviewed publication
    October, 2019
    Southern Africa, South Africa, India

    The Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure (VGGT) call for governments to clearly define the term ‘public purpose’ to allow for judicial review of the goals of expropriations of property. However, recent research indicates that national-level legal frameworks that govern expropriation decision-making not only vary greatly from country to country but also often fail to comply with the VGGT standards on expropriation. This creates the potential for unpredictable and, in some cases, arbitrary applications of expropriation law in practice.

  9. Library Resource

    Volume 8 Issue 10

    Peer-reviewed publication
    October, 2019
    Southern Africa, South Africa

    Public participation in environmental impact assessment (EIA) often falls short of the requirements of best practice in the move towards sustainable development, particularly for disadvantaged and marginalized communities. This paper explores the value of a participatory rural appraisal (PRA) approach for improved public participation in a sample of EIA’s for photovoltaic projects in South Africa. PRA was conducted post facto making use of selected PRA tools.

  10. Library Resource

    Volume 8 Issue 7

    Peer-reviewed publication
    July, 2019
    Southern Africa

    Understanding how individuals, communities, and populations vary in their vulnerability requires defining and identifying vulnerability with respect to a condition, and then developing robust methods to reliably measure vulnerability. In this study, we illustrate how a conceptual model translated via simulation can guide the real-world implementation of data collection and measurement of a model system. We present a generalizable statistical framework that specifies linkages among interacting social and biophysical components in complex landscapes to examine vulnerability.

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