Wednesday, 26 October
Welcome
Facilitator: Ms M Seyffert-Wirth
Time: 13:00-13:05
Climate justice vs Climate responsibility: A South-North perspective
Presenter: Prof OC Ruppel (MS Teams) Department Mercantile Law
Time: 13:10-13:40
Climate
change through its very nature is making human survival more difficult for
people most vulnerable and dependent on natural resources. Climate justice
demands that those (especially in the global South) who are least responsible
for greenhouse gas emissions, are not the ones suffering the most by the
adverse effects of climate change. This entails a complex and interwoven bundle
of legal, political, economic and philosophical issues. The legal issues inter
alia deal with the question, weather (and how) states and companies
(especially from the global North) can be held accountable for past, present
and future contributions to or inaction against climate change and its
consequences.
Voices from the bottom: A social media analysis of public veiws on the COP26 coal phase-out deal for South Africa
Presenter: Dr DA Okoliko, School of Public Leadership
Time: 13:45-14:15
The
$8.5 billion deal offered by global partners to South Africa to reduce coal
reliance during the 2021 COP26 renewed public debate on the need to transform
South Africa’s largely coal-fired energy system to address emission concerns,
energy deficits and deteriorating energy services. This study explores public
sensemaking around energy transformation from a social media (SM) perspective.
Although more citizens now turn to SM to express sentiments and opinions on
public policy issues in Africa, the African SM space has received little
attention in energy transition literature. The study provides an exploration of
public perceptions of energy transition in South Africa using the case of
Facebook comments on the COP26 deal. 3,980 Facebook comments on the news about
the deal were content analysed in ATLAS.ti 22 using qualitative sentiment and thematic
analytical approaches. Results revealed markers of delegitimising opinions and
arguments about the deal, including concerns about corruption, distrust in
public institutions, and negative perceptions about foreign actors behind the
deal. It also highlights values, which motivate support for the deal, but these
were swamped up by the prevalence of negative sentiment in the SM discourse.
The paper concludes with important learning for energy transition policy in the
context of South Africa.
In the Climate change fight: GIS and earth observation is might
Presenter: Prof HM de Klerk & Mr C Bailey, Department Geography & Environmental Studies
Time: 14:20-14:40
Climate change, the
shift in long-term weather patterns across a region, has been accelerated by
anthropogenic activities and is no longer a potentiality but an actuality. From
excessive flooding to prolonged heat waves and monsoons, it’s having huge
impacts on communities and environments. Historically, academia has focused
heavily on the drivers and potential patterns of climate change. Recently,
however, there has been a systematic shift toward evaluating not only
process-patterns, but also environmental, social and ethical responses to
climate change. This shift can, in part, be attributed to advances in the
capabilities of geospatial data and technologies and the improved accessibility
thereof. Consequently, such data and tools are becoming increasingly open
source as the effects of climate change become more evident and the leveraging
of a computer’s ability to process large amounts of data more salient.
Therefore, the role of open-source spatial data and tools in promoting
advancements in understanding the impact of climate change on people and their
environment is key. This paper provides a survey of currently available spatial
data and tools for evaluating climate change scenarios and impacts.
Closing, thank you & Q&A
Facilitator: Ms M Seyffert-Wirth
Time: 14:45
