All posts tagged: South Africa


Why doesn’t the media talk about climate change?

by Leonie Joubert
December 4, 2018

For the past few years, news headlines have been crammed with reports of extreme weather events unfolding around the world. Recently, UN climate scientists issued their most urgent warning yet: we have 12 years in which to bring carbon emissions in check or face run-away climate breakdown. But journalists are only now starting to join the dots between the two. Why has South Africa’s media failed in its role to inform us that the planet is burning, when nature has been sending out warning flares for decades? Leonie Joubert asks.

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When coal dies, what of the coal workers?

by Leonie Joubert
November 22, 2018

In principle, South Africa’s development agenda shows that the country understands the need for a just transition to a low carbon economy. But what will this mean for the people working in the coal industry whose livelihoods will slowly dwindle? asks science writer Leonie Joubert.

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South Africa’s turbulent energy landscape

by Leonie Joubert
March 5, 2018

A few months ago, South Africa looked set to shackle itself to a cripplingly expensive fleet of Russian nuclear power stations. Overblown coal development was ongoing, and attempts to get private renewable power plants feeding into the grid were stalled due to state-aligned vested interests. By February, all that has changed, writes Leonie Joubert.

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Cape Town in crisis

by Leonie Joubert
February 19, 2018

Cape Town is dealing with one of the biggest climate change-linked water crises to face a modern city. This should serve as our wake-up call: we must transition to a new, shared way of organising around increasingly stretched resources, writes Leonie Joubert.

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Can African cities drive their own energy transition?

by Leonie Joubert
December 11, 2017

Facing a drought that shows all too clearly the consequences of climate change, Cape Town has pledged to divest from fossil fuels. Its mayor is now suing for the right to buy renewable energy. Could this set the precedent for South African municipalities to move towards a cleaner, greener energy economy, asks Leonie Joubert?

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Court stalls new coal plant in South Africa

by Leonie Joubert
October 10, 2017

Civil society has used many forms of activism to push for a transition to a greener electrical grid in South Africa. This year, they’ve taken their battle to the courts, winning two significant rulings. Leonie Joubert takes a look at the case to stop a new coal-fired mega-station north of Johannesburg.

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