8.15 Recommendations
8.15.5 The need for more research on politics/environment nexus
This study attempted to contribute towards scholarly works that link challenges of the physical environment to issues of socio-economic/socio-political factors. With its specific focus on floods, the study has attempted to show how environmental analysis and policy approach can be reframed towards addressing the challenges of socially, politically, and culturally marginalised population. However, more evidential research is required to explore other aspects of climate change disaster, such as drought heat waves, desertification, amongst others.
These disasters are also potential threats to municipalities across South Africa. For instance, in spring 2018, there was rampant news across South Africa of a severe drought and water crisis in many cities in Cape Town. There were also news of droughts in some South African cities prior to 2016. These disasters, especially those related to water crises, have significant gender implications, especially in connection to women from local areas. Therefore, studies on gender implications of such disasters can be conducted using a more pragmatic/discursive/participatory method. The co-production of knowledge arising from such studies is essential to advance a more socially just policy that advances women’s empowerment and adaptation to climate disasters.
Although findings from the study can offer insights into experiences of Black women from other municipalities in South Africa, the inferences from the study generally apply to eThekwini municipality’s context. To understand the experiences of Black women from other
municipalities, it is recommended that more comparative studies between and among municipalities be conducted. Such studies can look at a comparative analysis of Black women experiences of climate-related disaster between eThekwini and other adjacent municipalities such as uMzunduzi or uMgungundlovu. Such comparison has high potential of providing valuable insights into how Black women from the different municipal contexts in South Africa, or within the KwaZulu-Natal Province, adapt to climate-related problems.
Conclusion
To sum up, the study suggests a more collaborative governance approach where the municipality empowers and involves local Black women in adaptation governance in the localities. The study also reiterates the need for collective ‘bandwagonning’ among the local women as a means of representing their adaptation needs and influencing adaptation governance of the municipality. In short, adaptation governance approaches need to involve a certain degree of intentionality, both on the side of the municipal authority and on the side of the local Black women. This study also suggests the need for empirical studies on gender and climate change adaption between and among eThekwini metropolitan municipality and other (probably adjacent) municipalities.
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