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Accepted Paper:
Transition Township as Co-operative and Localised Production to Achieve a Just Transition: A Transformative Approach to Global Political Economy
Antony Martel
(Nelson Mandela University)
Janet Cherry
(Nelson Mandela University)
Patrick Brennan
(Nelson Mandela University)
Paper short abstract:
The Transition Township project addresses the crises of economic deprivation and the onset of ecological collapse by piloting an integrated model of local and localised economic development that Prepares for a just transition to energy democracy and food sovereignty.
Paper long abstract:
Achieving the necessary transformations in global political economy to affect human and planetary justice requires actors to see poor and working people as equally capable of taking ownership of their livelihoods as themselves. Facilitating poor communities by "handing over the stick" both enlightens people to their full humanity and produces sustained commitment to their maintenance and flourishing. Transition Township is a development intervention in formal working-class townships in Gqeberha, South Africa that is building an integrated model of local and localised development based on principles of food sovereignty and energy democracy. Food sovereignty as a pillar of community development builds relations where the production, distribution, and consumption of food is owned by the people directly involved in these processes. As an intervention, Transition Township is building a deep Just Transition by facilitating poor and working people, those most vulnerable to climate catastrophe, to take control of their own development through community-owned renewable energy and community food production. Drawing on the concept of circular economy, Transition Township makes use of assets within the community to retrofit for renewable energy and sustainable technologies. Co-operative production of food and energy are central to this project as a democratic platform for local political and economic practices while it incentivizes residents to invest in sustained production by preserving and enhancing the local ecology. As Transition Township seeks to achieve broader change, the implementation of multiple pilots within rural and urban geographies lay the groundwork for an alternative economy in Gqeberha as a bottom-up approach.
Click the star to add/remove an item to/from your individual schedule.
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Accepted Paper:
Paper short abstract:
Paper long abstract:
Achieving the necessary transformations in global political economy to affect human and planetary justice requires actors to see poor and working people as equally capable of taking ownership of their livelihoods as themselves. Facilitating poor communities by "handing over the stick" both enlightens people to their full humanity and produces sustained commitment to their maintenance and flourishing. Transition Township is a development intervention in formal working-class townships in Gqeberha, South Africa that is building an integrated model of local and localised development based on principles of food sovereignty and energy democracy. Food sovereignty as a pillar of community development builds relations where the production, distribution, and consumption of food is owned by the people directly involved in these processes. As an intervention, Transition Township is building a deep Just Transition by facilitating poor and working people, those most vulnerable to climate catastrophe, to take control of their own development through community-owned renewable energy and community food production. Drawing on the concept of circular economy, Transition Township makes use of assets within the community to retrofit for renewable energy and sustainable technologies. Co-operative production of food and energy are central to this project as a democratic platform for local political and economic practices while it incentivizes residents to invest in sustained production by preserving and enhancing the local ecology. As Transition Township seeks to achieve broader change, the implementation of multiple pilots within rural and urban geographies lay the groundwork for an alternative economy in Gqeberha as a bottom-up approach.
Development perspectives on transforming economies for nature, climate, and society
Session 1 Wednesday 6 July, 2022, -