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A critical analysis of the legal framework governing open space systems in the eThekwini and City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipalities.
(2024) Ngalo, Mpumelelo Ngalo.; Freedman, David Warren.
Abstract not available.
Enabling or hindering environmental protection in South Africa: the role of government.
(2025) Makhanya, Percival Mandlakhe.; Kidd, Michael Anthony.
Environmental protection has become a permanent feature in most countries’ constitutions since its conceptualization in the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (1972) held in Stockholm, Switzerland. After the conceptualization, the need for environmental protection has been widely written about in international conventions, court judgments and by scholars, yet unjustifiable environmental interference is still witnessed globally. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Constitution), in section 24, introduced the concept of environmental protection, called environmental rights. In section 24 of the Constitution, everyone has the right to have the environment protected for the benefit of present and future generations through reasonable legislation and other measures. Section 24(b) of the Constitution enabled the promulgation of the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 and other national environmental laws. These laws enable the citizens to rely on section 24 of the Constitution to take decision-makers to court for environmental transgressions. Despite section 24(b)(iii) of the Constitution's instructive language on the need to promote justifiable economic development in South Africa, it is common to witness unjustified environmental interference in pursuing economic development. This desktop study explores the South African Government’s role in environmental protection, whether enabling or hindering it. This study reviews the literature on environmental protection, national legislation, court judgments, journal articles and international charters on environmental protection. The analysis in this desktop study reveals that there is enough legislation on environmental regimes in South Africa, and the legislation advocates for environmental protection. However, the interpretation and implementation of the legislation leave much to be desired as the South African Government prefers unjustified economic development over environmental protection. This is witnessed in how the South African Government irrationally prefers economic development over environmental protection. Accordingly, the unjustifiable preference for economic development hinders environmental protection in South Africa.
Considering ecological thresholds in the environmental decision-making process – An argument for application of the precautionary principle.
(2025) Kent, Glynn Charles.; Kidd, Michael Anthony.
As human activities are now the greatest contributor to changes in Earth’s systems, the planetary boundaries framework seeks to define key ecological boundaries within which humanity is to develop in order to maintain the planet in a state conducive to planetary well being. Failure to do so presents catastrophic and potentially irreversible consequences for humanity. As uncertainty remains regarding the exact thresholds of the identified ecological systems as well as the consequences associated with surpassing them, the planetary boundaries framework provides for the adoption of a cautious approach through maintaining Earth’s systems at the lowest levels of identified risk. Despite the risks and uncertainty associated with transgressing ecological thresholds, evidence suggests that humanity has exceeded several planetary boundaries. This places critical Earth systems and processes in a zone of increasing and uncertain risk regarding the environmental consequences of human activities. As the planetary boundaries approach views the Earth as a single, complex and interconnected system, it is contended that non-global activities have implications for Earth’s systems and processes on a planetary level. Whilst the framework was not designed for direct application to decisions made at a project or activity level, the planetary boundaries framework holds value for decision makers insofar as it creates measurable, science-based criteria against which proposed activities can be considered for their effects on the safe operating spaces for humanity. The consideration of ecological thresholds has not formed an integral part of decision making at project or activity level. In the course of this dissertation, the case is made for the consideration of ecological thresholds through the application of the precautionary principle of environmental law. South Africa’s existing legislative framework obligates decision makers to consider and address uncertainty regarding the effects of an activity on the environment. It is argued that this requirement should extend to the impacts of activities on ecological thresholds. Through an analysis of both the interpretation and application of the precautionary principle by South African courts, an attempt is made to conceptualize a practical application of the suggested approach from the perspective of the decision maker.
Much ado about COVID -19 vaccine[s]: understanding perceptions and experiences of vaccines among healthcare workers in three hospitals in Eswatini.
(2026) Ndzinisa, Nqobile Thobile.; Govender, Eliza Melissa.
The COVID‑19 pandemic has been widely narrated through biomedical framings and global statistics, yet such accounts often obscure the lived realities and perceptions of healthcare workers in fragile health systems. In Eswatini, nurses occupied a dual role as frontline caregivers and trusted community communicators, navigating systemic shortages, cultural expectations, and contested narratives around vaccination. This study interrogates how nurses perceived, experienced, and communicated about COVID‑19 vaccines, situating their voices within broader debates on health communication, cultural identity, and systemic fragility. Methodologically, the research makes a distinctive contribution by employing Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) in combination with in‑depth interviews and focus group discussions. This design captured both individual narratives and collective negotiations of meaning, enabling a nuanced understanding of how nurses interpreted vaccination within contexts of trauma, stigma, and resilience. By explicitly foregrounding perception alongside experience, the study demonstrates how IPA can be extended to interrogate communicative practices in under‑resourced, culturally complex health systems. Nurses at Raleigh Fitkin Memorial, Mbabane Government, and Hlatikulu Government Hospitals were purposefully selected because they were the first recipients of vaccines and simultaneously key intermediaries between state messaging and community realities, making their perspectives critical for understanding how trust and authority were negotiated in practice. Findings reveal that nurses’ perceptions of vaccination were shaped by trauma, stigma, and resilience. Trauma extended beyond clinical encounters to encompass psychological strain and uncertainty; stigma manifested in how nurses were perceived as potential carriers of infection; resilience was expressed through improvisation, peer support, and faith commitments, yet often masked systemic vulnerabilities. Importantly, nurses contested reductive framings of “hesitancy,” articulating concerns rooted in cultural identity, professional responsibility, and inequitable resource distribution. Their accounts demonstrate that vaccine communication cannot be reduced to compliance or behavioural deficit but must be understood as a negotiation of trust across biomedical and cultural domains, particularly in a context where the government of Eswatini did not impose vaccine mandates yet expected citizen; including nurses, to be vaccinated. This study contributes to scholarship by addressing three critical gaps: the limited attention to healthcare workers’ communicative roles in under‑resourced contexts; the dominance of biomedical framings that marginalise cultural identity and systemic fragility; and the lack of methodological approaches that capture perception as well as experience. Its methodological innovation; using IPA to foreground nurses’ meaning‑making through interviews and focus groups, marks its most significant contribution, offering a model for future research that seeks to capture the complexity of frontline health communication. These insights are vital for strengthening pandemic preparedness and designing strategies that resonate with communities in Eswatini and comparable settings.
All of work? All of life? Ontology of South African mothers and remote work.
(2026) Benton, Denika Lorraine.; Govender, Jayanathan Perumal.
For the first time since industrialisation drew women into the workforce, mothers are presented with an opportunity to protect their maternal identity while remaining economically active: remote work. However, in South Africa, a context marked by gendered inequality, cultural expectation, and a lack of formal protection, remote work currently presents as a paradox, providing both a means of survival and a site of strain. Mothers continue to carry a disproportionate load of domestic and caregiving responsibilities compared to fathers. For many this is not a preference or a privilege, but an economic and emotional necessity carried through resilience and adaptability shaped by historical gender inequality and oppression. This study is guided by Work–Family Border Theory (Clark, 2000) and Intersectional Feminist Theory (Collins, 2000), which, through a complementary multi-theoretical approach, provide a lens through which to explore the lived experiences of South African remote-working mothers with children under five. Using a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design, the study leverages the strengths of both quantitative and qualitative research: Phase 1 involved data from 93 remote-working mothers, and Phase 2 consisted of qualitative interviews with seven self-selected participants that deepened and humanised the results. The findings revealed an undeniable strength in the motivation and benefit of remote work in preserving and protecting motherhood identity while continuing to work, whether due to economic necessity, career continuity, or both. However, the privilege of being a present mother often comes with the cost of guilt, stress, anxiety, and burnout, compounded by societal, cultural, religious, and organisational expectations that blur already fragile work–family boundaries. Moreover, despite these pressures, these mothers shouldered the responsibility of primary caregiver with great pride and belonging, showing resilience and adaptability that is admirable; however, this study cautions the glorification of these attributes. Instead, it positions them as the result of gendered expectations, oppression, exploitation and patriarchy. The results also highlight the critical role of family, domestic, and organisational support, and expose the near absence and lack of knowledge of legislative protection that leaves these mothers extremely vulnerable. This study positions remote work as both a mechanism of empowerment and a reflection of structural inequality, calling for urgent policy, organisational, and cultural reform to ensure its sustainability and equity for South African mothers. Iqoqa. Okokuqala ngqa, selokho kwaqala ukuthuthukiswa kwezimboni, ithuba lokusebenzela ngaphadle kwendawo yokusebenza kunike abesifazane abanemindeni ithuba lokungalahlekelwa lokufeza uzidingo zemindeni futhi beqhubeka ukuba neqhaza kwezomnotho. Kepha eNingizimu Afrika, lapho kunesiko nenjwayelo yokungaphathwa kwabantu ngokulinganayo ngenxa yobulili babo, ukusebenzela emakhaya noma ngaphandle kwendawo yomsebenzi kunikeza abesifazane indlela yokusinda neyomzabalazo. Omama bayaqhubeka nokuthwala umthwalo ongaphezulu kuneyobaba ekunakekeleni izidingo zasekhaya. Kwabaningi lokhu akuyona into abayithandayo noma ilungelo, kodwa kuyisidingo sezomnotho nesomzwelo esithwalwa ngokubekezela nangokuzivumelanisa nezimo okwakhiwe ukungalingani kobulili komlando okuhlanganisa nokucindezelwa kwabesimame. Lolucwaningo luholwa yinjulalwazi ebizwa nge-Work–Family Border Theory (Clark, 2000) kanye ne-Intersectional Feminist Theory (Collins, 2022). Lezi zinjulalwazi, ngokusebenzisa indlela ehlanganyele yemibono eminingi (multi-theoretical approach), zinikeza iso lokubuka nokuhlola amava aphilwayo omama baseNingizimu Afrika abasebenza bekude namahhovisi kanti baphinde babe nezingane ezingaphansi kweminyaka emihlanu. Ngokusebenzisa uhlelo locwaningo oluhlanganisile olulandelanayo noluchazayo (sequential explanatory mixedmethods design), lolucwaningo lusebenzisa amandla ezindlela zokucwaninga ngokobuningi (quantitative) nangokobunjalo (qualitative): Isigaba soku-1 (Phase 1) besibandakanya imininingwane eqoqwe komama abangama-93 abasebenza bekude namahhovisi, kanti Isigaba sesi-2 (Phase 2) besiqukethe izingxoxo zobunjalo nabahlanganyeli abayisikhombisa abazikhethele bona, okuyibona abajulise baphinde benza imiphumela yocwaningo ukuba ithinte imizwa yobuntu. Imiphumela yocwaningo idalule amandla aqinisekile esisusa senzuzo yomsebenzi okude ] namahhovisi mayelana nokulondoloza nokuvikela ubuyena bobumama ngenkathi kuqhubeka ukusebenza, kungakhathaliseki ukuthi kungenxa yesidingo somnotho, ukuqhubeka komsebenzi, noma kokubili. Nokho, ilungelo lokuba umama okhona ekhaya livamise ukuba nomthelela wobunzima obufana necala (guilt), ukucindezeleka (stress), ukukhathazeka (anxiety), nokushisa amandla ngokweqile (burnout), okubhebhethekiswa yizidingo zomphakathi, zamasiko, zezenkolo, nezasezinhlanganweni ezifiphaza imingcele esivele ibuthaka yomsebenzi nomndeni. Ngaphezu kwalokho, naphezu kwalezi zingcindezi, laba omama bathwale umthwalo wokuba abanakekeli abakhulu ngezinga elikhulu lokuziqhenya nokuba yingxenye, bekhombisa ukuqina nokuzivumelanisa nezimo okutuswayo; nokho, lolu cwaningo luxwayisa ngokukhazimulisa lezi zibaluli. Kunalokho, lubeka lezi zibaluli njengomphumela wezinto ezilindeleke ngokobulili, ukucindezelwa, ukuxhashazwa, kanye nobudlelwano obuqhutshwa ubaba (patriarchy). Imiphumela iphinde igqamise indima ebalulekile yosekelo lomndeni, lwasekhaya, nolwasezinhlanganweni, futhi iveze ukungabi khona nhlobo kolwazi lwesivikelo sezomthetho, okushiya laba omama besengozini enkulu. Lolu cwaningo lubeka umsebenzi okude namahhovisi njengombili, indlela yokunikeza amandla kanye nokubonakaliswa kokungalingani okuhleliwe, lucela ushintsho oluphuthumayo lwenqubomgomo, lwenhlangano, nolwamasiko ukuqinisekisa ukusimama kwawo kanye nokulingana komama baseNingizimu Afrika.