April 22 marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, a global celebration in support of the environmental movement. As with many events, 2020’s Earth Day will be eclipsed by the coronavirus pandemic, despite clear evidence that the ecological crisis is the root cause of the current outbreak.
Concerns around ecological sustainability will be far from front and centre on our nation’s collective consciousness, even while a plethora of articles have been published urging society to use this opportunity to rethink our collective future. Aside from generalised calls to channel economic stimulus and recovery packages through environmentally resilient avenues, solid, actionable proposals for what we should be looking at are thin on the ground.
One place that has taken the initiative in developing just such an actionable proposal for an environmentally resilient future has been Amsterdam, which along with its partners launched the “Amsterdam City Doughnut” tool for transformative action earlier in April.
The odd-sounding “doughnut” concept came about when a range of critical environmental “planetary boundaries”, identified as the sustainable consumption ceiling, were combined with a social foundation below which it was unjust for people to fall. This combination of environmental ceiling and social foundation is presented diagrammatically in an outer and inner set of rings in what has now become known as the doughnut model. Since its inception in 2012, it has become the leading representation of a sustainable future globally and has been adapted for countries around the world, including SA.
The Dutch government’s aim in developing this transformative tool has been to help determine “how Amsterdam can be a home to thriving people, in a thriving place, while respecting the wellbeing of all people and the health of the whole planet”. The result has been a broad plan that tackles key social issues such as housing, jobs, energy, food and health care — along with governance issues facing the state through the lens of the doughnut.
In SA, whenever I have discussed initiatives like this, I am met with the response that this is all very well for wealthy, developed countries such as the Netherlands, but not at all appropriate in a developing country like ours that simply cannot afford these luxuries. However, the reality is that not only are such tools being developed in SA, but are being developed to assist with economic efficiency, not despite it.
One such example is a sustainable infrastructure development and finance facility in the Western Cape, which was signed into existence on March 26. In similar fashion to Amsterdam’s City Doughnut tool, this partnership between GreenCape, the Western Cape government and the French Development Agency (AFD) aims to “address opportunities for growth and jobs; enable a resilient, sustainable, quality and inclusive living environment; and support the furtherance of good governance and integrated service delivery through partnerships and spatial alignment”.
Through this facility, creditworthy municipalities in the Western Cape will be assisted with spatial development and long-term capital infrastructure planning to identify the most catalytic projects and programmes that maximise financial, socioeconomic, environmental and spatial benefits for implementation.
Another local example of innovative sustainability thinking is the R490m Green Outcomes Fund spearheaded by the Bertha Centre at the Graduate School of Business. This blended-finance fund incentivises SA fund managers to increase investment in green small, medium-sized and micro-enterprises by paying for outcomes such as green job creation, climate mitigation and improved water & waste management.
There can be no doubt that Covid-19 is playing a pivotal role in shaping the future of government, business and society. There is a new awareness of our vulnerabilities and our need to develop responses to improve our collective resilience. Certainly, immediate action must be taken, but to do so while overlooking the potential to conceive of sustainable new business models misses the opportunity in the crisis.
• Maguire holds a master’s degree in global change studies from Wits and has developed green economy solutions for the private sector, NGOs and the state for more than a decade.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.