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Moving from Adaptive to Transformative Capacity: Building Foundations for Inclusive, Thriving, and Regenerative Urban Settlements

Author

Listed:
  • Gina Ziervogel

    (Department of Environmental and Geographical Science, and African Climate and Development Initiative, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa)

  • Anna Cowen

    (Meshfield, P.O. Box 12698, Mill Street, Cape Town 8010, South Africa)

  • John Ziniades

    (Meshfield, P.O. Box 12698, Mill Street, Cape Town 8010, South Africa)

Abstract

The commitment to understanding the implications of a 1.5 °C global temperature warming limit has contributed to a growing realisation that transformative adaptation is necessary to avoid catastrophic environmental and social consequences. This is particularly the case in urban settlements where disconnection from the systems that support life is pervasive and injustice and inequality play out daily. This paper argues that in order to transform towards thriving social-ecological systems, transformative capacity needs to be strengthened. The paper builds on the rich literature of adaptive capacity, alongside concepts of transformation that are drawn from resilience theory, organisational change, and developmental psychology. Reconnection to life-support systems, agency, and social cohesion are put forward as three foundational aspects of transformative capacity. A transdisciplinary case study of the FLOW programme in the Bergrivier Municipality, South Africa, is used to explore how transformative capacity has been built in practice. The case study explores an innovative programme that works with unemployed urban youth, alongside the exploration and introduction of a community currency in the informal business sector, and strengthening cross-scalar interaction between the local municipality and youth. The paper suggests that working across sectors and scales in a transdisciplinary manner is a challenging endeavour but necessary for building inclusive, thriving, and regenerative urban settlements.

Suggested Citation

  • Gina Ziervogel & Anna Cowen & John Ziniades, 2016. "Moving from Adaptive to Transformative Capacity: Building Foundations for Inclusive, Thriving, and Regenerative Urban Settlements," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(9), pages 1-20, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:8:y:2016:i:9:p:955-:d:78510
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Paul Smoke & Mitchell Cook, 2022. "Administrative Decentralization and Climate Change," World Bank Publications - Reports 36911, The World Bank Group.
    2. Hiroki Nakajima, 2025. "A Multiscale Regenerative Design Approach Toward Transformative Capacities: The Case of Shimokitazawa, Tokyo," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-24, August.
    3. Sara Meerow & Carrie L. Mitchell, 2017. "Weathering the storm: The politics of urban climate change adaptation planning," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 49(11), pages 2619-2627, November.
    4. Benjamin P. Warner & Daniel L. Childers & Christopher Kuzdas & Gabriela Stocks, 2018. "Smallholder Adaptation to Drought in Costa Rica's Crony Capitalist Rice Economy," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 49(6), pages 1392-1421, November.
    5. Camila Flórez Bossio & James Ford & Danielle Labbé, 2019. "Adaptive capacity in urban areas of developing countries," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 157(2), pages 279-297, November.
    6. Eric K Chu, 2018. "Urban climate adaptation and the reshaping of state–society relations: The politics of community knowledge and mobilisation in Indore, India," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 55(8), pages 1766-1782, June.
    7. Jing Tan & Li Peng & Shili Guo, 2020. "Measuring Household Resilience in Hazard-Prone Mountain Areas: A Capacity-Based Approach," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 152(3), pages 1153-1176, December.
    8. Megan K. Blake, 2019. "More than Just Food: Food Insecurity and Resilient Place Making through Community Self-Organising," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-22, May.
    9. Holden, Petra B. & Ziervogel, Gina & Hoffman, M. Timm & New, Mark G., 2021. "Transition from subsistence grazing to nature-based recreation: A nuanced view of land abandonment in a mountain social-ecological system, southwestern Cape, South Africa," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    10. Alma Elisabeth Peirson & Gina Ziervogel, 2021. "Sanitation Upgrading as Climate Action: Lessons for Local Government from a Community Informal Settlement Project in Cape Town," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-18, August.
    11. Joana Dias & Maria Partidário, 2019. "Mind the Gap: The Potential Transformative Capacity of Social Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-17, August.
    12. Joan David Tàbara & Francesc Cots & Simona Pedde & Katharina Hölscher & Kasper Kok & Anastasia Lovanova & Tiago Capela Lourenço & Niki Frantzeskaki & John Etherington, 2018. "Exploring Institutional Transformations to Address High-End Climate Change in Iberia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-22, January.
    13. Sabrina Tabares & Andrés Morales & Sara Calvo & Valentín Molina Moreno, 2021. "Unpacking B Corps’ Impact on Sustainable Development: An Analysis from Structuration Theory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-21, December.
    14. Hugo F. Alrøe & Marion Sautier & Katharine Legun & Jay Whitehead & Egon Noe & Henrik Moller & Jon Manhire, 2017. "Performance versus Values in Sustainability Transformation of Food Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-31, February.
    15. Asad Asadzadeh & Amir Reza Khavarian-Garmsir & Ayyoob Sharifi & Pourya Salehi & Theo Kötter, 2022. "Transformative Resilience: An Overview of Its Structure, Evolution, and Trends," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-21, November.
    16. Feng Mao & Joshua D. Miller & Sera L. Young & Stefan Krause & David M. Hannah, 2022. "Inequality of household water security follows a Development Kuznets Curve," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-10, December.
    17. Christina T. Kwauk & Olivia M. Casey, 2022. "A green skills framework for climate action, gender empowerment, and climate justice," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 40(S2), October.
    18. Alexandra Lenis Escobar & Ramón Rueda López & Jorge E. García Guerrero & Enrique Salinas Cuadrado, 2020. "Design of Strategies for the Implementation and Management of a Complementary Monetary System Using the SWOT-AHP Methodology," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-23, August.

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