Stop the Beifa Coal Project and the Persecution of the Dinde Community in Hwange, Zimbabwe Media Release by Womin and CNRG Civil society groups in the SADC region, East Africa, West Africa, Europe, Latin America and North America join hands in calling on the government of Zimbabwe to drop the case and all charges against the Vice Chair of Dinde Residents Association, Never Tshuma, who was arrested for allegedly inciting the community against a proposed coal project in Dinde.
Richards Bay Project Faces First Gas-to-power Court Challenge in South Africa What has been shocking for the organisations involved in challenging the Richards Bay Combined Cycle Power Plant project is that locals say they have no knowledge of it. The lack of generalised and robust public consultation has resulted in communities being marginalised and excluded from the public participation process. It’s also against the law. By Claire Martens
New, Short Earthlife Africa Video Lays Bare the Negative Impacts of the Musina Makhado Special Economic Zone (Mmsez) Ahead of Public Hearings From 28-30 April, the Delta Built Environment Consultants (Delta) will host public hearings on the Musina Makhado Special Economic Zone (MMSEZ) – a mega-industrial development proposed to be built in the Vhembe region of Limpopo.
Fossil Fuel’s Killer Air Pollution: South Africa’s Death Toll A year since the first COVID-19 cases appeared in South Africa, the disease has killed more than 50,000 people. A new study now shows that a similar number of South Africans die each year due to diseases caused by air pollution linked with the burning of fossil fuels. Air pollution linked to burning of fossil fuels in South Africa By Leonie Joubert
Plug-and-Play Power Stations May Be ‘Steaming’ Towards SA Waters South Africa is taking emergency steps to plug the holes in a leaky electricity grid that are causing another season of scheduled power outages. One of these involves hiring three plug-and-play ocean-based mobile power stations – so-called ‘powerships’. But local energy experts warn that these are risky, expensive, and that the money would be far better spent building utility scale solar and wind plants. By Leonie Joubert
Shock at oil-gas prospecting plans for Okavango Delta and Kgalagadi The window of opportunity to keep the average global temperature from breaking through the ceiling of 2°C — or preferably 1.5°C — as set out in the UN’s Paris Agreement is closing fast. By Leonie Joubert
Major Win Against New Coal in South Africa Major climate impacts and exorbitant costs have sounded the death knell for one of the last new proposed coal-fired power stations in South Africa: Thabametsi in water-scarce Limpopo.
You Cannot Have Jobs on a Dead Planet Multimedia During September, South Africa’s youth infotainment show, Politically Aweh, in partnership with Action 24 – Active Citizens for Responsive Legislatures, launched a video series on the climate crisis in Mzansi. With the recent femicides that shook the nation to xenophobic attacks and an unemployment rate of 29%, it’s understandably challenging for young South Africans to even think about climate change. However, as Goldman Environmental prize winner, activist and HBF partner Makoma Lekalakala points out in the video “You cannot have jobs on a dead planet.”
Water is More Precious Than Gas Multimedia On Friday 20th September, thousands of South Africans joined the global climate strike to register their objections to the continuing destruction of the planet. Among them was HBF partner the Support Centre for Land Change (SCLC) who are fighting against fracking threats.
The Shops Are Burning, The Women Are Burning, The Climate is Burning: Connecting The Dots Analysis Just a few months ago, two cyclones (Kenneth and Idai) destroyed the homes and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people in parts of southern Africa. The cyclones, along with widespread drought, forced desperate people to migrate. But links between migrancy and xenophobia, violence against women and the growing climate crisis across southern Africa and well beyond have been largely neglected.