If you were to fly over Grahamstown, what you’d see is a town surrounded by greenery – a small human jewel dropped into the middle of a vast landscape of natural splendour.
If you were to fly over Grahamstown, what you’d see is a town surrounded by greenery – a small human jewel dropped into the middle of a vast landscape of natural splendour.
Taking a closer look, you’d notice a town expanding – with all the challenges of providing adequate municipal services such as energy, water, sewage and management of waste.
Combining the two – the fact that a town expanding is surrounded by a wonderful natural environment – and you have a place where there is a vibrant mindfulness about how increasing human habitation and ecological concerns can comfortably coexist.
It’s a consciousness that is firmly rooted in the concept of sustainable development; and in Grahamstown it’s shared by many across the board – from residents, to Makana Municipal structures, NGOs, community organisations, Rhodes students and Rhodes University itself.
The dream that all these key players share, is to transform Grahamstown into a model sustainable town in Southern Africa, in terms of water management and minimisation of our water footprint, to sustainable use of energy, waste management, carbon footprint minimisation, green buildings, responsible purchasing, sustainable travel that has reduced environmental impacts and sustainability education.
Thankfully, the fact that so much common interest and shared vision is backed up by the requisite skills and knowledge base that a university like Rhodes offers, acts as a rallying point from which all who share the green dream can move forward together.
Indeed, nowhere does the spirit of green inclusivity find greater resonance that in the RU Green Fund, whose aim is to play a dynamic role helping to drive forward the collective process of turning Grahamstown into a sustainable living benchmark that other towns can model themselves on.
Collaboration and across-the-board inclusion is also why a facility such as the Environmental Learning Research Centre has been created as a vibrant partnership between Makana Municipality, a number of NGOs and government departments, and the university itself.
Apart from postgraduate academic programmes that focus on sustainable practices and education in bringing about sustainable societal change – strategically engaging with African universities across the continent – the centre hosts a number of community engagement programmes and projects.
And it’s housed in a building boasting a variety of green technologies, which allows it to serve as an open public education site where the broader community – both young and old – can creatively explore sustainable living.
“Rhodes is strongly committed to playing a leading role in the Eastern Cape and South Africa with respect to environmental concerns, by promoting practices that support a safe, healthy and sustainable environment,“ says Nikki Kohly, Rhodes University Safety, Health and Environmental Officer, “And Rhodes students play a critical role in this.”
Indeed, at Rhodes, students actively participate in the inclusive manifestation of Grahamstown’s green dream via their own SRC Environmental Councillor, Environmental Reps at all residences, and student societies like RU Green, some of whose members shadowed delegations to the recent COP 17 Global Climate Change Summit in Durban – while Rhodes Journalism and Media Studies students staffed the summit’s daily newsletter under the auspices of the university’s Highway Africa project.
Ultimately, the dynamic municipal, community and university partnerships and pan-African collaborations that all combine in Grahamstown’s green dream, are slowly but surely transforming Grahamstown into a sustainable development benchmark… together!
