Community-led Upgrading for Self-Reliance in South Africa: Integrated Construction and Environmental Management Systems in Informal Settlements

该项目的重点是南非的“非正式定居点”，这些定居点的特点往往是缺乏基本服务和基础设施（如安全的卫生设施、可靠的电力），建筑材料性能差（如木材、纸板、金属板、泥土），没有任何建筑计划得到批准，而且往往位于非法进入和危险的土地上。国际发展界经常讨论非正规住区社区应参与改善其住房和邻里的想法。然而，确保环境和建筑管理成功升级所需的工具和流程却鲜为人知，南非中央和地方政府采用的自上而下的政策迄今尚未取得成功。如果社区能够通过参与式技术、提高建筑技能和利用现有材料来改善邻里关系，那么就可能产生地方、区域和国家的环境、社会和经济效益。该研究旨在探索南非社区升级其非正式住区的基本障碍和驱动因素。这项研究的中心问题是如何在环境和建筑管理战略中采用参与性办法，以实现德班非正式住区的自力更生。这个问题将在六个独立的项目阶段进行调查。第一阶段：当地环境和差距分析（UKZN）——检查帮助德班社区升级住房和社区的因素以及升级的障碍。第二阶段：通过社区参与绘制城市转型地图（威斯敏斯特）通过参与式行动研究方法，项目团队将在纳米比亚第8站（NS8）的社区参与下，得出自下而上的建设和环境管理结果。NS8在印度德班是一个很好的实践案例。第三阶段：综合闭环环境管理系统（UCL与UKZN合作）-探索闭环系统的潜力，其中由NS8产生的废水可以重新用于农业。-调查确保提供弹性基础设施所需的流程、伙伴关系模型和业务模型。第四阶段：建筑技能提升（威斯敏斯特）-绘制通过NS8采用的“自建”方法开发和增强的技能。-从英国政府建设2025战略中吸取教训。第五阶段：开发和测试集成协作工具包（威斯敏斯特和UKZN）-将各个阶段1至4的主要发现汇集在一起，该工具包将采取动态决策模型的形式，该模型将为社区，企业和政策制定者绘制潜在的协作方式。它还将确定所需的资源、开发的技能，以及为动员私营部门参与和促进经济增长而创建的商业模式。第六阶段：项目管理、沟通和传播（威斯敏斯特与UKZN合作）——拨款总费用的10%左右用于向不同的受众进行沟通和传播研究结果。传播策略将包括：项目网站、品牌、社交媒体、传播材料和传播活动（英国和南非）。研究结果旨在影响南非政府在可持续城市转型领域的政策和实践，以英国的最佳实践为基础。然而，这并不否定将知识从SA转移回英国或其他地方的可能性。目标受众包括寻求提高其生活质量和福祉的地方社区以及加强其规划的地方当局。研究成果也可用于国际机构（如联合国）、致力于升级方案、计划和政策的决策者和实践者，特别是在可持续发展目标2015年后发展议程下。

This project focuses on 'informal settlements' in South Africa (SA), which are often characterised by the lack of basic services and infrastructure (eg safe sanitation, reliable electricity), poorly performing building materials (eg wood, cardboard, metal sheets, mud) without any building plans approved and often on illegally-accessed and hazardous land. The idea that the communities in informal settlements should be involved in improving their homes and neighbourhoods is often discussed in the international development community. However, the tools and processes needed to ensure a successful upgrade of environmental and construction management are poorly understood, and top-down policies used by central and local government in SA have not been successful to date. If communities can improve their neighbourhoods through participatory techniques, enhancing construction skills and using available materials, then there could be local, regional and national environmental, social and economic benefits. The research seeks to explore the underpinning barriers and enabling drivers for communities to upgrade their informal settlements in SA. The central question for this research is how can participatory approaches be utilised in an environmental and construction management strategy to achieve self-reliance in informal settlements in Durban. This question will be investigated under six discrete project phases.Phase 1: Local Context and Gap Analysis (UKZN)-Examining factors that have helped communities in Durban upgrade their housing and communities, and barriers to upgrading.Phase 2: Mapping Urban Transitions through Community Participation (Westminster)Through a participatory action-research methodology, the project team will produce findings on bottom-up construction and environmental management in Namibia Stop 8 (NS8) with the involvement of the community living there. NS8 is a good practice case study in Inanda, Durban. Phase 3: Integrated Closed-Loop Environmental Management Systems (UCL with UKZN)- Exploring the potential of closed-loop systems where wastewater generated from NS8 can be reused for agriculture. - Investigating the processes, partnership models and business models required to ensure resilient infrastructure is provided.Phase 4: Skills Enhancement in Construction (Westminster)- Mapping the skills developed and enhanced through the 'self-build' approach adopted in NS8. - Transferring lessons from the UK Government Construction 2025 Strategy.Phase 5: Developing and Testing an Integrated Collaborative Toolkit (Westminster and UKZN)- Bringing together the key findings of individual Phases 1 to 4, this toolkit will take the form of a dynamic decision-making model, which will map potential ways for communities, businesses, and policymakers to collaborate. It will also identify the resources required, skills developed, and the business models created for mobilising private sector involvement and economic growth. Phase 6: Project Management, Communication and Dissemination (Westminster with UKZN)- Allocating around 10% of the total cost of grant to communicate and disseminate findings to a varied audience. The dissemination strategy will include: project website, branding, social media, dissemination material, and dissemination events (UK and SA).The research findings are intended to impact on SA government policy and practice in the field of sustainable urban transitions, building on best practice from the UK. However, this does not negate the potential to transfer knowledge from SA back to the UK or elsewhere. The intended target audience includes local communities seeking to enhance their quality of life and well-being and local authorities enhancing their planning. The research outputs can be also utilised by international agencies (eg UN), policy-makers and practitioners working on upgrading programmes, plans and policies, particularly under the SDG post-2015 development agenda.