Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Urban Geography in South Africa pp 97–119Cite as

Cities—Where People and Ecology Meet

  • Chapter
  • First Online:

Part of the book series: GeoJournal Library ((URPGS))

Abstract

Urban ecology as a discipline has progressed far beyond only scientific approaches and is now framed by understandings that interweave social, political, philosophical, natural and management sciences. Recent advances include urban ecology as part of complex social-ecological systems with active roles in achieving global sustainable development goals and city resilience and inquiries into socio-political processes that drive unequal urbanisation. Urbanisation is one of the key features of our current and future world. The consequences of a world population that is fast turning predominantly urban alongside unprecedented loss of natural ecosystems—humanity’s supporting pillars—are not yet fully understood. Moreover, the dynamics between intensifying urban development, socio-political patterns and ecosystem functioning also remain uncertain. Despite these changes, urban spaces can potentially contribute to ecological richness.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD   159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD   159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

References

  • Alberti, M. (2008). Advances in urban ecology integrating humans and ecological processes in urban ecosystems (No. 574.5268 A4).

    Google Scholar 

  • Alberti, M. (2010). Maintaining ecological integrity and sustaining ecosystem function in urban areas. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 2(3), 178–184.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, P. M. L., Avlonitis, G., & Ernstson, H. (2014). Ecological outcomes of civic and expert-led urban greening projects using indigenous plant species in Cape Town, South Africa. Landscape and Urban Planning, 127, 104–113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barker, G. (2000). Ecological recombination in urban areas. In The urban forum/English nature. Peterborough.

    Google Scholar 

  • Begon, M., Townsend, C. R., & Harper, J. L. (2006). Ecology: From individuals to ecosystems. Boston: Blackwell Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Benedict, M. A., & McMahon, E. T. (2002). Green infrastructure: smart conservation for the 21st century. Renewable Resources Journal, 20, 12–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bloomberg, M. (2015). City century: Why municipalities are the key to fighting climate change. Foreign Affairs, 94, 116.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bolund, P., & Hunhammar, S. (1999). Ecosystem services in urban areas. Ecological Economics, 29(2), 293–301.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, B. C. (2012). Essentials of applying complexity thinking for sustainability leadership. Integral Sustainability Center, Resource Tool No. 12, 1–9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carley, M. (1999). Neighbourhoods-building blocks of national sustainability. Town and country planning-London-town and country planning association, 68, 58–60.

    Google Scholar 

  • Caspersen, O. H., Konijnendijk, C. C., & Olafsson, A. S. (2006). Green space planning and land use: An assessment of urban regional and green structure planning in Greater Copenhagen. Geografisk Tidsskrift-Danish Journal of Geography, 106(2), 7–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cilliers, S. S. (2010). Social aspects of urban biodiversity—An overview. In N. Müller, P. Werner, & J. Kelcey (Eds.), Urban biodiversity and design—Implementing the convention on biological diversity in towns and cities (pp. 81–100).

    Google Scholar 

  • Cilliers, S., Du Toit, M., Cilliers, J., Drewes, E., & Retief, F. (2014). Sustainable urban landscapes: South African perspectives on transdisciplinary possibilities. Landscape and Urban Planning, 125, 260–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cilliers, S. S., Müller, N., & Drewes, E. (2004). Overview on urban nature conservation: Situation in the western-grassland biome of South Africa. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 3(1), 49–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cilliers, S. S., & Siebert, S. J. (2012). Urban ecology in Cape Town: South African comparisons and reflections. Ecology and Society, 17(3).

    Google Scholar 

  • Cilliers, E. J., Timmermans, W., van den Goorbergh, F., & Slijkhuis, J. S. A. (2015). Designing public spaces through the lively planning integrative perspective. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 17(6), 1367–1380.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costanza, R., & Folke, C. (1997). Valuing ecosystem services with efficiency, fairness and sustainability as goals. In Nature’s services: Societal dependence on natural ecosystems (pp. 49–70).

    Google Scholar 

  • Davies, R. J. (1981). The spatial formation of the South African city. GeoJournal, 2(2), 59–72.

    Google Scholar 

  • Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA). (2016). Integrated urban development framework. Pretoria: Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.

    Google Scholar 

  • Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA). (2012). 2nd South Africa environment outlook report. A report on the state of the environment. Department of Environmental Affairs, Pretoria, 60 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Downton, P. F. (2008). Ecopolis: Architecture and cities for a changing climate (Vol. 1). Springer Science & Business Media.

    Google Scholar 

  • Du Toit, M. J. (2015). An urban ecological synthesis of socio-ecological systems dynamics in Potchefstroom, South Africa (Doctoral dissertation).

    Google Scholar 

  • Ernstson, H., & Sörlin, S. (2013). Ecosystem services as technology of globalization: On articulating values in urban nature. Ecological Economics, 86, 274–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ernstson, H., & Swyngedouw, E. (2015, September). Rupturing the anthro-obscene! the political promises of planetary & uneven urban ecologies. Position Paper. Conference at Teater Reflex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Folke, C., Carpenter, S., Elmqvist, T., Gunderson, L., Holling, C. S., & Walker, B. (2002). Resilience and sustainable development: Building adaptive capacity in a world of transformations. AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment, 31(5), 437–441.

    Google Scholar 

  • Forman, R. T., & Godron, M. (1986). Landscape ecology. New York, NY: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldreich, Y. (1970). Computation of the magnitude of Johannesburg’s heat island. Notos, 19, 95–106.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goodness, J., & Anderson, P. M. (2013). Local assessment of Cape Town: navigating the management complexities of urbanization, biodiversity, and ecosystem services in the Cape Floristic Region. In Urbanization, biodiversity and ecosystem services: Challenges and opportunities (pp. 461–484). Dordrecht: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham, M., & Ernstson, H. (2012). Comanagement at the fringes: Examining stakeholder perspectives at Macassar Dunes, Cape Town, South Africa—at the intersection of high biodiversity, urban poverty, and inequality. Ecology and Society, 17(3).

    Google Scholar 

  • Grimm, N. B., Faeth, S. H., Golubiewski, N. E., Redman, C. L., Wu, J., Bai, X., & Briggs, J. M. (2008). Global change and the ecology of cities. Science, 319(5864), 756–760.

    Google Scholar 

  • Güneralp, B., & Seto, K. C. (2013). Futures of global urban expansion: uncertainties and implications for biodiversity conservation. Environmental Research Letters, 8(1), 014025.

    Google Scholar 

  • Haagner, A. C. (1902). XXXV: More ornithological notes from the transvaal. Ibis, 44(4), 569–581.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Habitat, United Nations (UN). (2016). World cities report 2016. Nairobi, Kenya: UN Habitat.

    Google Scholar 

  • Head, B. W. (2008). Wicked problems in public policy. Public Policy, 3(2), 101.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoffman, T., & O’Riain, M. (2012). Monkey management: Using spatial ecology to understand the extent and severity of human–baboon conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. Ecology and Society, 17(3), 234–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hoornweg, D., Freire, M., Lee, M. J., Bhada-Tata, P., & Yuen, B. (2011). Cities and climate change: Responding to an urgent agenda. New York: The World Bank.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Hope, D., Gries, C., Zhu, W., Fagan, W. F., Redman, C. L., Grimm, N. B., …, & Kinzig, A. (2008). Socioeconomics drive urban plant diversity. Urban Ecology, 339–347.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jabareen, Y. (2013). Planning the resilient city: Concepts and strategies for coping with climate change and environmental risk. Cities, 31, 220–229.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaufmann, R. K., Seto, K. C., Schneider, A., Liu, Z., Zhou, L., & Wang, W. (2007). Climate response to rapid urban growth: Evidence of a human-induced precipitation deficit. Journal of Climate, 20(10), 2299–2306.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuruneri-Chitepo, C., & Shackleton, C. M. (2011). The distribution, abundance and composition of street trees in selected towns of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 10(3), 247–254.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lau, C. (2018). Nature-based solutions. Planning, 84(8), 34.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lawhon, M., Ernstson, H., & Silver, J. (2014). Provincializing urban political ecology: Towards a situated UPE through African urbanism. Antipode, 46(2), 497–516.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leong, M., Dunn, R. R., & Trautwein, M. D. (2018). Biodiversity and socioeconomics in the city: A review of the luxury effect. Biology Letters, 14, 180–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Likens, G. E., Kinne, O., & Williams, W. D. (1992). The ecosystem approach: Its use and abuse. Washington, DC: Ecology Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Loftus, A. (2012). Everyday environmentalism: Creating an urban political ecology. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Louw, W. J., & Meyer, J. A. (1965). Near-surface nocturnal winter temperatures in Pretoria. Notos, 14, 49–65.

    Google Scholar 

  • Macchi, S., & Tiepolo, M. (2014). Climate change vulnerability in Southern African cities. In Springer climate. Switzerland: Springer International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, G. P. (1864). Man and Nature; or. Physical geography as modified by human action (Vol. 35, pp. 6–14).

    Google Scholar 

  • Marzluff, J. M., Shulenberger, E., Endlicher, W., Alberti, M., Bradley, G., Ryan, C., & ZumBrunnen, C. (2008). An international perspective on the interaction between humans and nature. New York, NY: Springer Books Ltd.

    Google Scholar 

  • McDonnell, M. J., & Niemelä, J. (2011). The history of urban ecology. Urban Ecology, 9, 34–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • McDonnell, M. J., & Pickett, S. T. (1990). Ecosystem structure and function along urban-rural gradients: An unexploited opportunity for ecology. Ecology, 71(4), 1232–1237.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDonnell, M. J., Pickett, S. T., & Pouyat, R. V. (1993). The application of the ecological gradient paradigm to the study of urban effects. In G. Likens & W. Cronon (Eds.), Humans as components of ecosystems. New York, NY: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • McGrath, B., & Shane, D. G. (2012). Metropolis, megalopolis and metacity. In The Sage handbook of architectural theory. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • McIntyre, N. E., Knowles-Yánez, K., & Hope, D. (2008). Urban ecology as an interdisciplinary field: Differences in the use of “urban” between the social and natural sciences. Urban Ecology, 49–65.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKinney, M. L. (2006). Urbanization as a major cause of biotic homogenization. Biological Conservation, 127(3), 247–260.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McKinney, M. L. (2008). Effects of urbanization on species richness: A review of plants and animals. Urban Ecosystems, 11(2), 161–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLean, P., Gallien, L., Wilson, J. R., Gaertner, M., & Richardson, D. M. (2017). Small urban centres as launching sites for plant invasions in natural areas: Insights from South Africa. Biological Invasions, 19(12), 3541–3555.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McPhearson, T., Pickett, S. T., Grimm, N. B., Niemelä, J., Alberti, M., Elmqvist, T., … & Qureshi, S. (2016). Advancing urban ecology toward a science of cities. BioScience, 66(3), 198–212.

    Google Scholar 

  • Folke, C. Jansson, Å. Rockström, J. Olsson, P. Carpenter, S. R. Chapin, F. S., & Westley, F. (2011). Reconnecting to the biosphere. AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment, 40(7), 719–738.

    Google Scholar 

  • Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. (2005). Ecosystem and human well-being: Biodiversity synthesis. Washington, DC: World Resources Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Niemelä, J., Breuste, J. H., Guntenspergen, G., McIntyre, N. E., Elmqvist, T., & James, P. (Eds.). (2011). Urban ecology: Patterns, processes, and applications. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Niemelä, J., Saarela, S. R., Söderman, T., Kopperoinen, L., Yli-Pelkonen, V., Väre, S., & Kotze, D. J. (2010). Using the ecosystem services approach for better planning and conservation of urban green spaces: A Finland case study. Biodiversity and Conservation, 19(11), 3225–3243.

    Google Scholar 

  • Norberg, J., & Cumming, G. (2008). Complexity theory for a sustainable future. Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • OECD. Publishing. (2015). The metropolitan century: Understanding urbanisation and its consequences. Paris: OECD Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pachauri, R. K., Allen, M. R., Barros, V. R., Broome, J., Cramer, W., Christ, R., … & Dubash, N. K. (2014). In Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (p. 151). IPCC.

    Google Scholar 

  • Padoch, C., McDonnell, M.J., & Pickett, S.T.A. (1993). Part II: A human ecologist’s perspective. In G. Likens and M. Cronon (eds.) Humans as components of ecosystems: The ecology of subtle human effects and populated areas. London: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perine, C., & Keuck, H. (2018). Building urban resilience to climate change: A review of South Africa. Climate Change Adaptation, Thought Leadership and Assessments (ATLAS). Retrieved from https://www.climatelinks.org/sites/default/files/asset/document/180327_USAID-ATLAS_Building%20Urban%20Resilience%20to%20CC_South%20Africa_to%20CL_rev.pdf.

  • Pickett, S. T., & Cadenasso, M. L. (2006). Advancing urban ecological studies: Frameworks, concepts, and results from the Baltimore Ecosystem Study. Austral Ecology, 31(2), 114–125.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pickett, S. T. A., Cadenasso, M. L., Rosi-Marshall, E. J., Belt, K. T., Groffman, P. M., Grove, J. M., … & Swan, C. M. (2017). Dynamic heterogeneity: A framework to promote ecological integration and hypothesis generation in urban systems. Urban Ecosystems, 20, 1–14.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rees, W. E. (1997). Urban ecosystems: The human dimension. Urban Ecosystems, 1, 63–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rogerson, C. M. (1993). Urban agriculture in South Africa: Scope, issues and potential. GeoJournal, 30, 21–28

    Google Scholar 

  • Savard, J. P. L., Clergeau, P., & Mennechez, G. (2000). Biodiversity concepts and urban ecosystems. Landscape and Urban Planning, 48(3–4), 131–142.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shackleton, C. M., Blair, A., De Lacy, P., Kaoma, H., Mugwagwa, N., Dalu, M. T., & Walton, W. (2018). How important is green infrastructure in small and medium-sized towns? Lessons from South Africa. Landscape and Urban Planning, 180, 273–281.

    Google Scholar 

  • Silva, C. N. (2013). Urban ecology. Salem: Salem Press Encyclopaedia.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simon, D. (2013). Climate and environmental change and the potential for greening African cities. Local Economy, 28(2), 203–217.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • South African Cities Network (SACN). 2011. Towards Resilient Cities. State of South African Cities Report.

    Google Scholar 

  • South African Cities Network (SACN). 2016. State of South African Cities Report.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spash, C. L. (2012). New foundations for ecological economics. Ecological Economics, 77, 36–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Swyngedouw, E., & Ernstson, H. (2018). Interrupting the anthropo-obScene: Immuno-biopolitics and depoliticizing ontologies in the anthropocene. Theory, Culture & Society, 35(6), 3–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tait, C. J., Daniels, C. B., & Hill, R. S. (2005). Changes in species assemblages within the Adelaide metropolitan area, Australia, 1836–2002. Ecological Applications, 15(1), 346–359.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, L., & Hochuli, D. F. (2017). Defining greenspace: Multiple uses across multiple disciplines. Landscape and Urban Planning, 158, 25–38.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyson P. (1968). Velocity fluctuations in the mountain wind. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 25, 381–384.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tzoulas, K., Korpela, K., Venn, S., Yli-Pelkonen, V., Kaźmierczak, A., Niemela, J., & James, P. (2007). Promoting ecosystem and human health in urban areas using Green Infrastructure: A literature review. Landscape and Urban Planning, 81(3), 167–178.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations (UN). (2012). World population prospects: The 2010 revision, volume I-comprehensive tables. New York: United Nations.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations (UN). (2015). United Nations sustainable development goals. New York: United Nations.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations (UN). (2017). New Urban Agenda. A/RES/71/256.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). (2013). Urban resource flows and the governance of infrastructure transitions. In A report of the working group on cities of the international resource panel.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). (1992). United Nations framework convention on climate change.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van der Walt, L., Cilliers, S. S., Du Toit, M. J., & Kellner, K. (2015). Conservation of fragmented grasslands as part of the urban green infrastructure: How important are species diversity, functional diversity and landscape functionality? Urban Ecosystems, 18(1), 87–113.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Döhren, P., & Haase, D. (2015). Ecosystem disservices research: A review of the state of the art with a focus on cities. Ecological Indicators, 52, 490–497.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wackernagel, M., & Rees, W. (1998). Our ecological footprint: Reducing human impact on the earth (Vol. 9). New York: New Society Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, V. L., Balkwill, K., & Witkowski, E. T. F. (1997). Muthi traders on the Witwatersrand, South Africa-an urban mosaic. South African Journal of Botany, 63(6), 378–381.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wong, T. H., & Brown, R. R. (2009). The water sensitive city: Principles for practice. Water Science and Technology, 60(3), 673–682.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wood, P. A., & Samways, M. J. (1991). Landscape element pattern and continuity of butterfly flight paths in an ecologically landscaped botanic garden, Natal, South Africa. Biological Conservation, 58(2), 149–166.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wu, J. (2014). Urban ecology and sustainability: The state-of-the-science and future directions. Landscape and Urban Planning, 125, 209–221.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, Western Cape Government, Cape Town, South Africa

    Francini van Staden

Authors
  1. Francini van Staden
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Francini van Staden .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological and Geographical Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UK

    Ruth Massey

  2. UNISA Science Campus, University of South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Ashley Gunter

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

van Staden, F. (2020). Cities—Where People and Ecology Meet. In: Massey, R., Gunter, A. (eds) Urban Geography in South Africa . GeoJournal Library(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25369-1_7

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25369-1_7

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-25368-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-25369-1

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation