Durban’s 100 Resilient Cities journey: governing resilience from within

Abstract

Urban resilience is the focus of a global policy discourse that is being mobilized by a wide range of organizations to reduce urban risk and respond to the shocks and stresses facing cities. This paper explores the process of “governing for resilience” through Durban’s resilience journey as part of the 100 Resilient Cities (100RC) programme. From an insider perspective, it presents both 100RC and Durban’s approaches to developing a resilience strategy. It reflects on the contestations that emerged as Durban and 100RC struggled over the meaning and practice of urban resilience. The paper develops a continuum of urban resilience approaches to analyse the conflicts that emerged as the global programme of urban resilience travelled to, and landed in, a South African city. The paper argues that a global framing of urban resilience needs to be responsive to a world of cities that share common risk trajectories but have different contexts and vulnerabilities.(1)

Urban greenspace as a climate change adaptation strategy for subtropical Asian cities: A comparative study across cities in three countries

“…Indeed, in cases where knowledge-driven policy and practice interventions were evaluated positively, such as the Smart Eco City and Garden City initiatives in Taipei and the formation of an integrated mitigation and adaptation plan in Fukuoka, respondents suggested it was because key individuals’ knowledge competences were supported with competences in understanding how to enact interventions in practice ( Perez Salgado et al, 2018 ). The value of individuals and departments who can combine techno-scientific knowledge with socio-political nous is of course not limited to subtropical Asian city contexts ( Roberts et al, 2020 ). However, given the prevalence of top-down and/or siloed governance modes in subtropical Asian contexts ( Dobbs et al, 2014 ), the need for competence in making knowledge and data work across divisions may be equally important.…”

Resilience as a City Brand: The Cases of the Comuna 13 and Moravia in Medellin, Colombia

“…The case of Durban is also enlightening as it is analysed from within by its former Chief Resilience Officer Debra Roberts and her colleagues. [74] These resilience practitioners describe how this South African city finally separated from the 100RC network due to significant conflicts triggered by the opposing ways resilience was conceived. For them, the general framing of resilience in the 100RC program did not reflect the local context of Durban.…”

“…For example, the systemic challenge of inequality, not explicit in the City Resilience Framework, was considered central to urban resilience in a socio-institutional context like Durban". [74] (p. 14) 100RC's inability to address the root cause of poverty and inequity is also highlighted by Fitzgibbons & Mitchell. [75] In an analysis of 31 City Resilient Strategies, the authors also observe a general lack of inclusion of marginalized residents and a heavy concentration of cities in Northern and wealthy countries.…”

Water Resilience in a Changing Urban Context: Africa's Challenge and Pathways for Action

“…This also set a foundation for the creation of Durban's resilience strategy, which involved extensive participatory stakeholder engagement and integration of local knowledge. The resulting commitment highlights cross-sectoral priorities targeted at systemic changes, with buy-in across a wide breadth of groups (Roberts et al 2020;Sutherland et al 2014Sutherland et al , 2019. At the national level, the African Green Stimulus Programme, launched in late 2020, announced ambitious strategies on nature-based solutions, restoration and biodiversity efforts, and climate action (UNEP 2020b(UNEP , 2021).…”

“…Sources: Roberts et al 2020;Sutherland et al 2014Sutherland et al , 2019 Furthermore, national governments need to increase their commitment to the urban development agenda. In African countries, urban development is often detached from national economic development and investment planning, rarely articulated in countries' national development policy and strategy.…”