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UCT RESEARCH REPORT 2012
DST/NRF SARChI Chair
associated with this theme
Research Groupings
associated with this theme
Environmental Economics
Policy Research Unit
The Environmental Economics Policy Research Unit
(EPRU) is the South African branch of the Environment
for Development initiative. This is a capacity-building
programme in environmental economics, which
focuses on research, policy advice, and teaching in
China, Central America, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa,
and Tanzania. EPRU is a collaborative association of
researchers specialising in environmental and natural
resource issues.
The unit was established in 2007 to promote
sustainable development and poverty reduction in
Southern Africa. To achieve this, EPRU aims to enhance
the effectiveness of environmental policy-making by
adopting a threefold strategy of research, teaching
and policy consultation.
During the last five years, EPRU’s policy-relevant
experience in research pertaining to ecosystems
management, biodiversity conservation, air quality and
water quality has grown extensively. The centre also
has previous research capacity and experience relevant
to the socio-economics of agriculture, fisheries and
conservation. Specifically, this strain of research has
been concerned with farm workers’ wages, land use
and rural poverty, and inequality among subsistence
fishermen, as well as the role of community-based
wildlife conservation in poverty mitigation. EPRU
has successfully worked with a number of local and
national stakeholders on medium-sized projects, such
as the South African National Parks (wildlife sector),
the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (water
sector), the Department of Environmental Affairs and
Tourism (marine and coastal management), and the
City of Cape Town (air-quality management and energy
savings). In the next few years, EPRU plans to bid for
larger research projects that will enhance collaboration
among EPRU research fellows, with other researchers
and, importantly, with key stakeholders.
Director: Associate Professor A Leiman
E-mail: tony.leiman@uct.ac.za
Web: http://www.efdinitiative.org/south-africa
Environmental and Social
Dimensions of the Bio-economy
Profiled on page 43
Research has been concerned with
farm workers’ wages, land use and
rural poverty, and inequality among
subsistence fishermen.