2024/10/11 by Laurence Piper, Gillian F. Black, Leif Petersen +3 · 1 voice
Environmental Science · Social Sciences · #Participatory Visual Research Methods #Policy Transfer and Learning #Sustainability and Climate Change Governance
paper · doi:10.1332/17442648y2024d000000033
openalex publication_date 2024/10/11 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/02
Background: The article analyses the policy engagement component of a research project on climate resilience in vulnerable communities that took place in Cape Town, South Africa. Conducted in 2022, the engagement included community and stakeholder events in three research sites, and a cross-cutting policy event with municipal officials, held at the end of the project. Importantly, this policy engagement process occurred in a context of political marginalisation, that is, one characterised by low trust, and little meaningful representation or even communication between these vulnerable communities and the city. Aims and objectives: This article examines the impact of policy engagement on political relations between local government and vulnerable communities. Methods: The overall methodology of the article is qualitative, using an illustrative case-study research design to unpack the subjective experiences of both government officials and residents of vulnerable communities. Primary data included many primary documents, direct observation of the engagements and post-event interviews. Findings: First, the engagement process created new 'invented' spaces for the representation of community perspectives to the city, and the city's perspective to the community. Second, the engagement facilitated community self-representation through educating community members to advocate for their ideas in these new invented spaces. Third, this engagement tended to be more constructive and deliberative than polarising and confrontational. Discussion and conclusions: Drawing on the theoretical framework of 'political mediation', the policy engagement process is characterised as a positive instance of democratic mediation through 'empowered representation', with some specified limitations.