Environmental justice webinar
On 29 October 2024 the Gauteng Region of the ELA, in association with the University of Johannesburg and University of Pretoria’s Faculty of Law, hosted a webinar on environmental justice.
About the speaker
The talk was given by Peter Lukey, based on a paper he was invited to present to the OECD in Paris earlier in 2024. Peter was very active in raising the issue of environmental justice in South Africa during the 1980s and early 1990s. He was a founding member of Earthlife Africa. He authored Health before profits! An access guide to trade unions and environmental justice in South Africa (1995). This book took its place amongst pioneering works at the time such as Going green: People, politics and the environment in South Africa by Jacklyn Cock and Eddie Koch (1991) and Hidden faces. Environment, development and justice: South Africa and Global Context edited by David Hallowes (1993). Peter is the Chief Director: Environmental Knowledge and Information at the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.
What did we learn?
Peter’s talk:
- provided a history of environmental justice milestones in South Africa;
- thoughts on the status quo and where the debates and issues are now;
- included a visual presentation of maps outlining ‘then and now’ examples of environmental injustice and spatial planning, a stark reminder that the environmental justice project is not a complete one and that there is much work to be done.
The engaged and lively discussion that followed was facilitated by Gauteng Executive Committee representatives, Jenny Hall and John Rantlo. The diversity of the audience, who comprised of national and international participants from sectors in and beyond environmental law, resulted in a rich and thought-provoking interdisciplinary engagement. As one attendee from Finland noted in commenting on the event afterwards: “You guys don’t realise how rich the context that you operate in is. Just so good for the intellect and the spirit”.