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Nature-Based Solutions for Public Green Spaces in Sub-Saharan Africa—Integrating Place-Making and Green Infrastructure

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African Cities Through Local Eyes

Part of the book series: The Urban Book Series ((UBS))

Abstract

Transforming unsuccessful public spaces into successful ones is challenging, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa where public open spaces often compete with other pressing needs such as basic services and housing. Due to budget constraints and restricted capacity, public open spaces are often ill-maintained, left without dedicated functions, and underutilised. This leads to a loss in potential economic, social, and environmental values. In keeping with the international shift towards nature-based approaches under broader sustainability thinking, this chapter investigates the possibilities of an integrated nature-based approach to develop public open spaces in Sub-Sahara Africa as public green spaces, drawing on the development concepts of place-making and green infrastructure. Following a review of both concepts and in recognition of the unique contexts that inform public open space development in Sub-Saharan Africa, the chapter considers a specific public open space, Trim Park, in the South African town of Potchefstroom. The chapter draws on a community survey distributed amongst two sample groups in Potchefstroom probing community preferences for Trim Park. Results are reconciled with core place-making and green infrastructure principles, in which “safety” and “diversity” are identified as main objectives when considering integrated nature-based solutions for Trim Park. Empirical results are used to recommend certain nature-based urban planning and design solutions for Sub-Saharan Africa that may hold equal value for public green spaces across the globe, if contextualised and applied with sensitivity.

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Acknowledgements

This research (or parts thereof) was made possible by the financial contribution of the National Research Foundation South Africa. Any opinion, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s). The NRF does not accept any liability in regard thereto.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North West University, Potchefstroom, 2531, South Africa

    Juanee Cilliers, Sarel Cilliers & Louis Lategan

  2. Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building, University of Technology Sydney, PO Box 123, Broadway, NSW, 2007, Australia

    Juanee Cilliers

Authors
  1. Juanee Cilliers
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  2. Sarel Cilliers
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Correspondence to Juanee Cilliers .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Faculty of Architecture La Cambre Horta, Brussels, Belgium

    Giuseppe Faldi

  2. Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Faculty of Architecture La Cambre Horta, Brussels, Belgium

    Axel Fisher

  3. Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Faculty of Architecture La Cambre Horta, Brussels, Belgium

    Luisa Moretto

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Cilliers, J., Cilliers, S., Lategan, L. (2021). Nature-Based Solutions for Public Green Spaces in Sub-Saharan Africa—Integrating Place-Making and Green Infrastructure. In: Faldi, G., Fisher, A., Moretto, L. (eds) African Cities Through Local Eyes. The Urban Book Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84906-1_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84906-1_5

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