KLIMAATSAKSIE HANDBOEK

The 'Klimaataksie Handboek' is a guide published by Natural Justice in December 2021 to help South African communities build climate resilience through legal empowerment. It explains the science of climate change, identifies vulnerabilities, and provides a comprehensive toolkit for using legal mechanisms, public participation, and community organizing to protect environmental and human rights.

• Climate change is defined as a significant long-term shift in normal weather patterns caused by atmospheric changes, specifically human-induced greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide and methane.
• Global greenhouse gas emissions are primarily driven by energy production, which accounts for 72% of all emissions, with electricity and heat specifically contributing 31%.
• South Africa is particularly vulnerable to climate change, with the South African Weather Service predicting in 2017 that the country will warm twice as fast as the global average.
• Despite international commitments like the Paris Agreement and the 1992 UNFCCC, South Africa remains heavily dependent on coal-fired power stations and is ranked as the 14th highest carbon emitter globally as of 2017.
• The South African Constitution provides several fundamental rights that can be used to take climate action, including the right to an environment that is not harmful to health and well-being (Section 24), the right to life (Section 11), and the right to food and water (Section 27).
• Legal empowerment for communities involves building knowledge of the law, using the law to enforce rights, and influencing the law to ensure rights are respected.
• The Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) of 2000 allows citizens to request information from public and private bodies to protect their rights, though exceptions exist for privacy, commercial confidentiality, and national security.
• Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are critical processes for evaluating the future impacts of developments; the public has the right to be informed, access documents, and comment on these assessments.
• Traditional and indigenous knowledge, such as the fire management practices of the Khwe people in Namibia's Bwabwata National Park, are essential tools for climate adaptation and biodiversity protection.
• The guide outlines ten specific actions for community climate advocacy: strengthening the community, advocacy, gathering information, accessing information, participating in decision-making, lobbying government, protesting, signing petitions, reporting violations, and taking legal action.

APA

Natural Justice (2021). KLIMAATSAKSIE HANDBOEK. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/NJ_Climate-Change-Handbook_AFRIKAANS_DRAFT2.pdf

Chicago

Natural Justice. KLIMAATSAKSIE HANDBOEK. 2021. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/NJ_Climate-Change-Handbook_AFRIKAANS_DRAFT2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Natural Justice |title=KLIMAATSAKSIE HANDBOEK |date=December 2021 |url=https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/NJ_Climate-Change-Handbook_AFRIKAANS_DRAFT2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{naturaljustice2021klimaatsaksie, author = {{Natural Justice}}, title = {{KLIMAATSAKSIE HANDBOEK}}, institution = {Natural Justice}, year = {2021}, month = dec, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/NJ_Climate-Change-Handbook_AFRIKAANS_DRAFT2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }