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This research paper by the Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI) evaluates the local government fiscal framework in South Africa, arguing that the structural assumptions made in the 1998 White Paper on Local Government are fundamentally unsound and have led to widespread municipal financial distress and the erosion of the social wage.

A formal letter from the South African Water Caucus (SAWC) and affiliates to Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, President Cyril Ramaphosa, and other officials, demanding urgent provision of water tanks, reliable water supply, and sanitation packs for communities lacking access. The document highlights a failure by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) to respond to previous requests and warns of legal action if a response is not provided by August 3, 2020.

The South African Water Caucus (SAWC) issued an urgent request to Minister Lindiwe Sisulu of the Department of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation on June 1, 2020, demanding immediate intervention for over 200 communities lacking access to water and basic sanitation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The South African Water Caucus (SAWC) submitted an urgent request to Minister Lindiwe Sisulu on April 30, 2020, demanding the provision of water tanks, reliable water supply, and sanitation packs for numerous communities across South Africa facing dire water shortages and sanitation failures during the COVID-19 lockdown.

This case study by GreenCape examines how FoodForward SA, a Public Benefit Organisation, utilizes a circular economy model to recover and redistribute surplus food in South Africa, specifically focusing on the impact within Cape Town during 2020/21.

An open letter from a coalition of environmental activists to President Cyril Ramaphosa urging that the South Africa Investment Conference (5–7 November 2019) prioritize responsible investment over the exploitation of natural resources, specifically opposing the weakening of water use regulations to attract business.

This monograph examines the use and misuse of less-lethal weapons (LLWs) within South African prisons and by the South African Police Service (SAPS) Public Order Police (POP) units during crowd management from 2013 to 2018. It analyzes the legal and regulatory frameworks of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) and SAPS, highlighting systemic failures in accountability, the use of equipment as instruments of torture, and the lethal consequences of weapons marketed as 'less-lethal'.

This document contains legal submissions by a coalition of eight environmental organisations, represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights, appealing a decision by the Gert Sibande District Joint Municipal Planning Tribunal. The appeal seeks to revoke the approval of a land-use change application by Atha-Africa Ventures (Pty) Ltd to enable the construction of the Yzermyn Underground Coal Mine on Portion 1 of the farm Yzermyn 96 HT, arguing that the decision is unlawful, environmentally catastrophic, and contrary to national water security interests.

This report analyzes the failure of Section 139 interventions in South African municipalities between 1998 and 2019. It finds that interventions are typically initiated too late, are legally misclassified to avoid mandatory financial recovery processes, and rely on an unauthorized 'administrator model' that often exacerbates municipal collapse. The authors call for a standardized, non-political implementation framework with clear triggers and strengthened oversight.

The Centre for Environmental Rights, acting for applicants groundWork and Vukani Environmental Justice Movement in Action, provides written consent for the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment, Mr David Boyd, to be admitted as an amicus curiae in the case of The Trustees for the Time Being of GroundWork Trust and Another v The Minister of Environmental Affairs & Four Others (NGHC case no. 39724/19).

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), representing the Life After Coal campaign and several environmental justice alliances, formally objects to a proposed amendment by the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries to double the Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) Minimum Emission Standard (MES) for new plants in sub-category 1.1 from 500 mg/Nm3 to 1000 mg/Nm3. The CER argues that this weakening of standards is unlawful, violates the South African Constitution's right to a healthy environment, and would lead to significant premature deaths and exacerbated air pollution in priority areas.

This report by the Greenpeace Global Air Pollution Unit assesses the public health and environmental consequences of a proposal by South Africa’s Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries to double the Minimum Emissions Standards (MES) for SO2 from 500mg/Nm3 to 1000mg/Nm3 for power plants and industrial sources.

Lawyers for Human Rights requested consent for UN Special Rapporteur David Richard Boyd to act as amicus curiae in a South African court case (NGHC case no 39724/19). Boyd intended to provide international and comparative legal perspectives on State obligations regarding air pollution and the right to a healthy environment to assist the court in interpreting the NEM: Air Quality Act and the South African Constitution.

This integrated report, published by the Institute for Security Studies in July 2019, details multi-sectoral efforts in South Africa to prevent and reduce violence against children using the INSPIRE framework. Based on workshops with government departments, NGOs, researchers, and children, the report maps current activities across seven strategies and identifies systemic gaps, such as a lack of inter-sectoral trust and a critical shortage of therapeutic services.

This document is a Rule 16A notice filed in the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria, in June 2019. It outlines the constitutional issues raised by applicants—including GroundWork and the Vukani Environmental Justice Alliance—regarding air pollution in the Highveld Priority Area and the failure of the Minister of Environmental Affairs to establish regulations to implement the Highveld Priority Area Air Quality Management Plan.

The Draft National Spatial Development Framework (NSDF) 2019 is a long-term strategic planning instrument for South Africa, mandated by the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act (SPLUMA) and aligned with the National Development Plan (NDP). It aims to dismantle the spatial legacies of colonialism and apartheid by transitioning the country toward an integrated, inclusive, and sustainable national space economy by 2050.

This report projects that Eskom's planned non-compliance with South Africa's Minimum Emission Standards (MES) would lead to an estimated 16,000 avoidable premature deaths and significant excess emissions of SO2, NOx, particulate matter, and mercury. The health impacts are particularly acute in the Gauteng region, where 3,100 premature deaths could be avoided through full compliance. The analysis also highlights that mercury deposition would exceed health risk thresholds over 89,000km², affecting 3.4 million people.

A formal submission by the Vaal Environmental Justice Alliance (VEJA) and groundWork (gW) objecting to ArcelorMittal South Africa's (AMSA) application for postponements and alternative emission standards at its Vanderbijlpark Works facility.

The Vaal Environmental Justice Alliance (VEJA) and groundWork (gW) submitted a formal objection on 11 March 2019 against ArcelorMittal South Africa’s (AMSA) application for the postponement and alternative plant standards of minimum emission standards (MES) at its Vanderbijlpark Works. The submitters argue that AMSA's requests are unlawful, fail to meet statutory requirements, and would violate the constitutional right to a healthy environment.

This case study details a legal challenge by The Black Eagle Project Roodekrans against the MEC for the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment, Gauteng Provincial Government, regarding land use exemptions and environmental authorisations near the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden.