Goedverwacht
Workshops 1 -3
Jessica
1
APPENDIX 1: Pilot Workshops by EMG
Notes from Goedverwacht – EMG workshop 1: getting to
know each other, and introduction to climate change
Tuesday 19 March 2013
Agenda
10h00 Verwelkoming en inleiding – Welcome and Introduction
Bekendstelling, verwagtinge –Participant introductions and expectations
11h00 Natuur se sisteme – Nature’s cycles
11h45 Gesamendlike opstel van ‘n kaart – Participatory mapping
13h00 Middagete - Lunch
14h00 Voorstelling van kaarte – Discussion of maps
14h45 Bewyse van klimaatsverandering – Evidence of climate change
16h10 Volgende stappe en bedankings – Next steps and thanks
16h50 Sluiting - Closing
Opening prayer
Verwelkoming/ Welcome (Ian)
Inleiding/ Introduction to process and overview of day (Taryn)
Die doel van die werkswinkel is om te begin om klimaatsverandering beter te verstaan, en die
bronne van Goederwacht beter te verstaan.
This workshop follows on from an introductory meeting in November 2012, where a smaller group
of people from Goedverwacht met with Noel, Jessica and Taryn from EMG to discuss the possibilities
of building a relationship. It was agreed that we would work together, with a focus on local
adaptation to climate change (minutes from this introductory meeting are available). Today’s
meeting is the first workshop of three to be held this year, with funding from the Water Research
Commission, as part of a broader project on climate change adaptation. There was a request from
the Goedverwacht community members for EMG to give an introduction to the ‘facts’ of climate
change, and how it relates to Goedverwacht. So today’s meeting will consist of some presentations
from EMG about the ‘science’ of climate change, and some participatory mapping and discussion
about various aspects of Geodverwacht and its resources.
Bekendstelling en verwagtings/ Participant introductions and expectations (Stephen)
Each person was given a piece of paper and asked to write:
a. naam en van (name and surname)
b. beroep/ wat jy hier in die gemeenskap doen (occupation or role in the community)
c. my kennis oor klimaatsverandering … (what I know about climate change)
d. ek wil weet… (one thing I would like to know about climate change).
Everyone scrunched their paper into a ball. At the count of three, they threw their paper into the air
for someone else to catch. Everyone caught a ball of paper that was not their own. Everyone took
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turns reading the name on their paper; that person stood up, and the reader shared what was on
their paper. Below are some of the questions and comments that were shared.
My kennis oor klimaatsverandering / what I know about climate change
Toekoms vir mense en diere verander (the future is changing for people and animals)
Seisoene nie as hulle was nie (seasons not what they used to be)
Groot probleem, word groter (big problem becoming bigger)
Droogte, baie warm somers; plante dood-gaan; donderweer (drought, very hot summers, dying
plants, thunderstorms)
Temperatuur verandering (temperature changes)
Probleme in die gemeenskap (problems in the community)
Krag is duur, water verminder, vuur (electricity is expensive, water gets less, fire)
Water probleme (water problems)
Ek wil weet/ I want to know…
Onkundig (everything is unknown)
Wat kan ons doen? (what can we do?)
Hoe om beter voorbereid te wees vir klimaatsverandering, vir b.v. vuur; miskien kan ons werk met
‘Working for Fire’, of ‘n brandweerwa koop (how to be better prepared to respond to challenges e.g.
fire; maybe we should get involved with ‘working for fire’ or buy a fire engine)
Hoe kan ons die droogte oorleef (how can we survive droughts)
Voordele en nadele van klimaats verandering (causes and consequences of climate change)
Wat kan ons verwag (what can we expect - specific predictions)
Natuur se sisteme/ Nature’s cycles
Jessica led us through a guided visualisation, in which we connected with the natural cycles that
support us and of which we are a part. Afterwards, we were invited to share how we felt; people
found it very relaxing and insightful, and felt gratitude for the sun, the earth and water that support
all life.
Stephen then led us through a PowerPoint presentation about ‘Life on earth’, with information
about the natural cycles that are the support systems for life on our planet.
Gesamendlike opstel van kaarte/ Participatory mapping (Taryn)
We don’t just want to learn about climate change for the sake of learning about climate change – we
want to know what it will actually mean in our own lives, for our own livelihoods. In order to this, it
helps to start by thinking about our resources and challenges in the present, so that we can think
about how to plan and prepare for the challenges of the future, including the impacts of climate
change. One way to describe and reflect on resources (bronne) is to draw pictures or maps of where
these resources are, how we interact with them, how they are changing. These maps aren’t exactly
like road maps or weather maps; they can be more creative, they can show the past and the future,
they can exaggerate certain things, they can include things that aren’t there but that we wish were
there. They do not have to be perfectly accurate or to scale. They are conceptual maps, which will
lead us into useful discussion.
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For this exercise, we brainstormed a number of themes that different maps could explore, and then
people chose which map they would like to work on. The themes were: household water; history of
Goedverwacht; waste; vegetation; water in Wolfkloof; Rooidak Pad (road).
Everyone worked on these maps in groups for about an hour, followed by a lunch break. Towards
the end of this time, groups were asked to think also about how institutions played a role in their
maps.
LUNCH: Delicious snoek en patat, with bread fresh from the fire-ovens!
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After lunch, the groups presented their maps. The following notes are a reflection of what was said
during these presentations and open discussion.
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Household water
Water flows from Paterson’s land (neighbouring farmer) to Uitkeer, then 2 dams, then to a pump
station and to a dam called Uncle Nicky. The two top dams (before pump station) go to Bosman and
Jacaranda Street. The main problem starts at Uncle Nicky’s dam – it is under a lot of pressure, has to
provide a lot of water. It feeds Sandstraat, Kerk Straat, Tierkloof Onderkant Straat, Oukraal, Berg
Straat. Then there’s a bottom dam (fed by Uncle Nicky) that goes to the new developments and to
Noupoort, Happy Valley, Oortikies. It also goes to another dam – Rietkloof.
What can we do?
 No-one realises water is natural and can be depleted – we must tell them
 There is a very serious problem with Port Jackson and other invasives: we need to take out
invasives
 PPC cement promised to provide money to address some of our water problems – but we
haven’t seen that project happen yet
 Too many animals – leads to erosion
 Households are taking more water, as they’ve got fancier, with more bathrooms – the
current dams do not hold enough water
Discussion/additions
The problem lies with not enough water coming into the dams – this is where the shortage is and
where we need a project
Maybe we should put a pipe from one of the top dams to the bottom dam?
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There is enough water, the Port Jackson is the main problem.
We need a higher dam to get more pressure from gravity (dams are too low)
People are beginning to build on new plots but no plans have been made about water for them.
Paterson is a neighbour who built a dam 2 years ago in the catchment, and our water comes from
that catchment, but not from his dam.
Permission was given to farmers upstream and downstream to farm and to build dams because
there is ‘excess water’ but no EIA’s were done and it’s essentially unlawful. Goedverwacht won’t
have money to go to court over this issue.
The rivers are dying, the kloofs are dying.
The water that the town needs is running out of a broken pipe near Uncle Nicky’s dam .
Water governance: Ronel works in the water office. There are two workers responsible for the whole
water system. When there are big problems, like a broken pipe, we contact the MCiSA (Moravian
Church in South Africa) offices in Lansdowne in Cape Town. The two workers in the community fix
small leaks, and Berg River municipality helps with bigger leaks. We have three sand filters at the
pump station, and also do chlorine treatment. PPC cement gave money for a chlorine pump, but
Johan Barnard took our chlorine pump, now we must pour chlorine into the dams manually. The
water is 100% clean. It is tested every month.
The blame for all the water problems sits on the local officers but they do not have the expertise to
deal with all the problems. The pipe at Uncle Nicky’s dam needs to be fixed urgently, because that
water is being wasted. The office is busy arranging to get an expert to come and sort out the
problems at Uncle Nicky’s dam. All problems with water and electricity have to go via the church
first, and this is difficult for the community. We have too many bosses; and nothing is done right. We
need a study on what will work in terms of water in Goedverwacht.
Coming to climate change: does it ever happen that there’s not enough rain or water in river? Yes, in
summer – some of us get no water in the driest time of the year. A major problem is that people
must pay for water – it’s a natural resource that can be used up; people must first save water –
people obey the water savings rules in bigger towns; here in Geodverwacht we’re lenient. People
think water can’t run out.
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History
The presenters showed a photograph of what Goedverwacht used to look like 40 or 50 years ago.
Middelpos is a neighbour; Wolfkloof is part of Goedverwacht; Moutonsvallei is neighbour on the
other side – you can now get there from Picketberg, but used to have to use Rooidraai Pad to get to
Versfeld pass. In those days there was lots of water. There was a mill; there was a dam near the old
school which fed the mill. The water that fed this dam came round in a sloot from the river. The big
river had so much water, so the sloot came all the way round and fed the gardens with water.
Behind the mill dam were about 4 houses and the stone part of the school – this is still standing, and
has been there from before 1957. The rest of the school is on the ground where the old houses were
demolished. Transport in those days was ox and horse wagons and donkey carts. It was so beautiful
then, everyone had a garden, with all kinds of fruit - oranges, guavas, navels. We went and sold fruit
and vegetables in Mooreessberg and Piketberg, fresh organic veggies! There was a brick factory –
bricks were made from clay (not cement) and houses were built from this with thatch roofs. The old
graveyard is still important to us, we clean it and put flowers there on heritage day.
There was so much more water in those days; we had to use a bridge to get to Rooidraai (bridge is
fixed but not used because of blocked footpaths). The Rietriver comes from Rietfontein’s kloof
(which is now totally dry) and Patterson’s kloof that has a little water; but most comes from Klaase
River (also small) and then there is Die Kas – the biggest source of water. In the old days you couldn’t
see the river because of the trees and willows and oaks – it was beautiful; but then there were a lot
of fires that burnt all those trees down, and now the river is unprotected. We hope it will be green
again and the willows return. We used to lie under them, it was so lovely. You used to find
everything in the gardens: tomatoes, cucumber, squash, beans, guava, sweet potatoes, etc. In those
days, Goedverwacht’s pride was the gardens. We have the river in the middle of our little town
(Rietriver) but we also used to have a small stream (vooitjie) right through the town near the road,
right down to Oukraal. There used to be little streams every one or two hundred metres – people
had gardens all over and could use water for irrigation. Imagine all the water we had! But we
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couldn’t drink it – we had many fountains; which we can still use today, for drinking. Then, we had
no taps, but we collected water in buckets. Maybe that’s why we have so many problems paying for
water – it is a relatively new concept. One of the men said: ‘why must I pay for water, its God’s
water’ and this attitude is still around, but most people don’t think this way. As kids we used the
mountains and rivers to play in – we used what we had; we were more creative than children of
today.
Discussion
Why did the mill close? There was not enough water in the dam. We put in an extra pipe, extended
to the wheel, but it was only 100mm, and it needed a 200mm pipe. It is one of only two such mills in
South Africa (the other is in Elim). The grain came from farmers around here.
When did taps come to Goedverwacht? 1977 for 3 or 4 houses
The mill stopped in 1939.
Water planning in our town needs to include all these things so we don’t lose our history.
Die Kas doesn’t start on Goedverwacht land; it is very deep. Someone once told us that
Goedverwacht’s underground water comes from Ceres. The water in Die Kas is very little but there’s
a place near a big rock where all the kloofies come together and make a river – this is our water.
There was just one Port Jackson many years ago (45 years ago); and now there are so many.
A pound of meat cost 4 schillings in my childhood (Joseph Goliath). And the jelly! We preserved and
kept it cool in the water, because we didn’t have fridges. We didn’t buy so many things.
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Waste
Goedverwacht is 175 years old. Years ago, the houses were not so close together; each house had an
outside toilet, and a cow and pig kraal, and chickens; ‘mis’ (dung) went to a ‘mishoop’ (dung pile)
place where ash from the fires was also added, and this was put back into the gardens as compost.
In the old days (when the old people here were young), they would walk to the river with a stick
holding two buckets, to collect water.
There is a lot of waste here. For example, after festivals, flowers are wasted – they should be
replowed into the fields. There is a municipal dump in Goedverwacht, but it is supposedly
temporary, and another permanent plan must be made. All glass is just buried in the ground. The
wind blows lots of rubbish around. Goedverwacht needs to start recycling.
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Future
This map is a vision of how we want the future to be. We should collect water from fountains again.
There should be no litter lying around, or polluted water. The wild animals shouldn’t be hunted.
Resources shouldn’t be wasted. There will be climate change, and the new generation will have to
find ways to deal with it.
Wolfkloof
Wolfkloof is an area of Goedverwacht a bit deeper into the mountains. It is potential land for
cultivation, but there is a water shortage. Lots of people who used to live there have left, because
there is not enough water – there is much less water than there used to be. In summer it dries up
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completely, and in winter it comes back weakly. They built a weir and a dam, but there is just not
enough water. This is all because of the Port Jackson – it is terribly infested there, and the alien trees
suck up all the water. It could be a beautiful tourist attraction, and a good place to farm, but the
water shortage there is a terrible problem.
Vegetation
There are useful plants and invasive plants. The useful plants are: bluegums (wood, attracts bees,
medicinal), fynbos (medicinal), all the fruits and vegetables. The invasive plants are thorn trees and
Port Jackson. On the map: green are problem plants, yellow is where the gardens are. The invasive
species take too much water, and there are other social problems linked to the invasives in some
areas – they provide cover for bad activities and criminals, and there are fewer places to meet.
Decisions must be made by the Church - they need to say they support people who want to clear the
alien vegetation. The over-seers committee need to make alien trees a priority. We also need
Department of Land Affairs, Department of Agriculture and Land care (to ensure it is not a recurrent
problem). The main challenge is getting contracts in place to clear the invasives. Land care wants
contracts in place saying that land users will take responsibility for their piece of land. They need
supporting documents from the church and the committees saying that people can have contracts
with Land care; but the church is reluctant to allow contracts directly with community members.
Once the invasives are cleared, we could use them for poles and compost.
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Rooidak pad
This is a place that it is hardest to get water to. The fountain near the houses has dried up and kids
have thrown plastic into it. There is also a big problem with erosion here.
Short leg-stretching break
Introduksie na die voordele en bewyse van klimaatsverandering - introduction to the causes and
evidence of climate change (Stephen)
We had planned to have a session on the evidence of climate change (bewyse van klimaats
verandering), but since many people have asked for an explanation of what causes climate change,
Stephen gave a brief overview of this, as well as some of the scientific evidence that climate change
is happening (some slides from modules 2 and 4 of EMG’s climate change training materials).
Stephen also spoke briefly about the climate change adaptation workshops that the farmers from
the Heiveld Cooperative have been doing in partnership with EMG. They have quarterly workshops,
keep climate diaries, look at quarterly weather projections and consider what the changing weather
and climate means for them.
Volgende stappe en bedankings (Taryn)
We looked again at the issues raised in the morning session on expectations; what needs to be
addressed in future workshops are:
 What can we do about climate change? About droughts?
 Cause of climate change (more detail)
 Surfacing problems and issues that the community faces (initiated through mapping
exercise)
 Power stations and nuclear power
 Addressing fire
 Advantages (and disadvantages) of climate change
 Specific predictions
The next workshop will take place in May or June, when we will look at
 causes of climate change
 models that are specific for Goedverwacht (from scientists)
The third workshop will take place in July, when we will look at
 an action plan – how to respond
In order to reflect and evaluate the day, everyone had a chance to think and chat to their neighbour
about what they enjoyed, what was not so great, and questions they still have or something they
learnt. Here are some of the comments -
What did you enjoy?
-
Learnt about the greenhouse effect – used to think that actual greenhouses were bad, but
now I know that it is just a symbol for global warming
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-
-
Learnt the relationship between global warming, climate change and the different things
that come out of it; and now I want to talk to the young people – there are opportunities
here, science modelling (weather stations), tourism angle, etc.
Very inspiring; thank you; learnt about something I didn’t know anything about
What was not so great?
- Too little snoek
Question you still have and/or something you’ve learnt?
- Next workshop is still important
- I’ve worked with Heiveld: it is not a quick process; I’d like to warn, or at least request that
we get other people who need this information, so that we can all be on the same page and
move in the same direction. The aim isn’t to make money but to work better. So bring all
your friends! We’re so few. It’s important that the young people participate in this too.
Taryn gave a final thanks to all from Goedverwacht for their participation, the wonderful venue and
the delicious food. Ian thanked EMG for coming and said they looked forward to the next workshop.
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Climate change adaptation workshop 2 in Goedverwacht, 30
May 2013
PROCEEDINGS
Approximately 22 participants (see attendance register)
Agenda summary
9h30: Tea, coffee, muffins
10h00: Welcome, introductions, summary of last workshop, today’s agenda
10h40: Causes of climate change
12h10: Findings of climate models for Goedverwacht
13h00: LUNCH
13h45: Timeline of extreme weather in G’verwacht, and responses
15h25: Facilitated discussion: CC, G’verwacht, and what to do about it
16h15: Summary and next steps
16h30: Closing
Welcome, introductions, summary of last workshop, today’s agenda
10h00 – 10h40
Facilitated by: Taryn, with welcome from Ian
Description: The workshop is opened and all are welcomed. Context is given for this meeting, the
previous workshop is summarised, a proposed agenda is presented and adjustments made to the
agenda as necessary. Housekeeping and logistics for the day are discussed.
Everyone had a chance to say their name, and say one thing that sticks in their mind from the last
workshop – something they learned, a question they have, an impression they have.
People mostly said that they learnt a lot, they valued the previous workshop, and they were looking
forward to learning more.
Taryn gave a brief summary of the last workshop, with photographs, and a list of the main questions
and issues that were raised. She reminded everyone where we are in terms of the WRC process, and
described what has happened between last workshop and this one – we met with the scientists from
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UKZN and Umphilo Wamanzi from Durban, and looked at the models they developed, and shared
what we have been doing in the workshops in Goedverwacht.
Causes of climate change
10h40 – 12h10
Facilitated by: Jessica and Stephen
The Greenhouse Effect: 20 minutes – Stephen
Stephen put together a picture of the greenhouse effect. What happens when your greenhouse
roof gets thicker and thicker? The Heat that is reflected back from the earth gets trapped, and
the balance is disturbed. He draws an analogy with our bodies – if we can’t give off heat, we get
hotter and hotter, a high temperature. The greenhouse effect causes global warming – aardeverwarmering.
A question: we hear about a hole in the ozone layer, what does that have to do with climate
change? Answer: It’s another problem, with another cause. Ozone keeps out the dangerous
kinds of sun rays, so the hole in the ozone layer increases our chances of skin cancer; but it’s a
different issue to cc. The one connection is that CFC’s are also a greenhouse gas, they destroy
the ozone layer and add to the greenhouse effect.
A reminder of the difference between weather and climate: Weather changes day to day;
climate is a pattern – e.g. rainy seasons, warm seasons, etc. It is the pattern that is beginning to
change, as a result of global warming.
Someone asked a question about the tides – will they stay the same? Stephen answered that sea
levels will rise, tides will remain, but will just be higher.
Someone asks: so will CC affect sea life? Stephen shared briefly about EMG’s work with
fishermen, and that climate change is definitely affecting sea life, through changes in sea
temperature, currents, etc.
Someone asked: so it is possible that the swallows will stay here all year round? Yes, it is
possible; there is already a species of buzzard that is staying here all winter.
Meditation: 20 minutes – Jessica led us through a meditation, in which we took our minds back
in time, thinking about yesterday, then the day before that, then last week, last month, last year,
last decade… all the way back to the time of our grandparents, then their grandparents, then all
the way back to a time before humans, before animals, to a time of swamps and ferns and
humidity, to the original plants and trees.
Fossil fuels timeline: 20 minutes – Jessica
We build a timeline: 1cm is 1 year. So 10 000 years ago is 100 m, a rugby field away. And 300
million years ago is 3000 km away – in Angola!
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That is when those early plants died, there weren’t organisms to break them down, and they just
got laid down in the swamps. That is the source of fossil fuels.
10 000 years ago: beginnings of agriculture.
1500 – 1900: Deforestation of northern hemisphere.
1769: James Watt invented a coal fired steam engine – could burn coal to make steam, and the
steam turned a wheel, and we got trains – this marks the start of the industrial revolution.
People didn’t use so much coal before the steam engine was invented.
1890: Arrhenius found out that carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas – it traps heat. Also said that
burning fossil fuel was increasing CO2 in the atmosphere, but he said ‘don’t worry, we won’t
notice the change for another 3000 years’.
1957: Keeling shows that CO2 is indeed starting to rise – from weather stations in Hawaii. CO2
was 280 ppm, had been at that level for 10 000 years and beyond.
1970s – 1980s: People all over the world started noticing that we’re changing our environment –
poisons, over-use. Conversation started about sustainable development.
1987: IPCC formed (intergovernmental panel on climate change). Scientists agree that the world
is getting warmer.
1988: Carbon 350 ppm.
1992: Rio Earth Summit.
1998: Hottest year in hottest decade in hottest century in the millennium.
2003: 3rd hottest year on record – 30 000 die in European heat wave.
2007: IPCC established cc warnings: unequivocal that global warming is happening, and that it is
caused by fossil fuel burning.
2010: Highest ever annual greenhouse gas emissions (and climbing every year).
2012: Carbon 394 ppm.
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QUESTIONS:
What can we do about it? We will get to that (Stephen speaks about the different parts of that
question, what we can do to bring CO2 levels down, and then what can we do to adapt to the
changes that are coming).
A comment: we hear about the government officials who have huge vehicles, but they aren’t
huge enough, they want more. We can’t allow them to have bigger and bigger cars with our
money, they must ride bikes and walk!
Someone asks, what happens if carbon goes up to 500 ppm? There are models for those,
scientists often talk about a ‘doubling’ – 560 ppm, doubled from 280 ppm. Could mean a 10 – 12
degree increase. There are tipping points, where there can be a sudden increase. There are
predictions related to different amounts of carbon – we will try to find those predictions and
send them.
Findings of climate change models for Goedverwacht
12h10 – 13h00
Facilitated by: Jessica
Started with the key findings (see attached PowerPoint).
The table that shows projected changes for 2046 – 2065: it says that the historical average of
rain days is 45.7: participants say that doesn’t sound right. They also say that the no. of days
over 40 degrees is wrong – in reality there are more hot days than what the scientists say.
They don’t think there were so many cold days as what the scientists say. If the weather station
is higher up in the mountain, maybe that’s where those temperatures are from.
We must ask scientists what they think about the weather station, where exactly it is. It is not
giving accurate temperature and rainfall readings for the village of Goedverwacht
Questions: do the scientists know when the fossil fuels will run out? Jessica answers that there
are 3 times more fossil fuels in the earth than the earth can handle – so the world will burn up
before we finish the fossil fuels.
Looking at the Land Use map: participants think it looks right to them – except that irrigated
agriculture has increased a lot in the last 10 years (that info is 10 years old).
Gut responses: the hotter temps and fewer cold days won’t affect our vegetables so much, but
will affect people’s ability to work in their gardens. It will also affect the fruit farmers nearby,
which will impact jobs.
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Also, the higher temperatures will lead to more evaporation from the rivers, so water will be
affected.
Looking at the land use map – Paterson (the neighbouring farmer) is in the headwaters, and his
water use is definitely having a big impact. So, with higher temperatures, neighbouring farmers
who will be using more and more water, plus the Port Jackson, water will be significantly
affected.
13h00: LUNCH
Timeline of extreme weather in Goedverwacht, group work and
presentations
13h45 – 15h25
Facilitated by: Taryn
In huddles (groups of 2 or 3), participants brainstorm about extreme weather: droughts, floods,
heatwaves, snow, etc., from 1950 to the present. After 5 minutes of brainstorming, we construct
a timeline together.
Timeline of extreme weather in Goedverwacht – 1950 - present (Buitengewoonde Weer in
Goedverwacht)
1954: Floods – it was winter-time, it rained a lot during the night, and in the morning the vegetable
gardens were washed away, big trees had been washed away, and in Wolfkloof the houses were
almost washed away.
1963: Floods – the flood waters came from Tierkloof, and flooded Vytjie Rooi (a valley). In that flood,
the pigs and other animals were washed away, many animals drowned.
1969: the Tubagh Earthquake, which was felt here.
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1971: Winter floods – washed away a large pool, known as ‘Bokkie’.
Since the 1970’s, there have been occasional winter floods, but fewer every year, and not of the
same intensity as they used to be.
1989/90: Very dry, serious fires
Mid-1990s: Serious fires in the mountains
Early 2000’s: dry, hot summers
2010: fire
2011: Small flood
2012: fires
Every winter, it hails – this doesn’t really affect Goedverwacht, but does affect the fruit farmers.
Frost and extreme cold has decreased over time.
Once everyone is happy with the timeline, we identify 5 or 6 of the most significant events. People
choose which event they can remember most clearly, and form groups based on those events. There
might be a group that doesn’t clearly remember any of these events. They can think about very hot
days or very cold days that they can remember, even from the recent past.
In groups, think about the following questions:






How did the event affect me?
How did affect my family?
How did affect Goedverwacht?
What did I do to respond?
What did others – organisations, committees do to respond?
What should have been done that wasn’t done?
Group 1: Vytjie Rooi (floods)
Dit het vir ons laat besef one moenie so relax lewe nie, enigeiets kan gebeur onverwags.
Die storm pyppe was verstop wens die droogte oor die afgelope paar jare.
Vir toerisme gemeenskap was dit a baie groet laak om weer opruimmings werk te doen omrede dit
het lang laas so oorstroom weens ernstige en hoe reenval.
Die storm het vir ons bewus gemaak dat ons storm pyppe moet gereeld skoonmaak word!
We responded by cleaning the pipes and taking out the dirt from the roads
We came together and cleaned the pipes by helping EACH OTHER!!
We didn’t clean the fluid pipes like we do now and that is what caused all the damage that has been
done.
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Group 2: Veldbrande 1954 (Veld fires)
-
niks was daarom gedoen
Bewoners het self die brand probeer blus
Boere bo-op die berg het skade gelei
Kerk moes dan skade vergoeding betaal


Vanaf 2010 was brandweer ingeroep
Die kerk betaal assuransie
Group 3: Huisbrand 1946 (house burnt down)
-
Alles was afgebrand
Goedverwacht gemeenskap het hulp aangebied
Huisresting was aangebied (asook kos en klere)
Onverskilligheid met kerse in huishouding.
Group 4: Veld vure 2011 - 2012 (Fires)
Brand in die poort, oor rivier, oor pad, na Wolfkloof, al teen die berg uit. Brandweerwa kom en
helikopters waar voertuie nie kon kom nie.
It affects us as a community because we were not part of fighting the fire
Anybody can’t just phone the brigade!! So the minister is contacted and he calls the brigade.
We could only watch, but were worried because our whole veld is in for wild fires.
Firefighters don’t want untrained people involved in putting out fires… not long ago we had a
workshop on ‘Fire Wise’ to train the community how to deal with fires. We will have our own fire
plan and equipment to do the thing. (Linked to Greater Cedarburg Biodiversity Corridor)
Things will be better from now on in terms of fires. If we are connected with fire
department/municipality etc. we will have more control.
Group 5: Gail force wind 2009/2010
Winter – reen en sterk winde
Water in huise ingestroom
Mense probeer voertuie oorkant riviere
Ons het weg van riviere af begin met duie
Vloede bring groot erosie.
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Group 6: Fires, 2012
Vuur by die vlei: Oorsaak (cause) – People were cleaning their gardens, burning bamboo. A fire
started, lots of water was used to fight that fire. As a consequence, people had to plant vegetables
later, the harvest was later, people were forced to buy vegetables at the shops, and pipes were
damages.
Vuur by die boonste dam (the top reservoir): Someone started a fire, burned the water pipes, so
there was no water. Very worried that the fire would move onto neighbouring farms, and then the
church would be responsible for paying for damage.
Now, the community is receiving education and awareness on being more fire-wise and fire safe,
through the GCBC initiative (Greater Cedarburg Biodiversity Corridor).
Facilitated discussion: climate change, Goedverwacht, and
what can we do about it?
15h25 – 16h05
Facilitated by: Stephen – with main action points captured by Taryn.
Description: Connections are made between all that has been raised and discussed today.
Remind everyone that we are talking about global climate change, but we now have some very
specific projections for Goedverwacht. We can learn from past experiences of extreme weather,
particularly about the institutions that have responded to extreme weather in the past. We can
start to think about what needs to be in place to prepare for climate change.
Important points from the group discussions on extreme weather:



The community has already dealt with shocks in the past
Experience has shown that when the community has worked together, they get things done
– e.g. regular cleaning of pipes to prevent flooding.
Experience has also shown that it is very beneficial to have support from outside in order to
respond to crises – e.g. the fire wise programme, where members of the community are
trained, and they have access to outside help from a fire truck, helicopters etc.
Summary, next steps, evaluation:
16h15 – 16h30
Facilitated by: Taryn
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Description: Reminder of actions from the day, questions still hanging needing a response. Any
homework or preparation needed before next workshop. A brief overview of next workshop.
Opportunity to evaluate the meeting: what went well, what didn’t go so well.
Actions:



EMG will send proceedings, the PowerPoint with projections for Goedverwacht, as well
as any information we can find on projections for very high carbon emissions (500 ppm).
This will be sent to the tourism office email address, as well as to Sharon.
EMG will check with the hydrologists from UKZN about where exactly the weather
station is, and other feedback from this workshop.
The next workshop will be on the 25/26 August, where we will start to develop action
plans based on what we have learnt.
Closing, thanks, handouts
Handouts were made available, including an overview of climate change and global warming
in Afrikaans, as well as the proceedings from the previous workshop.
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Goedverwacht-EMG Klimaats-verandering Werkswinkel 3
26 Julie 2013
Agenda
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Welkom, inleiding
Opsomming – die storie tot nou
Meditation/ ontspanning
Tee
‘n Prentjie van die toekoms, en die stappe soentoe
Middagete
Planmaak: wie doen wat?
Evaluasie en sluiting
The meeting was opened with a prayer, and then we asked the participants to gather in three
groups: those who had attended both of the previous workshops, those who had attended one
previous workshop, and those who had not attended either of the previous workshops. Everyone
then paired up with someone from another group, and caught each other up on what had been
covered in the previous workshops.
Taryn then presented a summary of the EMG-GVW climate change workshops to date – see
attached PowerPoint.
Comments after ‘opsomming’ (summary) presentation:
Merle: when I started talking to Noel in 2006 about the hole Goedverwacht was in –the poverty, the
crime, the joblessness, all things that were not this way in previous generations – we realized that
there is no economy in GVW, and so the economy for survival is based on stealing from each other,
crime, etc. It was clear that we needed an alternative, positive economy – and for me, agro-economy
is the answer. What I think about when I see these potential climate change projections, is that if it is
warmer, maybe we can grow peach trees? It was always too cold for fruit trees here, but maybe that
will change?
Stephen’s response: The future is so murky, that we shouldn’t put concrete plans in place, and then
discover things are different to what we expected. It is better to put our energy into building
capacity to solve problems, and then we can respond to whatever comes our way.
Jessica then led us in a relaxation exercise, where we imagined the passing of time, and took our
minds to the distant future, and beyond!
Tea break
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Back-casting exercise
We’re doing an exercise called back-casting. With forecasting, we say here we are today, how do we
get to that point in the future. With back-casting, we’re going to jump forward to 2045, and then
work backwards: if that’s what we’re trying to do, how do we get there? (Forecasting = voorspelling;
back-casting = agter-spelling).
Why are we doing this? It helps to open our mind, not get stuck in old habits or ways of thinking. The
visions can stay in our minds, even when we’re sleeping, we can mull over it – not to say we can
make that exact vision come true, but we have a sense of where we want to get. And hopefully we
can have a common, shared vision.
We’re not imagining just any future, a utopia or a paradise; it must be realistic, and take the real
constraints into account. The climate will be changed; there will be less available petrol etc. We need
to think realistically: will Goedverwacht be able to meet the needs of its people?
Sit in groups of 3 – 5, and think about 2045. Each group has a piece of flipchart paper. Describe what
GVW will look like in 2045. Could draw a mind-map, describe all the things that could be in place in
2045 – the best way things could be, within the bounds of what feels realistic for you.
Directions on the flipcharts (these steps were revealed one at a time)
1. Wat is jou visie vir GVW in 2045? Beskryf al die dinge wat jy dink is belangrik, bv. toestand
van rivier, skole, landbou. (What is your vision for GVW in 2045? Describe all the things that
you think are important, for e.g. the state of the river, schools, agriculture). (20 mins.).
2. Gegewe wat jy al klaar weet van klimaats verandering (en van jouself en jou mede-mense,
ens.) is hierdie visie moontlik? (Given what you know about CC, and about yourself and
about other people, is this vision possible?)(10 mins.).
3. Kies een of twee dele van ou prentjie/ beskrywing. Wat moet in plek wees teen 2025? Skryf
neer op ‘n stuk kaart en sit op jou beskrywing. (Choose one or two parts of your picture/
description. What must be in place by 2025? Write down on a piece of card and put it on
your picture). (20 minutes).
This last step is like a stepping stone between the present and your vision of the future. It allows us
to think practically about specific things that need to be in place in order to reach the future you
want. For example, you might imagine that in 2045 Goedverwacht has a number of people trained in
agriculture who are able to guide farming; then in 2025, you could have in place a system of 3 or 4
scholarships for local people to attend agricultural college.
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Group Reports back
Group 1 (Merle, Neal, Cynthia, etc.)
Focused on an eco-school – want kids to be prepared for climate change, their curriculum must
focus on environmental concerns.
Lots of guests, no gasses! (gasvry). More guesthouses, made of stones, thatch, etc.
Only want to produce organic food – but we need to be certified. Need people educated in the
school to be inspectors, certify them etc.
Each garden must have a compost heap and maybe solar panels. Wind turbines,
Lots of natural pools in the river, where our guests can swim, lots of fish, etc.
Horse drawn carts, bird-watching, bicycles etc.
What do we need? Need capacity to convert the school into an eco-school.
Need problem solving skills.
Group 2 (David, Jean Jansen, etc.)
Vision for 2045: Awareness-raising at the school to become an eco-school. Curriculum focused on
environmental questions. Better awareness in the community. Rainwater tanks. Reduce re-use
recycle.
Group 3 (Ian’s group)
This group shared a vision for a clean river, extensive organic agriculture, all the un-used land is
used, an agricultural school (‘n landbou skool), a co-op that can give good advice to farmers, and can
help manage the sale of vegetables, ensure there’s enough for people to eat and then co-ordinate
sales and marketing, the Rooidraai Pad is tarred and useable (it is a pass that goes to the BoPiketberg – easier access to markets, to Saldanha industrial developments, etc.). There’s also an idea
for a weather station so that GVW can keep records of its own weather (and an idea to link that to
the Fire Warning Station that they are discussing, where there could be alerts of fire weather etc.)
But there’s one thing standing in the way of all of this: the land tenure issue.
There is a need for land reform, so that the community has a legal right to say ‘we own this land’, so
that the water can be managed better, so that they can get support from Department of Agriculture,
WfW, Land Care etc.
Lunch
Plan of Action
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We want to look more closely at what came out of the back-casting exercise, to see what is
important to people, so that we can start to develop an action plan. But first, let’s consider what
organisations have participated in this process, either in today’s workshop or in the previous
workshops.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
The boere-vereeniging – farmer’s association.
The museum/ ou meul committee
The Goedverwacht Toerisme Ontwikkelings Forum (G.T.O.F)
MCiSA (Sharon and Ronel from the water office were at previous workshops)
Opsienersraad (Lorraine)
There was a teacher from the laer-skool at the first workshop.
In terms of planning, we will look at the following topics with the following questions in mind: Is
there an institution that can take this issue up? What support do they need? Where can they look
for inspiration?
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LANDBOU
Alien clearing:
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Should be the opsienersraad’s responsibility, but they aren’t taking responsibility.
The boere-vereeniging is willing to take responsibility, but they need permission first from
the opsienersraad.
Should we look at the legal implications of letting the river deteriorate? Is there not a
penalty for the land-owner?
Jessica will ask a friend from Working for Water whether it is illegal for the landowner to
allow such deterioration of the catchment
EMG will get legal advice on upstream dams
The GVW boerevereeniging is willing to send MCiSA a lawyer’s letter in their name if
necessary, to try prompt some action without actually going to court.
Markets:
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At the moment it is more or less every farmer for him or herself.
There is a move towards more united cooperation for the GVW farmers.
There is an idea to have a local market, for e.g. on the last Saturday of every month, and a
festival every 3 months.
What the farmers need is transport for all their produce. The GTOF just bought a lorry.
The local committees (e.g. GTOF) need access to credit, to be able to buy vehicles etc. They
have just bought a smaller vehicle than they would have liked, because of the lack of credit.
There are problems securing contracts with Spar, Pick n Pay etc., because of the land tenure
issue – how can they assure supply when they aren’t even the landowners?
The GTOF is still trying to get a business plan in place, and audited statements, so that they
will be more credit-worthy; they know what to do and what the next steps are.
Organic/ Fair Trade certification:


Ian got information from Mandy (of EMG)’s ethical food network meeting about organic
standards, he is busy working through those, he doesn’t think it will be a problem to reach
those standards.
Merle is speaking to Fair Trade (via Mandy) about getting their tourism committee
registered as fair trade.
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INFRASTRUKTUUR
Huishoudelike water (Domestic water)
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At present this is supposed to be managed and maintained by MCiSA, and it will possibly be
transferred to the Berg rivier Municipality at some point in the future.
The community has an electricity committee but not a water committee at present.
Maybe they need to think about improving their self-sufficiency, e.g. through looking at
water tanks, re-using grey water?
Jessica commented that maybe there are different options in terms of challenging MCiSA’s
governance, it doesn’t all necessary hinge on a final solution, for e.g. maybe the
management of domestic water can be transferred to the municipality before the whole
complex land tenure issue is resolved.
There is an idea to try and get a facilitated discussion going in a neutral space, between
MCiSA, Berg River Municipality, water-users, West Coast District Municipality –perhaps the
Surplus Peoples Project plus EMG could help. But it seems unlikely that MCiSA would attend.
Weer-stasie / Weather station:



The farmers would be very happy to have a weather station recording temperature and
rainfall. Maybe some rain gauges and thermometers can be dotted around the town, in key
production areas.
The weather station could be ‘held’ by the boere-vereeniging and the working for fire group.
EMG offered to buy rain gauges, thermometers and climate diaries and to work with the
boere-vereeniging to train people to take temperature and rainfall readings with this
equipment.
Omgewings Infrastruktuur (Son-panele, tenke)/ Eco-infrastructure (sun
panels, tanks)



GTOF will hold this for now; as part of fair trade certification, they will need to show how
they are taking the environment into account, e.g. with solar water geysers.
If there is an interest from GVW community in learning about reducing their carbon
footprint, EMG can share experiences.
Stephen suggests that if Fair Trade gives them a hard time about their carbon footprint,
they should talk about the fire ovens – these burn alien trees and save electricity!
Eco/ Agricultural School

GTOF should hold this for now. They need lots of support though: contacts, internet, ideas
etc.
Aanhoudende gesprek oor omgewing-sake (ongoing discussion on
environmental issues)


There is a meeting for all the farmers every quarter, where speakers are invited and they
focus on a certain theme.
The boere-vereeniging will invite EMG to one of these meetings, to contribute something
around problem-solving capacity, maybe linked to the climate diaries, the domestic water
issue, etc.
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Evaluasie en sluiting
At the end of each workshop it is important to evaluate the day, so that the facilitators can get
feedback, participants can express themselves, and we can make improvements for next time. For
this evaluation, Taryn asked all the participants to think about three questions, and write their
answers on pieces of card. The questions, and people’s responses to them, were as follows:
1. Wat is anders, uniek, nuuts in die proses en in doe verhouding tussen
EMG en Goedverwacht? (What is different, unique or new in the
process and in the relationship between EMG and GVW?)









Dit is goed om meer te kon weet en leer
The use of colourful cards
The relaxations and visualisations
As an old-timer I’ve learnt a lot about climate change. It was also nice to talk about
droughts and floods from the past that I can remember. Everything was very
interesting and I also want to thank the trio from EMG for the way they made us
relax and made us feel at ease. You have done a lot for us to prepare us for changing
weather in the future. We will do what we can and do our best to live it out.
EMG se terug-voering oor problem wat aan geraak is, is spoedig.
Die manier hoe Jessica die mense in touch met hul omgewing rondom hulle, is baie
uniek en vrugte-vol.
Die belangstelling in gemeenskaps lewe. En hoe sekere dinge in pad staan vir
vooruitgang.
Die hoe Engels is ‘n problem.
Lively.
2. As iemand van Velddrif gemeenskap (b.v.) vir jou vra oor hierdie
werkswinkels, sal jy vir hulle aanmoedig om duur die proses te gaan?
(If someone from another community, for e.g. Velddrif, asked you
about these workshops, would you encourage them to go through this
process themselves?)






Ja, beslis. ‘n Bewusmaking van vooruit te dink en beplan en sekere dinge in
aanmerking te neem.
Ja, dit was baie leersaam, en spreek baie omgewings en gemeenskaps – probleme
aan.
Yes – setting realistic goals
Ja, dit bou jou visie.
I will surely encourage people to make use of EMG’s workshops, they are awesome.
Se mense moet betrokke raak by EMG.
3. Enige iets additioneel? (Anything else to add?)





We hope to make use of you in the future and will turn to you for help.
Nee – die werkswinkel is nogal baie volledig en raak ann all aspekte van die
gemeenskap en omgewing.
Vertel nog meer aan klimaats-verandering
Sal videos, slides, photos van ander sukses stories wil sien.
Consequences of certain actions.
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EMG then thanked the participants for being such warm and generous hosts, and for their active and
committed engagement. We look forward to working together more in the future.
SUMMARY OF ACTIONS:








Jessica will ask someone from Working for Water whether it is illegal for the landowner to
allow such deterioration of the catchment.
EMG will get legal advice on upstream dams.
The GVW boerevereeniging is willing to send MCiSA a lawyer’s letter in their name if
necessary, to try prompt some action on clearing the aliens, without actually going to court.
Ian and Merle are in contact with Mandy Moussoris from EMG on fair trade and organic
certification, and are trying to set things in place.
EMG is willing to support a dialogue on improving domestic water, with the Berg Rivier
Municipality, MCiSA, West Coast DM and any other stakeholders, in any way that we can.
This needs more strategic discussion and planning, and should be picked up in future
meetings between EMG and Goedverwacht.
EMG offered to buy rain gauges, thermometers and climate diaries and to work with the
boere-vereeniging to train people to take temperature and rainfall readings with this
equipment.
If there is an interest from GVW community in learning about reducing their carbon
footprint, EMG can share experiences.
The boere-vereeniging will invite EMG to one of their quarterly meetings, to contribute
something around problem-solving capacity, maybe linked to the climate diaries, the
domestic water issue, etc.
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