CSAG Blog

CSAG was involved in a USAID funded project on Assessing Sustainability and Effectiveness of Climate Information Services in Africa (Sustainable CIS). The aim of the project was to better understand how to design and implement sustainable CIS models within African NMHSs. The Sustainable CIS project assessed the current capacity of NMHSs in seven sub-Saharan countries… Read more »

Every year, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), a division of the UN, produces a State of Food Security report.  This year, a key focus of the report was on the role of climate extremes and variability in the recently observed rise in hunger globally.  A number of CSAG researchers (Olivier Crespo, Christopher Jack, Mark… Read more »

9-point summary: The Cape Town water crisis was the consequence of a severe 3-year drought affecting most of the winter-rainfall zone (WRZ) of South Africa and especially the Boland Mountain Catchment (BMC) that supplies water to Cape Town’s supply dams (see Piotr’s detailed analyses on drought severity and drivers) The Western Cape Province has 3… Read more »

Much has been argued about the causes of the 2017 Cape Town’s water crisis. Is it the drought? Is it climate change? Is it population growth? Is it lack of foresight by the national government or the local government? Is it the rich? Is it the poor? Is it farmers? Or industry? Or invasive trees?… Read more »

This is a blog about my experience coordinating, engaging with students and participating in activities for the EGS4038F Course Field Trip. The field trip took place over the weekend of the 12th and 13th of May 2018. Coordinating this event facilitated introductions to the students and provided me with the opportunity to work more closely… Read more »

  Having fingers in all “pies” is becoming the life for most scientists,the need to understand information needs,emotions and society in general is fast growing in the quest to answer questions such as:  Why is it so difficult to get through to people using scientific facts? Why do people go all out to defend what… Read more »

The sooner we know the answer, the sooner we can prepare for summer 2019   By Peter Johnston and Piotr Wolski 15 March 2018   The approaching autumn and winter season in Cape Town is being keenly awaited to see if it will bring sufficient rain to end, or at least alleviate, the drought. If… Read more »

“If the answer to climate change in cities is about a better understanding of policy, values and justice, should we be looking to IPCC for information? Will data and technology give us the answers?” The intervention above one was of the more poignant offered during the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) conference on climate… Read more »