GCRO hosts the Gauteng Department of Environment and the MEC for Environment for a conversation on collaboration

The Gauteng City-Region Observatory (GCRO) welcomed MEC for Environment, Mr Ewan Botha, and a senior delegation from the Gauteng Department of Environment (GDEnv) to its offices on 21 April 2026 for a wide-ranging conversation on how the GCRO’s Sustainability and Just Transition research theme’s research can support the province's environmental agenda.

While the GCRO has a longstanding relationship with the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (GDARD), this meeting was the first formal engagement between the GCRO and GDEnv since the Department's establishment as a standalone entity and was an opportunity to take stock of past collaboration and to shape what comes next.

Reflecting on 18 years of supporting evidence-based policymaking across the Gauteng City-Region, the GCRO spoke to its contributions to the province's environmental portfolio, from the 2017 Pollution Buffers Review, the Vulnerability Map included in the Gauteng Climate Change Policy, to the Water Security Framework. The team also introduced the current projects under the Sustainability and Just Transition research theme, including work on river waste management, waste redirection to other land cover types, and contextual experiences of climate change.

GDEnv, in turn, also outlined the Department's emerging priorities, including a Zero Waste Plan for Gauteng, targeted investment in waste diversion and recovery infrastructure, and a plan to remediate mine dumps and address acid mine drainage. Throughout these discussions, the GDENv delegation emphasised that transformative environmental solutions require coalitions of institutions working collaboratively so that proposals arrive on the table with broad backing from the outset.

Both parties agreed on a collaborative way forward, which includes revisiting the GCRO's earlier green economy work, exploring joint research on waste management and communication, and formalising the partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding.