Environment research is lagging
SA punches way above its weight on biodiversity. Surpassed only by the more expansive Indonesia and Brazil, SA is the world’s third-most biodiverse country, according to the South African Biodiversity Institute, a member of an exclusive club of megadiverse countries that provide sanctuary to most of Earth’s biological treasures.
SA owes its rich biodiversity and ecosystems to its unique natural environment, which encompasses the interaction of all living species, climate, weather, topography as well as other natural resources and processes. Apart from the incalculable benefits derived from the various biological species, the environment also bestows on the country critical resources and services that underpin its development.
The complex naturally functioning ecosystems that render invaluable services such as water and climate regulation, soil formation and disaster risk reduction are collectively referred to as the ecological infrastructure. Without a thriving and robust ecological infrastructure, all the country’s social and economic endeavours would fail, if not in the short term, then certainly in the long term.
An understanding of the sensitive interplay between environmental sustainability and socioeconomic development should manifest in the amount of investment in research and development (R&D) related to the environment. In recognition of this, the South African Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators have been measuring environment-related R&D expenditure since 2011. The three years of data compiled to date reveal troubling trends.
SA’s total amount of R&D expenditure related to the environment fell by 10.5% from 2011-12 to 2013-14. A significant contributor to divestment is the 61% decline in the science councils’ expenditure over the same period.
The low and declining investment in R&D related to the environment is underlined by a poor environmental performance index, which lags even those of fellow Brics countries. Were it not for the sevenfold increase in expenditure by the business sector, the overall picture would have been grimmer.
A country of SA’s standing in biodiversity ought to be spending more on R&D related to the environment.
A superior understanding of the dynamics of its natural lifesupport systems is essential for exploring innovations that can translate into sustainable development. Learning how to manage the environment better can unlock opportunities for addressing poverty, unemployment and inequality.
There is an urgent need to develop an integrated plan to respond to the need to increase SA’s investment in R&D for the environment. A key component of this plan should include a pooling of resources towards building and transforming skills for biodiversity and the environment. Owing to the vicissitudes of SA’s complex and troubled history, many young people have been disconnected from their natural environment. They lack a strong sense of connection to the flora, fauna and their biophysical inheritance.
The vast array of career opportunities in research and other high-level technical occupations in conservation and environmental management remain obscure to the youth in the townships and villages. This has to change if SA is serious about transforming itself and bringing about sustainable development.