In 2024, a variety of University of Cape Town (UCT) programmes, projects and workshops illustrated not just internal sustainability efforts, but explicit engagement with external / wider-community stakeholders, education, training, and clean/efficient energy or related environmental initiatives. These show UCT playing a role in promoting energy literacy, clean energy adoption, and sustainability culture beyond campus.

In 2024, UCT engaged in multiple ongoing and new initiatives that:

  • Provide training & capacity building for students, civil servants, academics in energy transitions (e.g. workshops, RA training).
  • Undertake applied clean energy / renewable energy projects (Energy 4 Well-Being; solar PV carport etc.).
  • Use public forums, displays, installations, and outreach to raise awareness amongst both university members and wider local communities / informal settlements.
  • Use “Living Lab” approaches to test ideas and demonstrate sustainable / clean energy technologies or energy/carbon reduction strategies.

These demonstrate that UCT is not only doing internal institutional sustainability work, but also actively engaging local communities in education, outreach, research, and capacity building to promote clean energy and energy efficiency.

  1. CLAIMS to Energy Citizenship — African Centre for Cities (UCT) (April 2024–Mar 2028)

A multi-year research programme launched April 2024 hosted by the African Centre for Cities (ACC, UCT) explicitly focused on energy citizenship, energy transitions and the role of citizens in Cape Town. The project description and activity list show plans for local workshops, stakeholder engagements and a research-assistant training programme run on UCT campus (training dates and a call for PhD scholarships appeared in 2024). This is directly about community-centred research, energy literacy, and participatory engagement in energy transitions. The overall objective is to juxtapose government and city policies and provision practices to the concerns and actions of marginalised electricity users, in order to examine the frictions and possible reciprocity between them.

  1. GreenQUEST - Taking Africa from biomass to green gas

On 22 March 2024, the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Catalysis Institute welcomed the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) state secretary, Professor Dr Sabine Döring. The state secretary’s visit was focused on providing an update on the progress of the BMBF-funded GreenQUEST clean household fuel project. Professor Jack Fletcher of the UCT Catalysis Institute, which forms part of the Department of Chemical Engineering in UCT’s Faculty of Engineering & the Built Environment, pointed out that action has been taken to transition users across Africa to one clean energy source in particular. However, he noted that the solution is not without its issues.

“What we’re already seeing on the African continent, and probably elsewhere in the world, are moves to switch these communities to clean fuel. That fuel usually turns out to be liquified petroleum gas (LPG). It’s clean burning [and] it’s efficient; but it is, of course, still a fossil fuel,” he said.

 GreenQUEST was born from the realisation of the positive effects of using clean and cost-effective fuels, on society, the environment and the economy. Apart from developing the green LFG, it now seeks to better understand the implications of introducing this new type of energy carrier into society.

“Accelerating the development of sustainable energy solutions to match the urgency of tackling climate change demands investment in clean energy research and innovation. It also builds on having collaborative partnerships globally to boost the impact of these investments,” he said.

As a joint South African–German project funded by the BMBF and shaped by the inputs of more than 50 scientists in the two countries, GreenQUEST strengthens the relationship between the two nations.

“The GreenQUEST project will strengthen existing and enable new partnerships between South Africa and Germany. It will also contribute to establishing a lasting strategic alliance in a crucial research area within the German and South African governments’ National Hydrogen Strategy frameworks,” added Sontheimer.

In the same vein, Professor Dr Döring pointed out that the cooperative approach driving GreenQUEST has the potential to positively impact communities not only on the African continent, but also around the world.

  1. Power Futures Lab (UCT GSB) — professional learning and engagement on energy

UCT’s Power Futures Lab runs targeted learning and development activities for energy professionals (policy, renewables, procurement, sector investment). These activities support broader uptake of clean energy solutions by building capacity among energy stakeholders; they also collaborate with local/regional partners.

  1. Khusela Ikamva – Sustainable Campus Project

UCT launched the Khusela Ikamva “secure the future” sustainable campus project in 2020, as part of its vision 2030 Agenda. Sustainability is a core concern of UCT’s Vision 2030. The aim of the project is to catalyse the transformation of UCT into a sustainable campus by establishing a community of practice informed by:

  • leading research that incorporates UCT stakeholders from all spheres (students, academic and PASS staff)
  • extensive and inclusive engagement with the university community
  • exemplar Living Lab interventions on campus, that serve as a proof-of-concept
  • Plaza Day Event (9 February 2024): UCT’s Khusela Ikamva had a presence at Plaza Day, engaging students, staff, visitors; sharing their vision, gathering input, survey-based participation.
  • Also displayed UCT’s installed solar PV Carport (EV charging station) at Jamie North Stop as a living lab. PV installations used as living labs on campus for both students and staff.
  • Carbon Footprint had installed some PVs on the roof top of chemical engineering building as part of energy efficiency in buildings. Furthermore, solar PV Carport have been installed at North stop. First hardware was donated (TRAJECTS from DAAD).
  • ‘Building an environmentally sustainable campus’ displays / installations in late 2024 to provoke thought (e.g., “Flush and go or flush and grow” display on water reuse / recycling etc.), though more water-oriented some elements tie to resource use more generally.

In 2022 UCT undertook a detailed technical, financial, and environmental feasibility study to determine the feasibility of changing its existing diesel bus fleet to an electric bus fleet. Based on the investigation it is currently not financially or environmentally beneficial to change the fleet to an electric fleet, while the South African electric bus market and national renewable energy generation is not mature enough to make this feasible for UCT. In the meantime, UCT will continue investigating and experimenting with these technologies while the market matures. 

South Africa’s electric vehicle (EV) industry and market is still young and there are many challenges that don’t necessarily make it feasible (technically, financially and environmentally) based on our specific context, to switch UCT’s fleet vehicles to EVs. UCT has therefore embarked on a 3-year pilot EV project to test the use of an EV passenger vehicle (Mini electric) and a few EV chargers on campus, to explore what the likely challenges and practical issues are in relation to using and charging such a vehicle if UCT were to use it as one of their fleet vehicles. The project runs from June 2023 to June 2026.