Environmental and Natural Resource Economics in the Eastern Cape Research Focus Area (ENREFA)

‌The ENREFA programme is housed in the Department of Economics and Economic History. The motivation behind the focus area is that the Province has an extremely diverse environment including one of the three globally recognised biodiversity hotspots found in South Africa, viz. the Maputoland-Pondoland-Albany Centre of Endemism. This is an area with a high concentration of biodiversity, which is under threat. An indication of the biodiversity of the region is that the Greater Addo Elephant National Park includes 5 of South Africa's 7 biomes. With the exception of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality and the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, the Eastern Cape can be described as largely agricultural, consisting of both commercial and smallholder sectors and having a significant impact on the environment and the natural resources.

The research methods used will focus of the interface between environmental, ecological, resource and institutional economics. However, the intention is to focus primarily on the institutional economic aspects wherever possible. Specific topics within the research focus area include environment, ecological and natural resources, agriculture and sustainable development, with a special focus on water management and allocation.

Contact persons for research degree opportunities in Environmental and Natural Resource Economics in the Eastern Cape: Professor Gavin Fraser (g.fraser@ru.ac.za) and Professor Jen Snowball (j.snowball@ru.ac.za)

Last Modified: Tue, 14 Jan 2020 14:03:34 SAST