Solutions exist, but need they need strong leadership, investment and integration into governance for clean, livable cities in Africa

Stellenbosch University has developed a process involving enzymes that can break down bioplastics

With basic training and technology, urban farmers can create lower prices and address waste issues

Yet the amount of food that goes into landfills is enough to end hunger in the country

But the environment department says it has interventions in place

Informal recycling gives people a sense of purpose and fulfilment and contributes hugely to recycling in the country

The initiative in Kenya employs people to make art from flip-flops that have been thrown into the sea

Just 156 green jobs out of a target of 1 120 were created in 2021-022 financial year

Environmental waste, especially pharmaceuticals and toxins, needs high-level action to stop its major contribution to antimicrobial resistance

But the municipality has laid the blame for the filthy state of Tembisa at the feet of the community

Tiger Brands and others in the food production chain are struggling under the rolling blackouts

South Africa is running out of landfill space for our solid waste, which also contributes to greenhouse gas emissions – but the good news is we can easily be part of the solution

The Paarl campus of Green School South Africa uses solar power and climate-smart water management systems.

Nondumiso Sibiya has found value in collecting refuse and working with waste pickers

‘If plastic were a country, it would already be the fifth-largest emitter in the world’

Real dung beetles make waste useful and this steel sculpture does the same for plastic

The country risks ‘pariah status’ for approach to global plastic waste crisis

The government misuses taxes and does not maintain our safety, justice, health and infrastructure systems. Eventually citizens will tire of the lack of delivery

In an ideal world we’d all eat farm fresh, organically grown food, but an ever-expanding global population amid rapid urbanisation needs nutritious food in sufficient quantities

Congolese photographer Sammy Baloji’s Essay on Urban Planning interrogates the links between colonialism, extractive practices and environmental catastrophes in Urban Africa