Publications

@article{Kovacic2017b,

title = {Between theory and quantification: An integrated analysis of metabolic patterns of informal urban settlements},

author = {Zora Kovacic and Mario Giampietro},

url = {https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0301421516303524},

doi = {10.1016/j.enpol.2016.06.047},

issn = {03014215},

year  = {2017},

date = {2017-01-01},

journal = {Energy Policy},

volume = {100},

pages = {377--386},

publisher = {Elsevier},

abstract = {As informal urban settlements grow in size and population across the developing world, the issue of how to design and implement effective policies to provide for the needs and the aspirations of dwellers becomes ever more pressing. This paper addresses the challenge of how to characterise in quantitative terms the complex and fast-changing phenomenon of informal urban settlements without falling into oversimplification and a narrow focus on the material deficits of informal settlements. Energy policies are taken as an example to illustrate the shortcomings of oversimplification in producing policy relevant information. We adopt a semantically open representation of informal settlements that can capture the diversity of adaptive strategies used by different settlement typologies, based on the societal metabolism approach. Results show that as settlements grow in size and complexity, they remain economically and politically marginalised and fail to integrate into the city. We argue that in the case of energy policy, the analysis must go beyond the definition of problems such as access to energy at the level of the individual, and focus on a multi-scale assessment including the household and community levels studying the capacity of the household to increase it energy throughput through exosomatic devices and infrastructure.},

keywords = {Brazil, Complexity, Energy poverty, Slums, Societal metabolism, South Africa},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Kovacic2016,

title = {Probing uncertainty levels of electrification in informal urban settlements: A case from South Africa},

author = {Zora Kovacic and Suzanne Smit and Josephine Kaviti Musango and Alan Colin Brent and Mario Giampietro},

url = {https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0197397515302356},

doi = {10.1016/j.habitatint.2016.06.002},

issn = {01973975},

year  = {2016},

date = {2016-08-01},

journal = {Habitat International},

volume = {56},

pages = {212--221},

abstract = {textcopyright 2016 Elsevier Ltd. This paper assesses the different levels of uncertainty that affect the analysis of informal urban settlements and the implementation of upgrading policies, with a specific focus on electrification. The rapid growth of informal settlements in the cities of the Global South poses serious challenges to the management of energy systems, particularly when it comes to the electricity grid. Informal urban settlements are characterized by the lack of urban planning and low or absent provision of public services. Exponential population growth increases the complexity of urban planning. An inadequate understanding of uncertainty can undermine the effectiveness of informal settlement upgrading and deepen social inequalities. Based on the case study of the Enkanini settlement in Stellenbosch, South Africa, this paper probes three levels of uncertainty: (i) methodological uncertainty associated with the challenge of estimating energy demand and demographic changes, (ii) technical uncertainty associated with the expansion of the electric grid and securing revenues, and (iii) epistemological uncertainty associated with the definition of the relevant problems and pertinent solutions for informal settlements. The paper highlights how the focus of technical uncertainty displaces the debate on the socio-political challenges of informal settlement upgrading.},

keywords = {Cities, Complexity, Energy, Slums, Upgrading, Urban metabolism},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}