Designing guidelines for sustainable housing : what we learn from the development of the green building sector in South Africa

Abstract

ENGLISH SUMMARY: Housing is one of South Africa’s major challenges, amplified by the unprecedented rate of demand and constrained capacity for delivery. Public and private practitioners in the housing sector tend to respond to this challenge by prioritizing meeting immediate needs rather than planning for long-term benefits. Building practices are becoming progressively unsustainable, warranting a shift away from conventional familiar methods of building towards practices that promote sustainability. In this context, initiatives aimed at greening the housing sector or redressing spatial injustice stemming from the Apartheid are often perceived as time consuming add-ons and are not given the necessary importance. Therefore how South Africa addresses housing issues today is a determinant factor in the country’s ability to build resilient communities and promote sustainable living. In this study, I examine the development of the green building sector in South Africa to understand how to promote change within the housing industry. In particular, I explore how the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA), a non-profit organisation, developed and implemented various guidelines and certification tools to promote sustainability and enable change in conventional building practices. I then unpack how these guidelines and tools were received and adopted by the housing industry. To gain insights into the dynamics at play, I draw on literature that speaks to issue fields, soft regulations, and the influence of framing approaches in implementing change. The issue fields perspective is helpful to understand what guides the beliefs and practices of actors in a field and how they deal with an issue. Literature on soft regulations provide insights into the role of a voluntary governance framework in promoting new ideas and fostering change. Finally, the framing perspective provides an analytical lens to recognize methods used to develop and promote the GBCSA tools, and how in turn the housing industry received and participated in the process of change. Adopting a grounded theory methodology, I use semi-structured interviews, member check ins and content analysis to unpack how the GBCSA promoted change and induced industry response. Research findings suggest that the GBCSA’s soft regulatory approach relying on voluntary participation is effective in promoting new ideas, building stronger networks and developing collective accountability amongst the participants. However, the study shows that the effectiveness of soft regulations is influenced by how an initiative is framed and the extent to which it provides enough specification to enable an adequate understanding and response to the issue. Linked to this, the study emphasises the role of exogenous events – such as an unexpected emergency like the water or energy crisis – to crystallise the understanding of the issue and accelerate industry’s involvement and commitment to change. Unpacking various methods of implementation, recognizing causes for industry resistance to change, and understanding benefits and setbacks of soft regulations may assist housing industry practitioners and policymakers to improve execution of sustainable housing through design guidelines and enabling lasting changes in conventional building practices and housing delivery.

AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Behuising is een van Suid -Afrika se grootste uitdagings, versterk deur die ongekende aanvraag en die beperkte leweringskapasiteit. Openbare en private sektore in die behuisingsektor is geneig om op hierdie uitdaging te reageer deur prioriteit te gee aan onmiddellike behoeftes eerder as om vir langtermynvoordele te beplan. Boupraktyke word geleidelik onvolhoubaar, wat 'n verskuiwing van die tradisionele bekende metodes van bou vereis na praktyke wat volhoubaarheid bevorder. In hierdie konteks word inisiatiewe wat daarop gemik is om die behuisingsektor te vergroot of om ruimtelike onreg uit die Apartheidsera te herstel, dikwels as tydrowende byvoegings beskou en word dit nie die nodige belangrikheid gegee nie. Daarom is hoe Suid -Afrika vandag behuisingskwessies aanspreek, 'n bepalende faktor in die land se vermoë om veerkragtige gemeenskappe te bou en volhoubare lewens te bevorder. In hierdie studie ondersoek ek die ontwikkeling van die groenbousektor in Suid -Afrika om te verstaan hoe om verandering binne die behuisingsbedryf te bevorder. In die besonder ondersoek ek hoe die Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA), 'n organisasie nie wingewend, verskeie riglyne en sertifiseringsinstrumente ontwikkel en geïmplementeer het om volhoubaarheid te bevorder en verandering in konvensionele boupraktyke moontlik te maak. Ek pak dan uit hoe hierdie riglyne en gereedskap dan deur die behuisingsbedryf ontvang en aangeneem is. Om insig te kry in die dinamika in die spel, maak ek gebruik van literatuur wat spreek oor kwessies, sagte regulasies en die invloed van raamwerkbenaderings by die implementering van verandering. Die perspektief op kwessievelde is nuttig om te verstaan wat die oortuigings en praktyke van akteurs in 'n veld lei en hoe hulle 'n probleem hanteer. Literatuur oor sagte regulasies bied insig in die rol van 'n vrywillige bestuursraamwerk om nuwe idees te bevorder en verandering te bevorder. Laastens bied die raamperspektief 'n analitiese lens om metodes te herken wat gebruik word om die GBCSA -instrumente te ontwikkel en te bevorder, en hoe die behuisingsbedryf op sy beurt die veranderingsproses ontvang en daaraan deelneem. Ek gebruik 'n gegronde teorie-metode, en gebruik semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude en inhoudsanalise om uit te pak hoe die GBCSA verandering bevorder en reaksie in die bedryf veroorsaak. Navorsingsbevindinge dui daarop dat die GBCSA se sagte reguleringsbenadering wat op vrywillige deelname staatmaak, effektief is in die bevordering van nuwe idees, die bou van sterker netwerke en die ontwikkeling van gesamentlike aanspreeklikheid onder die deelnemers. Die studie toon egter aan dat die doeltreffendheid van sagte regulasies beïnvloed word deur hoe die inisiatief opgestel is en die mate waarin dit genoegsame spesifikasies verskaf om 'n voldoende begrip en reaksie op die kwessie moontlik te maak. Daarby beklemtoon die studie die rol van eksogene gebeurtenisse - soos 'n onverwagte noodgeval soos die water- of energiekrisis - om die begrip van die kwessie te kristalliseer en die betrokkenheid en toewyding van die industrie by die probleemoplossing te versnel. As u verskillende implementeringsmetodes uitpak, die oorsake van die weerstand teen verandering in die bedryf erken en die voordele en terugslae van sagte regulasies begryp, kan praktisyns in die behuisingsbedryf en beleidmakers dit help om die uitvoering van volhoubare behuising te verbeter deur ontwerpriglyne en om deurlopende veranderinge in boupraktyke en huisvesting moontlik te maak.