Department of Geography and Environmental Studies
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Spatial variation in school performance, a local analysis of socio-economic factors in Cape Town
(CONSAS Conference, 2014)Poor pass rates of matric learners at secondary schools in South Africa has been a concern for quite some time. Despite large government spending on education, research has shown that the South African schooling system ... -
Exploring hemp farming as a sustainable agriculture in South Africa, using a social-ecological systems approach
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Smallholder communities in the rural regions of South Africa are becoming increasingly vulnerable to challenges associated with climate change and socio-economic conditions. This study includes an exploration ... -
Determining spatial and temporal change in household solid waste composition within Stellenbosch local municipality
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The quantities in which solid waste is generated are continuously increasing throughout the world. If waste is not treated or disposed of in an appropriate manner, the consequences for societies and ... -
Do social grants contribute to the jobless population growth in the former South African homelands?
(University of the Free State, 2018)The former homelands and tribal authorities have large populations and high densities with low levels of economic activity and low employment. Population growth in these settlements is in contrast to expectations of ... -
Evaluating ‘homegrown’ research networks in Africa
(Academy of Science of South Africa, 2018)Attempts to improve the policy environment have led to a growing pressure on governments in Africa to embark on policymaking that is more evidence based and considers a wide spectrum of scientific and indigenous knowledge. ... -
Applying the water-energy-food nexus to farm profitability in the Middle Breede catchment, South Africa
(Academy of Science of South Africa, 2018)The water-energy-food nexus has emerged as a useful concept to understand the multiple interdependencies that exist between the water, energy and food sectors. The nexus is an ambitious attempt to work across disciplines ... -
An integrated approach to grassland productivity modelling using spectral mixture analysis, primary production and Google Earth Engine
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Grassland degradation can have a severe impact on condition, productivity and consequently grazing potential. Current conventional methods for monitoring and managing grasslands are time-consuming, ... -
Quantifying the effects of ecological constraints on trait expression using novel trait-gradient analysis parameters
(Wiley Open Access, 2017)Complex processes related to biotic and abiotic forces can impose limitations to assembly and composition of plant communities. Quantifying the effects of these constraints on plant functional traits across environmental ... -
Impact of ecological redundancy on the performance of machine learning classifiers in vegetation mapping
(Wiley Open Access, 2017)Vegetation maps are models of the real vegetation patterns and are considered important tools in conservation and management planning. Maps created through traditional methods can be expensive and time-consuming, thus, ... -
Naturalization of European plants on other continents : the role of donor habitats
(National Academy of Sciences, 2019)The success of European plant species as aliens worldwide is thought to reflect their association with human-disturbed environments. However, an explicit test including all human-made, seminatural and natural habitat types ... -
Regional mapping of spekboom canopy cover using very high resolution aerial imagery
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Widespread degradation of subtropical thicket (South Africa) by poorly managed pastoralism has led to substantial decreases in ecological functioning and biodiversity. Once degraded, thicket does not ... -
Measuring and modelling evapotranspiration in a South African grassland : comparison of two improved Penman-Monteith formulations
(South African Water Research Commission, 2018)Accurately measuring evapotranspiration (ET) is important in the context of global atmospheric changes and for use with climate models. Direct ET measurement is costly to apply widely and local calibration and validation ... -
The application of an Urban Sprawl Index : comparing towns and cities in the Western Cape Province, South Africa
(CONSAS, 2018)The incidence and effects of urban sprawl have been the subject of a great many academic research mainly as a result of the challenges posed by continued urbanisation, especially in developing countries (see inter alia ... -
Towards land change management using ecosystem dynamics and land cover change in rural Eastern Cape
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Land cover change, triggered by natural and anthropogenic land use change, affects ecosystem services provided by grasslands. Woody encroachment into the grasslands is a threat to function and productivity ... -
Efficacy of machine learning and lidar data for crop type mapping
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Accurate crop type maps are important for obtaining agricultural statistics such as water use or harvest estimations. The traditional approach to obtaining maps of cultivated fields is by manually digitising ... -
Agricultural field boundary delineation using earth observation methods and multi-temporal Sentinel-2 imagery
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Accurate and up-to-date agricultural monitoring systems are critical for forecasting crop yield, planning resources and assessing the impact of threats to production (such as droughts or floods). The ... -
Using LiDAR derivatives to estimate sediment grain size on beaches in False Bay
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The coastal zone is a dynamic environment that is regulated and influenced by natural ocean processes and anthropogenic phenomena. Beaches are important elements within the coastal zone and are highly ... -
Thesium nautimontanum, a new species of Thesiaceae (Santalales) from South Africa
(Pensoft Publishers, 2018)Thesium nautimontanum, a new species of Thesiaceae (Santalales) from South Africa -
Future land cover change scenarios in South African grasslands - implications of altered biophysical drivers on land management
(Elsevier, 2018)Future land cover changes may result in adjustments to biophysical drivers impacting on net ecosystem carbon exchange (NEE), catchment water use through evapotranspiration (ET), and the surface energy balance through a ... -
Understanding the societal impact of research through productive interactions and realist theory-based evaluation: Select cases of agricultural research in South Africa
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study explored the concept of societal impact of research (SoIR) in four agricultural research projects in South Africa, as well as in a survey of the two commodity companies that funded those projects. ...
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