Constructing a joint vision for Johannesburg nature reserves: City Parks and users’ committee engagements in Melville Koppies, Klipriviersberg and Kloofendal nature reserves Kloofendal Nature Reserve (Mokgere, May 2016) Tlholohelo Mokgere (721930) A research report submitted to the School of Architecture and Planning in the Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for Bachelor of Science with Honours in Urban and Regional Planning Declaration I declare that this research report is my own. It is submitted for the Bachelor of Sciences with Honours degree in Urban and Regional Planning to the Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. It has not been submitted before for any degree or examination at any other university. X Tlholohelo Mokgere Signed at University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg on 14 December 2016 I Abstract The research is about understanding the partnerships between Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo and nature reserves users’ groups towards the joint management and development of urban nature reserves. It is a comparative study of three nature reserves (Klipriviersberg, Melville Koppies and Kloofendal nature reserves), where the engagements between the municipal entity and users’ groups are studied through an ethnographic approach. It looks into genealogies and the nature of “partnerships”, which are questioned under the concept of transformation, whose multiple dimensions are unpacked in post-apartheid Johannesburg. II Acknowledgments This research would not have been possible without the aid and assistance of a number of people and organisations. I would like to thank first my family, for believing in my dreams and aspirations and for providing me with the emotional and financial support to carry out this research. I would like to thank the National Research Foundation and its collaborator, the Centre for Urbanism and Built Environment, which hosts the program Practises of the States in Urban Governance, which this research is a part of. I am grateful for their financial investment into this project. This research would not have been possible without the following organisations: Friends of Kloofendal Nature Reserve, Melville Koppies Management Committee and the Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve Forum. I thank the various members of these organisations for speaking to me and for welcoming me into their spaces, which I imagine was intimidating and sometimes uncomfortable. I am grateful to various officials in Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo for their invaluable contributions. This research would not have been possible without the information that they provided. Thank you to the various lecturers in the School of Architecture and Planning who throughout the years have provided stimulating course material. Their teachings have equipped me with the many necessary tools needed to undertake this research. Lastly, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor Professor Claire Bénit-Gbaffou for the support and nurturing that she has provided. Thank you for believing in me and for always pushing me to work harder, think deeper and to become a better version of myself. III Contents Tlholohelo Mokgere (721930) ........................................................................................................................ II Declaration ..................................................................................................................................................... I Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... II Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................................................... III List of Figures, Tables and Maps ................................................................................................................. VIII Boxes ...................................................................................................................................................... VIII Figures .................................................................................................................................................... VIII Maps ....................................................................................................................................................... VIII Tables ..................................................................................................................................................... VIII List of abbreviations and acronyms ................................................................................................................ X Chapter 1: Introduction to the Research ......................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Problem Statement ............................................................................................................................. 2 1.3 Rationale ............................................................................................................................................ 3 1.4 Expected Contribution of Research ................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Research Aims and Objectives ........................................................................................................... 5 1.6 Research Question and Sub-questions ................................................................................................ 5 1.7 Context and Background ................................................................................................................... 6 1.7.1 Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve ...................................................................................................... 7 1.7.2 Melville Koppies Nature Reserve ................................................................................................... 9 1.7.3 Kloofendal Nature Reserve .......................................................................................................... 10 1.7.4 A comparison of the basic data of the three nature reserves ......................................................... 11 1.7.5 JCPZ Officials .............................................................................................................................. 13 Chapter 2: Literature Review ........................................................................................................................ 16 2.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 16 2.2 Management of Public Green Spaces ............................................................................................... 16 2.3 The Value of Participatory Practises ................................................................................................. 20 IV 2.3.1 Types and Levels of Participation ................................................................................................. 21 2.3.2 Platforms of Participation: Invented and Invited Spaces ............................................................... 23 2.4 The Conservation versus Development Debate (rework) ................................................................. 25 2.4.1 Contextualising the Polar Understandings of Conservation as Preservation and Development as Commodification ..................................................................................................................................... 25 2.5 Conceptual Framework of the Research ........................................................................................... 28 2.5.1 State Transformation .................................................................................................................... 28 2.5.2 Transforming Access .................................................................................................................... 29 2.5.3 Transforming Predominant Views of Legitimacy .......................................................................... 30 2.5.4 The concept of a “Vision” ........................................................................................................ 30 2.6 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................... 31 Chapter 3: Research Process and Methods ................................................................................................... 32 3.1 Data Collection ................................................................................................................................ 32 3.1.1 Interviews .................................................................................................................................... 33 3.1.2 Field Notes: Participant Observation (A) ...................................................................................... 34 3.1.3 Field Notes: Participant Observation (B) ...................................................................................... 37 3.1.4 Documents and