A start has been made with construction of South Africa’s first “green” town that in time is expected to operate largely independently of the national energy grid. It will also be the first rural town fully integrated with an existing agricultural component, in this case a professionally run dairy farm, and one in which future food security has formed an important component of the overall planning.

Sustainable development in a city where everything is moving and changing at a tremendous pace is not a challenge for the faint-hearted. The harsh reality is that Cape Town is going through an extraordinarily rapid urban growth and transformation process which will have far-reaching consequences if not managed properly.