The project’s objective is to facilitate capacity building workshops for local government on climate change mitigation.

In 2011, DEA developed the Let’s Respond Toolkit to support the mainstreaming of climate response into municipal planning processes, in line with the objectives of the National Climate Change Response White Paper.

The aim of this project is to build the capacity of local government to implement the mitigation component of the Let’s Respond Toolkit. To this end, SEA, through a series of capacity-building workshops in selected provinces, will aim to strengthen municipal capacity in developing mitigation action plans/ work plans that integrate climate change mitigation action into the service functions of the relevant sectors in a municipality.

Using the Toolkit, as well as the SALGA guides on Sustainable Energy and Climate Change in Municipal IDPs, South African Local Government Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Strategy and SEA’s recently released comprehensive practical guide to date for local government titled ‘Sustainable Energy Solutions for South African Local Government’, municipalities will be capacitated on climate change mitigation action within the local government service delivery context. Key areas of climate change mitigation action will be addressed, notably:

• solar water heating,
• energy efficient lighting,
• sustainable transport,
• energy efficiency in municipal water and wastewater works,
• waste to energy,
• wind (small and large scale),
• solar photovoltaic systems with a focus on small scale embedded generation, and
• household energy access.