Science and technology (S&T) initiatives that contribute to national priorities will be showcased at the CSIR’s biennial conference from 31 August to 1 September 2010. The open conference, titled 'Science Real and Relevant', will be held at the CSIR International Convention Centre in Pretoria. Read more.

The CSIR has been involved in research into global change phenomena since the early 1990s, anticipating the growth in importance of these issues at national and international levels. With the international climate negotiations in Copenhagen in full swing, these research efforts are now coming into fruition.

After six months in the United States as a visiting scholar, PhD student Thabo Gcwabaza returned home with valuable knowledge gained from his learning experience and the distinct possibility of collaboration. He brought both back to the CSIR.

The impact of vehicle emissions on air quality is generally estimated from emission factors for each pollutant, derived from monitoring campaigns in Europe and the USA. In this study, direct exhaust emission monitoring was done on diesel and petrol passenger vehicles in both idling and accelerated modes. SA petrol passenger vehicle emission factors were calculated from these data and vehicle fuel consumption specifications established.

A review of historical agricultural practices in southern Africa demonstrates evidence of drought evasion strategies going back hundreds of years. European settlers to the arid regions of South Africa quickly recognised the necessity of these evasion options to survive drought, and adopted the transhumance practices of inidigenous farmers. Today, however, with climate change predictions suggesting an increase in drought, CSIR researcher Dr Patrick O'Farrel argues for the adoption of mitigation strategies as a matter of urgency.

Information about Africas role in the global carbon cycle is sparse. It remains unknown whether Africa, as a whole, represents a net sink or source of atmospheric carbon, and how carbon exchange varies temporally and spatially at the continental scale. Africa supports a large variety of terrestrial ecosystem types, reflecting differences in climate, geology, and species composition, as well as land use and land use change taking place all over the continent. This study reports carbon and water fluxes between the land surface and atmosphere in eleven different ecosystems types in Sub-Saharan Africa, using eddy covariance technology in the first two years of the CarboAfrica network operation.

The Living Lab approach focuses on community-driven innovation and has the potential to change the perspectives and practices of various role-players involved in information and communications technology for development (ICT4D) initiatives. This paper includes lessons learnt by researchers at the CSIR's Meraka Institute on ICT4D and outlines the role of Living Labs in the South Arican innovation system.