Rate My Professor Gina Ziervogel

Professor Gina Ziervogel is a Professor in the Department of Environmental and Geographical Science and Director of the African Climate and Development Initiative (ACDI) at the University of Cape Town. She is a geographer by training who completed a BSc at the University of Cape Town, an Honours degree in Environmental Water Management at Rhodes University, and a DPhil in Geography at the University of Oxford in 2002. With over 25 years of experience, her work focuses on adaptation and vulnerability to global environmental change, climate-resilient development pathways, urban environmental governance, and transdisciplinary research that engages civil society, government, and academics to address climate-related challenges across scales from neighbourhoods to national levels. She has contributed to projects such as the development of South Africa’s National Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment Framework, urban water governance studies in Cape Town, and the CLARE Tuwe Pamoja project on nature-based solutions in African cities. Ziervogel served as a lead author on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report and co-authored a book on Cape Town’s drought with Leonie Joubert. She has received the UCT Social Responsiveness Award in 2020, a Fulbright scholarship in 2020/2021, and is an NRF B2-rated researcher. Her methodological interests include engaged scholarship and participatory approaches to building adaptive and transformative capacity.

Ziervogel has authored or co-authored numerous peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, and popular articles on topics including social innovation in climate adaptation, resilience in informal settlements, and governance responses to shocks. She has held roles such as member of the City of Cape Town’s Water Resilience Advisory Committee and participated in the Homeward Bound leadership programme for women in STEMM. Her research emphasizes social justice, Southern African development under climate change, and collaborative knowledge co-creation to support equitable climate action.