University of kwaZulu-Natal
Durban, South Africa
By Prof. Cristina Trois, School of Engineering, University of kwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
Over the past decade, the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) of the Dept. of Minerals and Energy in South Africa has implemented a number of large-scale rural biogas interventions within scattered communities across the country. However, this model has met with mixed success, requiring high investment for slight developmental and ecological benefits. Nonetheless, research by the SARCHI Chair in Waste and Climate Change, conducted across the Southern African Region, suggest that alternative service provision models, focused on institutional, or community-settings, may yield more positive outcomes. Thus, there is a significant need, recognised by SANEDI, to propose, design, and explore the feasibility of alternative models for centralised and decentralised biogas provision within rural African contexts.
Biography
Full Professor in Environmental Engineering, NRF South African Research Chair in Waste and Climate Change (SARCHI) at the University of kwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa. Environmental Engineer, PhD in Geo and Environmental Engineering from Italy, PrEng (Italy). Chair of the joint secretariat for the Southern Africa Region of the UN-IPLA Programme (International Partnership for advancing waste management services of local authorities) and the IWWG (International Waste Working Group), Member of IWMSA and CIWM (UK). Prof. Trois has over 20 years of working experience in waste management and has been the principal investigator as well as the project coordinator of many feasibility and R&D waste management/waste minimisation/treatment/design projects with municipalities in South Africa and Africa. Author of over 100 peer-reviewed publications in high-impact journals; she is a C1 rated scientist with the National Research Foundation and her main fields of expertise are: Environmental and Geo-Engineering, Waste and Climate Change in Sustainable Cities, Waste and Resources Management, Control, Management and Treatment of landfill emissions, Renewable Energy from waste and Greenhouse gas control from zero waste in Africa and developing countries, Alternative Building Materials. She developed and coordinates the first Master Programme in Waste and Resources Management in South Africa and graduated over 60 postgraduate students.