Prof. Mark Swilling

Prof. Mark Swilling was the Chairperson of DBSA until September 2023. He is the Co-Director of the Centre for Sustainability Transitions at Stellenbosch University. His primary research focus is on ‘societal transitions’ within the wider discipline of sustainability science and governance, with a particular contextual focus on urban sustainability. His published research was coupled to major institution-building collaborations – an achievement that was recognised in 2010 when he was awarded the Aspen Faculty Pioneer Award for success in introducing sustainability into leadership education. In addition to over 60 academic articles/book chapters, he has published several books including (with Eve Annecke) Just Transitions: Explorations of Sustainability in an Unfair World (2012) – runner-up Harold and Margaret Sprout Award for best environmental governance book; Untamed Urbanisms (2015); and Greening the South African Economy (2016).