ABSTRACT

The development of the Lynedoch EcoVillage is managed by a non-profit company called the Lynedoch Development Company. Stellenbosch is a small university town some 35 minutes' drive inland from Cape Town. Surrounded by the Helderberg, Simonsig and Stellenbosch mountain ranges, it has also been the historic commercial centre of a wealthy white-owned agricultural community dominated by the winemaking industry. The Sustainability Institute is a non-profit trust that works in close partnership with LyneDev. Directed by Eve Annecke, it aims to promote a wide range of educa tional programmes, projects and writing initiatives that relate to the spectrum of issues affected by the sustainability agenda. The South African government has committed itself to sustainable development. By this it means combining the need for economic development with a commitment to social equity (poverty elimination) and environmental protection. When the local authorities approved the development, this approval was granted on condition that a landowners' association is established.