Introduction: in Reinterpreting Sub-Saharan Cities through the Concept of Adaptive Capacity

The motivation for this research is described with reference to the author’s previous experience in sub-Saharan Africa and the need to further explore environmental issues in African cities. Acknowledging the gaps between urban planners’ interpretive models and the daily activities of the people who create the city, the research investigates whether the concept of adaptive capacity can facilitate an interpretation of the sub-Saharan (and contemporary) city that is able to overcome the dichotomies, categories and partial approaches of prevailing urban geography. Fieldwork in peri-urban areas of Dar es Salaam defined the main factors of adaptive capacity: type and magnitude of local environmental impacts of climate change; rural–urban dynamics and relations; local autonomous adaptive capacity; institutional capacity in environmental management and urban development planning. This research generated knowledge on the dynamics of development and environmental management, as well as methodological insights regarding the limits and strengths of the research approach applied.