We Cannot Continue Like This

We Cannot Continue Like This: Facing Modernity in Africa and the West is a scholarly book strongly focused on the context of Africa, with two chapters that are written by authors from the Netherlands for the purpose of a North-South dialogue. The main thesis of the book is based on the insight that the trajectory of modern development ought not to continue as it is. It is ecologically unsustainable and continues to enlarge the gap between rich and poor. The book centers on an academic analysis of current development practices, mostly in Africa. It addresses four topics that are often neglected in studies on development and sustainability: listening to voices from Africa to counter the hegemony of the Global North; recognizing the importance of spiritual issues in the secular affairs of society; deriving theory from data that was obtained and analyzed in a systematic way, and was compared with existing theories; and illustrating the importance of households rather than just governments, businesses or academic institutions. The manuscript seeks to integrate academic reflection and insights gained from practical involvement with sustainability issues in local communities and low-income households, with contributions from natural and social sciences and theology. The authors respond to the question: How can modern science and technology help to solve dilemmas such as unsustainable development?

Attie S. van Niekerk studied Theology at the University of Pretoria. He was a minister of the (black) Dutch Reformed Church in Africa in Venda from 1978 to 1984 and professor for the church’s theological training at the University of the North from 1984 to 1993 and rector of the Theological School Stofberg from 1988 to February 1993. His book on four poets from Soweto and Alexandra in the seventies, Dominee, Are You Listening to the Drums?, was co-winner of the Sunday Times Literary Award for Political Writing in 1984. He has published several books and more than 50 academic articles. In 1994, he became a founding member of the NOVA Institute, a not-for-profit organisation that aims to enable poverty-stricken communities to improve their quality of life. NOVA makes use of scientific methods, including surveys, academic debates and trans-disciplinary research, in which researchers from a diversity of backgrounds, together with a number of low-income families, are engaged in a process to design, and evaluate in practice, household products and processes that are effective, sustainable, affordable for low-income households, desirable, replicable and socially beneficial.



Sytse Strijbos is a founder of the International Institute for Development and Ethics that has been established in 2004 as an independent legal entity with a branch in South Africa and Europe. Currently, he is the chairperson of the International Institute for Development and Ethics (IIDE) in Europe. Previously, he taught at the Philosophy Faculty of Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, and as a special professor at North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus), South Africa.