Mazibuyele emasisweni: the nexus of Ubuntu philosophy, climate change and green social work

Abstract

Climate change is a universal challenge that affects every country, community and individual. Importantly, its discourse requires collective participation from all academic disciplines, professionals, government sectors, classes and persons at a larger scale, not elite-imposed values. By adopting the critical paradigm, this article reviews the relevance of Ubuntu philosophy as an epistemic value of ordinary African people and of social work, which needs to be appreciated in climate change discourse. Most importantly, the hegemony of the imperialist values of the elite is explicated herein through the adoption of the narrative literature review method. The discussions highlight the nexus and relevance of a climate change discourse that should also be co-driven by social work and ordinary African people through the Ubuntu philosophy. For sustainable livelihoods, this article argues that Ubuntu, as an Afrocentric attitude, challenges the Western values of individuality and living for today without considering others and future generations.