The access to building materials in informal settlements impacts housing resilience and sustainability. This article presents research conducted with Slum Dwellers International’s (SDI) affiliates in Freetown, Sierra Leone, and Harare, Zimbabwe, exploring the governance conditions that enable or constrain the value chain of building materials, and how these conditions shape access to more affordable, resilient and sustainable housing. Through a co-produced methodology, the research identifies three dimensions that intersect with the decision-making around building materials in informal settlements: tenure and risk thresholds; livelihoods and hazards; and infrastructure and poverty penalties. Based on these findings, the article reflects how access to more sustainable materials in informal settlements can be promoted, while ensuring a fairer distribution of climate change burdens and responsibilities. It highlights governance rather than purely technology solutions, prioritises immediate action for slum upgrading, and acknowledges the existence of trade-offs to the advancement of climate justice. This article brings to the forefront the experiences of informal settlement dwellers and a justice perspective into current debates about decarbonising the construction industry in global South cities.
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