The South Coast is home to no fewer than 15 conservancies, giving residents plenty of opportunities to learn and participate actively in looking after our beautiful home.
From Pennington to Port Edward, conservancy members get together to share knowledge, enjoy nature and take care of local vegetation, wildlife and people.
Many local conservancies manage areas regarded as reserves, where volunteers work to share these valuable natural spaces as lovely retreats for the community to enjoy. In order to fund their activities conservancies host open, enjoyable community events, including guided walks, beach clean ups, picnics, seed and plant swops, educational talks, art exhibitions, community markets, Alien Invasive Plant removal and indigenous reforestation, and even golf days and music events.
There’s also a cross-over starting to happen between conservancies, farming, fishing and rural communities as the interconnectedness of everything becomes more mainstream. This is encouraging, especially, with the move to regenerative farming methods which support biodiversity and conservation. (Read or watch Kiss the ground to get an understanding of the origins of this movement with a mission to find solutions for the wellness, water and climate crises.)
Conservancies KZN (KwaZulu-Natal Conservancies Association) is the largest and most active voluntary conservation organisation in South Africa. Positively, there are now nearly 100 conservancies in KZN.
As South Africa has committed to the international Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework at the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) in December 2022 to protect 30% of our land and sea, it is clear we need to do more, so everyone can get involved and make a positive difference.
Contact your local conservancy if you’d like to meet like-minded people, learn about nature in your neighbourhood and find the coolest plants and gardening stuff, with an emphasis on growing indigenous to support pollinators, buying from local farmers, and everything in between.
Some highlights in June include the Mpenjati Eco Festival taking place on June 28.
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