Being Green

Being Green - 26 July 24 _WWF: The world records we don’t want to break

As the Olympic Games get underway in Paris on 26 July, the Worldwide Fund for Nature has launched a video campaign urging people to focus on the world records we don’t want to break. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to James Reeler, Senior Manager: Climate…

26 Jul 6 min

Being Green - 19 July 24 _Heat-mapping study finds Cape Town has district temperature differences

Trees and plants make life better in a city, including improving air quality, providing homes to birds and insects, and cooling our streets. A recent heat-mapping campaign as part of the World Bank’s City Resilience Programme and the National Treasury’s Cities Support Programme found large temperature differences in parts of…

19 Jul 6 min

Being Green - 12 July 24 _Aghmad Gamieldien, founder of Mzanzi Organics

An urban greening trend that is gaining momentum around the world for its environmental benefits is something called a Miyawaki pocket forest. The concept was developed in the 1970s by Japanese botanist, Dr Akira Miyawaki. Now Aghmad Gamieldien, founder of Mzanzi Organics, has created five of them in Cape Town…

12 Jul 6 min

Being Green - 05 July 24 _Prof Peter Ryan, emeritus professor at UCT’s FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Prof Peter Ryan, emeritus professor at UCT’s FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, who co-authored a study which found that colourful plastics degrade to form microplastics faster than those with plain colours.

4 Jul 6 min

Being Green - 28 June 24 _Keith Anderson, CEO of the e-Waste Association of South Africa (e-WASA)

Electronic waste is the fastest-growing solid waste stream in the world. In 2022, a record 62 million tonnes were produced globally, up 82% from 2010. But less than one quarter of the year’s e-waste mass was documented as having been properly collected and recycled. In this week’s edition of Being…

28 Jun 6 min

Being Green - 21 June 24 _ WWF-SASSI: Giving consumers the chance to make informed choices

In this week’s Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Pavs Pillay, behaviour change lead and WWF-SASSI manager, about the initiative’s new report, “The hidden costs of your seafood”, which focuses on the crucial role played by retailers and suppliers of seafood in ensuring responsible and sustainable fishing practices are implemented.

21 Jun 6 min

Being Green - 14 JUNE 24_Francesca Mahoney, founder of Wild Survivors Part 2 Interview

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook continues her discussion with Wild Survivors founder, Francesca Mahoney, about elephants in Tanzania, and how their fear of bees is being harnessed to protect farms and help communities along the animal’s migratory corridors. To find out more, go to: www.wildsurvivors.org

14 Jun 6 min

Being Green - 07 JUNE 24_Francesca Mahoney, founder of Wild Survivors Part 1 Interview

In this week’s Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Francesca Mahoney, founder of Wild Survivors, an organisation that works to create a sustainable solution to the conflict between elephants and humans along the animal’s migratory corridors in northern Tanzania. To find out more, go to: www.wildsurvivors.org

7 Jun 7 min

Being Green - 31 May 24_Antarctic sea ice at record low

A study published recently by the British Antarctic Survey raised concerns about the record low levels of sea ice around Antarctica. Scientists found that in 2023 – compared to an average winter – the maximum extent of the Antarctic Sea covered by ice, shrank by over two million square kilometres…

31 May 6 min

Being Green - 24 May 24_Alexis Cronin, co-founder of Dunia

Plastic waste is poorly managed along coastal zones in West Africa, and Tanzania is no exception. But as the public becomes more aware of the problem, there are an increasing number of initiatives to deal with the problem, and opportunities to recycle. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis…

24 May 7 min

Being Green - 17 May 24_Dr Christopher Jack, deputy director of UCT’s Climate System Analysis Group,

The powerful El Nino weather phenomenon, a big contributor to last year’s record-breaking global temperatures, has faded. Its opposite, La Nina, is expected to emerge in the next few months. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook asks Dr Christopher Jack, deputy director of UCT’s Climate System Analysis…

17 May 6 min

Being Green - 10 May 24_Wood vinegar a natural plant growth booster and pesticide

Wood vinegar, a by-product of charcoal production, has been used in agriculture for over two thousand years, both as a growth booster for plants and a natural pesticide. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Ralf Dedig, the owner of Namibian company, Makarra Wood Vinegar, about…

10 May 6 min

Being Green - 03 May 24_Bamboo toilet paper a greener option

Bamboo is the fastest-growing plant on earth, and products made from this grass are highly eco-friendly. Among its many benefits to the environment is the fact that it absorbs twice as much carbon dioxide as trees and generates an impressive amount of oxygen. Glynis Crook caught up with Go Bamboo,…

3 May 6 min

Being Green - 26 April _ BirdLife South Africa and Sanccob take environment minister to court

Two bird conservation organisations, BirdLife South Africa and Sanccob, are taking the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment to court over what they see as a flawed plan to protect the endangered African Penguin. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook asks Sanccob’s head of conservation, Nicky…

26 Apr 6 min

Being Green - 19 April 24_Nileta Knoetzen, co-founder of Malmesbury-based company

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Nileta Knoetzen, co-founder of Malmesbury-based company, Growing Paper, which not only hand-manufactures paper from paper waste, but also infuses it with seeds so you can “plant” it after use.

19 Apr 6 min

Being Green - 12 April 24_World Travel Market Africa

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to World Travel Market Africa sales manager, Penny Fraser, and marketing manager, Olivia Gradridge, about how seriously the tourism industry is taking the negative impact it makes on the environment.

12 Apr 6 min

Being Green - 05 April 24_Heather Wares of the Two Oceans Aquarium

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Heather Wares of the Two Oceans Aquarium about the incredible work done by its foundation in the field of ocean research and conservation and the beach clean-up it is holding at Surfers’ Corner, Muizenburg, on Saturday morning. Time: 9h-12h…

5 Apr 6 min

Being Green - 29 Mar 24_, Anthony Gird Honest Chocolate co-owner

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Honest Chocolate co-owner, Anthony Gird, about their efforts to make their products sustainable and environmentally friendly and how climate change is impacting cocoa bean production. To find out more about their chocolate and workshops, visit their website: honestchocolate.co.za

29 Mar 7 min

Being Green - 22 Mar 24_Zoe Gauld-Angelucci from Greenpops

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Greenpop’s Zoe Gauld-Angelucci about the organisation’s incredible urban greening and forest restoration projects and the Reforest Fest is it holding in the Overberg on the Easter weekend.

22 Mar 6 min

Being Green - 15 Mar 24_Victor Sterling, co-owner of Delheim Wine Estate

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Victor Sterling, co-owner of Delheim Wine Estate, about the importance of soil quality and the farm’s practice of planting cover crops between the vine rows.

15 Mar 6 min