Being Green

There’s increasing evidence that switching to a plant-based diet can have a significant positive impact on both our health and the environment. Glynis Crook speaks to Dr Nanine Wyma of the Physicians Association for Nutrition, South Africa, who says that transforming the world’s food system is essential to mitigate climate change.

The Clanwilliam cedar, that gave the Cedarberg its name, was once found in large groves across the region. But since 2013, this majestic and ancient tree has been listed as critically endangered. In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Jacklyn Farmer, an off-reserve conservation services officer at CapeNature, about programmes to increase its numbers in the area.

The cholera outbreak at Hammanskraal in northern Gauteng has yet again put the spotlight on water in South Africa. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Anja du Plessis, Associate Professor and Research Specialist in Water Resource Management at the University of South Africa, about the state of our water resource management.

UN Treaty to protect marine life United Nations member states last week adopted the first-ever treaty to protect marine life in the ocean outside of national boundaries. The so-called “High Seas Treaty” was approved after more than 15 years of discussions. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Dr Bernadette Snow, Deputy Director of One Ocean Hub at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland, about the significance of the agreement.

The cholera outbreak at Hammanskraal in northern Gauteng has yet again put the spotlight on water in South Africa. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Anja du Plessis, Associate Professor and Research Specialist in Water Resource Management at the University of South Africa, about the state of our water resource management.

It’s World Turtle Day on 16 June. In this edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Talitha Noble, Conservation Manager at the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation’s Turtle Conservation Centre, about the extraordinary sea turtles and their contribution to ocean ecosystems.

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook talks to Lauren van Nijkerk, Director of Campaigns & Communications at the environmental NGO, Wildtrust, about its new campaign focusing on marine protection, and particularly sharks and rays, as well as highlighting the substantial benefits of establishing new sanctuary areas for them

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook, speaks to the City of Cape Town’s Deputy Mayor and Mayco Member for Spatial Planning and Environment Eddie Andrews to get an update on the infestation by the tree-killing beetle, the polyphagous shot hole borer. He said it’s important that you do not cut down an infected tree yourself, as special care needs to be taken throughout the removal process. Instead, you should report a sighting by going to: www.capetown.gov.za/InvasiveSpecies, or by calling the Invasive Species Unit on 021 444 2357, or by emailing: invasive.species@capetown.gov.za

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook, speaks to Cape Nature’s Marketing and Promotions Manager, Loren Pavitt, about the whopping 43 per cent increase in the number of visitors to the province’s reserves in the last financial year, and what this means for its conservation efforts

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook, speaks to Dr Gabriella Leighton, co-ordinator of UCT’s Urban Caracal project, and co-author of a new study which has found that those wild cats that live on the urban edge of Cape Town have metal pollutants in their blood, a huge red flag for the environment on the peninsula.

He may be fighting a different type of offence, but Nigeria’s Spider-Man is as much a superhero as the Marvel Comics crime buster. His name is Jonathan Olanlokun, an environmental activist who dresses up in full Spider-Man kit to help clean up the streets of his hometown of Osogbo, armed with no superpower except his determination to make a difference in his community. He speaks to Glynis Crook in this week’s edition of Being Green

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook talks to Dr Tony Rebelo, a scientist at the South African National Biodiversity Institute, about the City Nature Challenge which is taking place this weekend (28 April – 1 May) in some 500 cities around the world. It aims to motivate people to find and document wildlife in their towns, regions, and neighbourhoods. The iNaturalist app is available for free on your phone’s Appstore, or you can upload photos from your digital camera to the iNaturalist website (www.inaturalist.org).

In this week’s edition of Being Green, and as we mark international Earth Day on Saturday, Glynis Crook speaks to Pavitray “Pavs” Pillay, the World Wide Fund for Nature-South Africa’s environment behaviour change lead, about how each of us can make a contribution to protecting our planet.

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Prof Mark Swilling, Co-Director of the Centre for Sustainability Transitions at Stellenbosch University, about his view that new Electricity Minister, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa’s plan to extend the life of our increasingly costly, ageing, and polluting coal-fired power stations is not a good idea.

As the world faces the unfolding energy and climate crisis, Cape Town is one of a growing number of cities across the world that are taking the lead in the transition to renewables. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Rana Adib, the Executive Director of the highly respected international renewable energy network, REN21, which has just published the first modules of its annual Global Renewable Status Report.

The City of Cape Town, in partnership with the University of Cape Town, has launched a free mobile climate change app for individuals, funded by the European Commission. In a nutshell, you can use it to take on challenges to reduce your impact on the environment. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Grant Smith of UCT’s Energy Systems Research Group, which is part of the global consortium developing the Climate Campaigner app. It is free to download on Google Play or the Apple App Store.

The world’s top climate scientists released their latest report earlier this week which painted a grim picture. The United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said we can only avoid the worst of climate change by rapidly using less fossil fuels and making big reductions in greenhouse gas emissions across all sectors. UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, described the report as "a survival guide for humanity". In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Dr Nicolas Simpson, a member of the IPCC Synthesis Report writing team and Lead for Knowledge and Practice of the UN’s Africa Climate Mobility Initiative.

The city of Edinburgh in Scotland recently became the first European capital to endorse a plant-based diet to tackle the climate emergency. In fact, a vegan diet is widely regarded as being better not only for the environment but also for our health. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook visits The Conscious Kitchen vegan restaurant in the CBD and speaks to owner Dana Korstenbroek, about her journey to a more plant-based diet and the do’s and don’ts of veganism.

A vegan diet is widely regarded as being better, not only for the environment but also for our health. But not all plant-based foodstuffs have a small environmental footprint. The air transport of fruit and vegetables is just one of the reasons why what you eat may still be having a negative impact. In today’s Being Green, Glynis Crook is back at The Conscious Kitchen restaurant learning how to make two simple vegan dishes with its owner, Dana Korstenbroek.

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Valentin Aich, a senior water and climate specialist at the Global Water Partnership, about concerns of yet another drought in Italy and the surrounding region this European summer. This after the Alps received less than half their normal amount of snowfall over the winter.