Sylvia Earle - South African Coasts: A Celebration of Our Seas and Shores

Published by Struik Nature
(an imprint of Random House Struik (Pty) Ltd)
Reg. No. 1966/003153/07
Estuaries No 4, Oxbow Crescent, Century Avenue, Century City, 7441
PO Box 1144, Cape Town, 8000 South Africa

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Copyright in text, 2014: individual authors
Copyright in photographs, 2014: as indicated alongside images
Copyright in map, 2014: Random House Struik (Pty) Ltd
Copyright in published edition, 2014: Random House Struik (Pty) Ltd

Publisher: Pippa Parker
Managing editor: Helen de Villiers
Editor: Emily Bowles
Designer: Janice Evans
Map design: James Berrang

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner(s).

ISBN 978 1 77584 211 8
E-PUB 978 1 77584 213 2
E-PDF 978 1 77584 212 5

Cover: All cover images also appear and are credited in the text, except for spine image: Anemone fish, Sodwana Bay (Bart Lukasik) ; front cover top: On a roll, Sea Point, Cape Town (Phillip Wentworth) ; front cover strip, second from left: Oystercatcher (Ross Shackleton) and front cover strip, third from left: Windsurfing at Noordhoek, Port Elizabeth (Gregg Betts).
: Juvenile bottlenose dolphin, Plettenberg Bay (Gwenith Penry)
: De Mond (Cara Christensen)

I f South Africa is to have a prosperous and equitable society living in harmony with its natural resources, then we must involve people and foster communities that care about and benefit from conservation activities. This book and the Hope Spot movement are steps in precisely that direction: thousands of people submitted their photographs for inclusion in the book, which is also a celebration of the first 20 years of South African democracy. The Hope Spot initiative is an inclusive drive, calling on all people to share knowledge, to help each other and to actively care for the environment. If we harness the power of people, build pride in South Africa and demonstrate the benefits of teamwork, then the task of the Department of Environmental Affairs in reaching its vision of a people-centred approach to conservation becomes much easier. Hope Spots will develop communities of caring, informed people, drawn from government and municipalities, businesses, schools, clubs, societies, non-governmental organisations and fishing communities who will be able to husband, protect and maintain the economic viability of our resources. They will be empowered to work collectively to rehabilitate resources, and such coordinated efforts will achieve more.

Hope and the focus that Hope Spots provide are motivating forces. On the one hand, people are the cause of the need for conservation due to pollution and overexploitation problems. On the other hand, people are also the cause for hope. If we use the knowledge, skills and technology that are available these days, then sustainability of the environment and prosperity become achievable. The ideals of the Department of Environmental Affairs are underpinned by a strong belief that when we put our people first and serve with integrity, then we shall have just cause to celebrate our seas and shores as we achieve more together.

This book and the Hope Spot movement are exciting developments in drawing people together to care for the coasts and oceans. The book is dedicated to assisting impoverished coastal communities develop sustainable livelihoods.

MINISTER EDNA MOLEWA

MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS, SOUTH AFRICA

Stormy waters, Shelly Beach, KwaZulu-Natal (Helgard du Preez)