After our scorching hot Cape Town summer, with multiple mountain fires, the first rains have already triggered regrowth of our fynbos. This drop in temperature and slight increase in rain heralds our Autumn season, the perfect time to plant in the Western Cape. Spring flowering bulbs like Anemone, Freesia, Daffodil and Ranunculus are in stock…
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The Independents (Part One): No easy walk to SA Parliament for those who go it alone
Victoria O’Regan – 2 April 2024 At most, South Africa could have 10 independent candidates on the ballot on 29 May, despite the push for changes in electoral law to allow for their inclusion. As the 2024 national election comes into focus, who are these independents entering the fold?… READ MORE
The Independents (Part Two): Veteran SA activist Zackie Achmat blazes a trail
Independent candidate in the 2024 elections Zackie Achmat talks to residents in the Lucas Mbembe Hall in Gugulethu 12 March 2024. (Photo: Shelley Christians) Victoria O’Regan – 2 April 2024 The veteran activist is promising to bring the people into Parliament. He says he may be one person, but he’s standing on behalf of a…
Zackie Achmat: What He Said, What I Thought
By Anna MccLellan (they/them) – 4 April 2024 I had approached this article intending to use Zackie Achmat’s policies as a site to discuss how language is formulated in these stances, and what the implication of this is in South African society. I find myself writing a very different article, one which outlines Zackie Achmat’s…
In the heart of conservation: TMNP’s all-women team leads the charge against environmental crimes
A SANParks helicopter prepares to conduct a safety patrol in Table Mountain National Park. The patrols are often aided by data gathered and analysed by the operations centre working behind the scenes. (Photo: TMNP) Kristin Engel – 27 March 2024 The success of TMNP’s conservation soldiers who target crime on Table Mountain hinges on the…
Tiny but seemingly invincible beetle has killed thousands of trees across SA, millions more at risk
A 300-year-old English oak tree is removed in Helderberg in June 2022.Cape Town deputy mayor and the mayoral committee member for spatial planning and environment, Eddie Andrews, said 5,243 trees have been infested by the polyphagous shot hole borer beetle across Cape Town – 4,961 of which have been sighted in the Helderberg area since…
Legal battle brews over TotalEnergies’ offshore oil and gas drilling in Western Cape
Activists and supporters of the Stop The Total Destruction Of The Ocean, Coastal Livelihood And Climate Picket outside the French Consulate in Cape Town on 8 February 2023. (Photo: Gallo Images / Brenton Geach) Kristin Engel – 3 April 2024 Local eco-justice organisations have taken to the Western Cape High Court to stop TotalEnergies from…
FIX MY STREET CHALLENGE
I’m throwing this out there in case anyone else wants to do this! This afternoon I’m going to walk my street and report every pot hole in the pavement, every skew lamp post etc. The City of Cape Town App (& MySmartCity) both allow you to tag locations and upload photos taken on your phone…
Look out for bolos
Being used in the Observatory area, as an easy way of getting over a fence. When found / removed, please contact OBSID and state the location for us too
Soil turning ceremony at River Club grounds
Alan Winde (WC Premier), Geordin Hill-Lewis (CT mayor), Zenzile Khoisan (leader of the First Nations Collective), Yusuf Mohamed (our Ward councillor), among others, were in attendece at the sod-turning ceremony at the River Club on 20 March 2024. As you know many organisations opposed the development, including environmental groups, indigenous councils and social justice activists…