Outspoken, indefatigable, intrepid, impassioned. These are some of the many words that rightly describe Joanie Fredericks, “activist on the ground” extraordinaire in the community of Tafelsig in Mitchells Plain, on the Cape Flats in the Western Cape. We’re in this together. Extraordinary times require an extraordinary response. Our people and partners have responded by … [Read more...]
Bold action and strategies required to tackle climate change
The City of Cape Town’s draft Climate Change Strategy is available for public comment from 1 to 30 September 2020. Climate change is a global threat and Cape Town is particularly vulnerable. Residents and interested parties are encouraged to please participate in this process. It is the City’s vision to create an urban environment that is climate resilient, resource … [Read more...]
Cape Town mayor donates much-needed equipment to soup kitchens
Mayor Dan Plato has donated to nearly 150 soup kitchens across Cape Town. Last week, the second phase of handovers to capacitate neighbourhood soup kitchens began in Hanover Park, Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha. ‘We are nearing an important milestone in our drive to feed communities affected by the national lockdown. Today’s handover in Strand means we are reaching even … [Read more...]
Innovation still out of reach for local lockdown-afflicted fishermen
This World Ocean Day, fishing communities from around the country are calling on government to commit to legitimising the sector, as a matter of urgency, to protect the livelihoods of coastal communities who have been dependent on the ocean for generations. While the recent lift in lockdown restrictions on fishers from the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fishing … [Read more...]
SA’s waste reclaimers tell of their lockdown relief
Informal waste reclaimers have spoken of the dire straits they are facing after being forced to stay home as non-essential workers during the Covid-19 national lockdown, leaving their families unsure of where their next meal will come from. In response, the country’s packaging sector has rallied to their aid, raising funds for the donation and distribution of electronic … [Read more...]
Vaalpark reclaimers’ lockdown plight eased
Waste pickers who have not been able to work since the Covid-19 lockdown will have something to keep their hunger at bay after receiving 240 food vouchers. The national PET plastic recycling body PETCO and the South African Waste Pickers Association (SAWPA) donated the vouchers to the families from Vaalpark in Sasolburg. The recipients of the vouchers belong to the … [Read more...]
Supporting farm workers with food baskets during lockdown
The Covid-19 crisis will also be a hunger crisis. The PHA Food & Farming Campaign are deeply concerned about the impact the lockdown will have on their farmland communities. The PHA Food & Farming Campaign is initiating a drive to support 1550 vulnerable families in the Philippi Horticultural Area with food baskets during the Covid-19 lockdown. These families are … [Read more...]
Let’s turn the corner on food wastage
If you take a moment to digest the statistics around the amount of food we waste today, it can be pretty overwhelming. It is thought that around one third of the food produced around the globe is lost or wasted. Richer countries waste something like 222 million tonnes per year, in Europe and North America that equates to 95-115kg of food per person, per year. The numbers are … [Read more...]
About 30% of food produced in Mzansi is lost or wasted
It is estimated that one-third of the food produced globally for human consumption is lost or wasted along the supply chain. This is a whopping 1.3 billion metric tons of food that doesn’t ever reach the consumer. Most of the food loss occurs during transit from farm to fork, especially to urban markets. Food losses represents a waste of land, water, energy, financial, … [Read more...]
Coal is unaffordable and deadly, and we don’t want it
South Africa must never build another coal-fired power station. Next month, on September 20, we will take to the streets to demand this. Across South Africa we will be joined by school children striking to prevent a future ruined by carbon emissions and a deepened climate crisis. “You’ll die of old age. We’ll die of climate change,” they will cry. We will be joined around … [Read more...]
Farmers fighting to save the Earth’s soil
A growing army of UK farmers are turning their back on the plough – and centuries of farming tradition – in an effort to tackle a little-noticed but potentially devastating environmental crisis: the degradation of the Earth’s soil. Read the full article at The Guardian. … [Read more...]
Donate to the victims of Cyclone Idai
The death toll from Cyclone Idai keeps rising. Now, cholera is taking lives and threatens the survivors of the cyclone. That's the thing about these extreme weather events. It doesn’t end when it ends. Cyclone Idai has destroyed access to clean water and access to sanitation, escalating health risks for the survivors. The countless families hit by the disaster are strong and … [Read more...]
War Chemical 2,4 D GM maize: coming to our plates soon
The African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) has published a briefing paper titled, ‘South Africa and 2,4 D GM maize: Biosafety and Socio-economic risks’, exposing ongoing risky technological developments with South Africa’s staple food – maize. It exposes that plans are underfoot to commercially grow genetically modified (GM) maize resistant to the war chemical, 2, D (event … [Read more...]
