Oceans of Life

South Africa and the oceans adjacent to the country are increasingly regarded as one of the locations where the overall environmental status of the planet can be measured. South Africa enjoys the benefit of a relatively large adjacent ocean space comprising three ocean regimes, the east coast Agulhas Current large marine ecosystem, the west coast Benguela Current large marine ecosystem, and the southern ocean drawing impacts from the Antarctic. The ocean/atmosphere interaction drives weather and climate and is therefore important to all South Africans. SAEON’s Magic Planet makes it easier for learners to understand dynamic global systems – whether it’s climate, the biosphere or geologic history (Picture: Thomas Mtontsi) Thomas Mtontsi, Education Outreach Officer of SAEON’s Egagasini Node (right) explains the importance of the oceans surrounding South Africa (Picture: SAEON Egagasini Node) Learning more about our fascinating oceans (Picture: Thomas Mtontsi)

The mandate for creating national awareness of all matters marine is vested in the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA).

The theme for this year's National Marine Week campaign organised by DEA was Oceans of Life. This being the International Year of Biodiversity, the campaign also highlighted marine biodiversity and created awareness of the importance of our oceans and the rich diversity of our marine fauna and flora.

The education outreach programme of SAEON’s Egagasini Node dedicates the whole of October each year to collaborate with the entities which set out to create awareness of the marine environment. With time, SAEON Egagasini has gained such a reputation in this regard that if the initiatives need to engage society (schools and communities), SAEON is the first to be considered.

As soon as the call for participation was made, SAEON Egagasini got all of the schools in its programme involved. As the integration of marine science into school science is of such importance to the SAEON Egagasini Node, all Node staff made time to support the learners’ awareness programme, each on a different day. The Node also exhibited at the venue.

The importance of our surrounding oceans

This year’s programme was one of the most interesting to date. It consisted of a number of demonstrations to introduce the theme Oceans of Life, allowed ample time for learners to interact with scientists and exhibitors, and included a visit to the aquarium for a lesson that emphasised the importance of our surrounding oceans and current impacts on them.

The campaign seeks to foster a sense of pride in South Africans for our beautiful oceans and coasts, celebrating our unique environment and the one-of-a-kind events that occur off our coasts, such as the sardine run, an annual event off the coast of KwaZulu-Natal involving the interaction of a plethora of marine life. The campaign is also intended to raise awareness of the inter-connectivity of our oceans with the rest of inland South Africa.

Importantly, the learners — being the target audience of the programme — went away with much appreciation of the endeavours aimed at raising their awareness of a national initiative that highlights the importance of ocean/marine research and the fact that our country is ideally placed to lead research endeavours in this field due to its unique geographic location.

What the learners and educators had to say:

Letters were received from Antonio Gambino, H Salmons and Michaela Williams