Thirteen ocean leaders

Faatima

Durban. Manta ray ID and ray behaviour research.

Faatima is drafting a paper on bull ray and eagle ray cleaning behaviour, running manta ray identifications, and building a schools presentation. She also makes art, and sold handmade clay fish magnets to raise funds for the internship.

I know so much more about the marine life we have right here in KZN. I also learnt that I am capable of so much more than I would ever have imagined.

• Leads manta ray identifications
• Co-author on a forthcoming scientific paper on ray behaviour
• Made and sold clay fish magnets to fundraise for the programme
• Delivers ocean education presentations to Durban schools

Meara-Quinn

Waterfall. Activism, petitions and campaigns.

Meara-Quinn campaigns for the petition to remove the KZN shark nets, started by the Earth Legacy Foundation and The Last Shark Documentary, and is helping with a shark net documentary by Beth Neale. She has written about the programme for national publications including Time Out.

Marine conservation is for everyone. Life begins and ends with the ocean. If our ocean dies, so do we.

• Produced educational videos on illegal dusky shark dumping and the KZN shark nets
• Gathered 110 petition signatures independently
• Published nationally, including in Time Out
• Presented to a public audience of 40 on Women's Day

Kezia MacKenzie

Hibberdene. Ocean education and public speaking.

Kezia does public speaking and educational outreach in schools, alongside field research, species identification and social media for the programme. She first dived Aliwal Shoal at eighteen and decided then that she wanted to spend as much of her life underwater as possible.

You do not need to be a scientist or an expert to have a meaningful impact. Be curious, learn about your local ocean, and every small thing you do matters.

• Leads snorkel tours for Surfers Not Street Children
• Presented at Ocean Festival to an audience of 30
• Presented on World Ocean Day to an audience of 60 to 70
• Creating the Aliwal TV educational video series

Tasneem

Durban. Manta ray ID, inshore surveys and outreach.

Studying: speech therapy

Tasneem is organising a beach and reef clean up for the community, alongside manta ray identification, inshore surveys, education outreach and social media. She is studying speech therapy, and is proof that the pathway into conservation does not run only through a marine biology degree.

I am a speech therapy student, and I care about the ocean deeply. You are not limited by your degree.

• Organising a community beach and reef clean up
• Organised the programme's DSTV interview
• Leads school outreach in Durban and Port Shepstone
• Contributes to manta ray research

Bayanda Nxumalo

Durban Central. River systems and freshwater studies.

Languages: English, isiZulu

Bayanda has completed his river studies work and a series of biology videos, and is now working on Aliwal TV. He learned to dive and qualified this year at Aliwal Shoal. He wants to become a divemaster and work internationally.

The ocean sees no colour, no race, no gender. Everyone is one under the giant blue. Everyone is welcome.

• Trained in river systems monitoring
• Applied the training at a workshop with Dr Mark Graham
• Produced a series of biology videos
• Works on the Aliwal TV video series

Caity Sarkozi

Scottburgh. Inshore fish surveys.

Caity spends most of her time on inshore fish surveys, identifying species and logging data for ongoing marine monitoring. She also works on Aliwal TV. Her first dive at Aliwal Shoal had fifteen metres of visibility and almost no current, and it ended with a ragged-tooth shark gliding past. She has been in the water ever since.

You do not need to be a scientist or have grown up by the ocean to belong. If you are willing to learn, there is a place for you.

• Co-leads Green Point Inshore Restricted Zone surveys
• Building baseline data for MPA effectiveness
• Works on the Aliwal TV video series

Sebastian Kruger

Scottburgh. Newest intern, training in citizen science.

Sebastian is the newest member of the cohort and is training in citizen science techniques diving at Aliwal Shoal.

• Training in citizen science survey techniques at Aliwal Shoal

Teegan

Scottburgh. Fish population surveys and marine ecology.

Studying: environmental management and zoology

Teegan runs inshore reef surveys and the citizen science work around them, logging the species populations along the local reef. A year ago she had never conducted a reef survey. She now knows how, and intends to keep collecting ocean data as a marine conservationist and zoologist.

It was absolutely magical. Nothing compared to life on land.

• Co-leads Green Point Inshore Restricted Zone surveys
• Presented at Ocean Festival to an audience of 30
• Presented on World Ocean Day to an audience of 60 to 70
• Presented to 500 children at Scottburgh Primary School
• Primary office manager for the programme

Muhammed Yousoof

Durban, studying at UKZN. Coding ray behaviour for scientific publication.

Muhammed leads the behavioural coding of bull ray and ocellated eagle ray footage in BORIS, the software used for structured behavioural analysis. The work feeds a study he is producing with Faatima Muhammad, Dr Carpenter and Dr Geremy Cliff, headed for publication. He received fully funded SCUBA certification through the programme and trained in citizen science techniques at Aliwal Shoal.

• Leads behavioural coding of ray footage in BORIS
• Co-author on a forthcoming scientific paper
• Contributes to the Aliwal TV educational video series

Lifa Jambane

Amahlongwa. Aliwal Shoal water guide.

Lifa joined the programme from the local Zulu community of Amahlongwa and received fully funded SCUBA certification. He was then appointed as a water guide on the Aliwal Shoal, a role that matters to the whole community. He has spoken about the Ocean Leadership Programme on both DSTV and SABC.

• Appointed Aliwal Shoal water guide
• Featured on DSTV and SABC
• Fully funded SCUBA certification through the programme

Holly

Durban. Research and science communication.

Holly is a voice actor for Aliwal TV and researches the fun facts behind the scripts, which has taught her a great deal about the shoal. Her current favourite: the leaf sheep nudibranch, which is partly solar powered and can photosynthesise.

Do your research before you talk about the ocean and its residents, so you do not spread misinformation.

• Voice actor for the Aliwal TV video series
• Researches the science behind the Aliwal TV scripts
• Presented at Ocean Festival to an audience of 30
• Delivers school presentations in Durban

Andrew Lubbe

Greytown. Ocean art from cardboard, plastic and old buoys.

Andrew trained in citizen science techniques diving at Aliwal Shoal and builds marine animals out of cardboard, plastic and old buoys for art based ocean education. The material is part of the lesson, since most of it came out of the sea in the first place.

• Creates ocean animals from cardboard, plastic and reclaimed buoys
• Uses the work for art based ocean education

Celeste Owen

Bloemfontein. Ocean education workshops across KwaZulu-Natal.

Celeste trained in citizen science techniques diving at Aliwal Shoal and designed and delivered ocean education presentations and workshops to schools across KwaZulu-Natal. She also assisted on the Surfers Not Street Children snorkel tours. During her internship she was offered a position working in the United States.

• Designed and delivered ocean education workshops to multiple KZN schools
• Assisted on Surfers Not Street Children snorkel tours
• Offered a position in the United States during the internship