Sea Change Project Presents
Stories, news, and journals from the seaforest.
Latest
Biodiversity in the Great African Seaforest relies on relationships between species – some that are mutually beneficial and others that can seem like a horror show.
From tiny amphipods navigating the kelp fronds to rock lobsters scuttling along the reefs, crustaceans are the seaforest’s great connectors. South Africa alone has described more than 13,000 marine animals, of which over 2,300 are Crustacea.
Kelp forests are on the cover of TIME magazine – a first in the publication’s 103-year history. The Great African Seaforest, one of the most biodiverse and least-known ecosystems on the planet, is now in front of a global audience.
Recent
When we originally formed SCP it was a way for us to produce the occasional creative project while immersing ourselves in the kelp forests which we named the Great African Seaforest. As a group we realised that by giving our kelp forests a name we were giving it an unique identity and a presence that connected it to the kelp forests of the world, but also distinguished it as a particular ecosystem found on the shores of Southern Africa.
Some years ago, I was kayaking and swimming along a rugged part of Cape Town’s coast. The sun blazed overhead, the sea frothed against rocks, and behind a stand of kelp, I discovered a cave. Battling against a strong surge, I timed my entry, and crawled into a dark, cool world ripe with the smell of salt and primordial plant life. I ventured further into the cave, and there it was: a full human skeleton lying sprawled on the rock-littered floor.
I wrote down “#0101 I am a Seaforest Species”. In retrospect, I think what I did was make a list of the first 100 species, and realised that humans were very absent but need to be a part of the project.
The debate around the proposed octopus farm goes beyond the arguments of sentience. Read our full statement.
‘It is always worth it to leave the house and explore in nature.’ Or,
as Dr Jannes Landschoff says – ‘you never regret a dive!’
Rituals are part of our blueprint and although most of them may be subconscious, our days are full of small habitual actions that helps us to make sense of the world and move within it.
The entire underwater sea-scape is a magical world of sound, and it is this sound on which many species depend for their survival.
Swimming with southern right whales and an exploration into the fine line between life, death and history.
Befriending a wild otter, nature and wilderness connection during lockdown, and hope for the future of our environment.
Marine biology and crustacean study with the rediscovery, 60 years after it was first described, of a new crab-like creature – the hermit-tanaid.
Growing up swimming with sharks, and learning to love these beautiful, majestic marine creatures. What sharks have taught me about myself.
We are nature. Biodiversity can be seen as the immune system of the planet, making its loss our greatest crisis that exacerbates climate change.
Craig Foster’s wife speaks about the octopus teacher, learning to swim, and eventually free diving herself.
The making of Academy Award winning documentary, My Octopus Teacher by Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed & Craig Foster.
Rare encounters with a school of elusive smooth-hound sharks, and the over-fishing crisis shark populations are facing.
The world of fantasy and adventure experienced in the ocean often belies language.
