White Shark Projects launched an awareness campaign aptly named “The 21 Days for the Ocean”.
The 21 Days for the Ocean was born from the concept that it takes 21 days to break a habit. And White Shark Projects took it upon themselves to educate the Overstrand community on how to break their bad habits, the daily habits that negatively impact on our ocean. Through hosting various school talks in the community, it also became evident that the children are not that aware of the ocean they walk or drive by on a daily basis. In order to get people to conserve something, we need to personalise the object for them. And one way of doing this is through education. White Shark Projects is very proud of its responsible tourism badge and we are always ready to put our action where our mouth is! And so The 21 Days for the Ocean was launched.
On Friday the 26th of September, White Shark Projects hosted their first annual Sustainable Seafood Fundraiser. This served as both a launch-pad for The 21 Days for the Ocean and as a great opportunity to support one of our local NGO’s. The South African Shark Conservancy (SASC) was elected as the beneficiary of this fundraiser, as what they do and their research is very dear to White Shark Projects. And I am happy to report that the event was a huge success! Fun & Funds ruled the evening as we managed to raise over R30 000 for the South African Shark Conservancy (SASC).
SASC is based in the historic Old Harbour of Hermanus, from where they launch their research projects. SASC is currently running 15 research projects, 13 of which are focused right here in Walker Bay. These projects focus on a wide range of topics, including:
- Impacts of micro-plastics (which absorb toxic chemicals such as DDT) on marine animals and their habitats (Plastic oceans).
- Baseline marine biodiversity surveys using baited remote underwater video (Walker Bay Watch; Octopus battles rock lobster).
Shark research trying to demystify sharks in the media and public eye through extensive educational programs with children & adults around the world. Some of the money raised will be used for a custom built perspex touch tank for even better interaction.
As an NGO, SASC does not receive any funding from government or academic sources. We feel honoured to have been able to assist SASC to continue doing their research, to the best of their ability, by raising these funds for them.
However, none of this would have been possible without our sponsors.
It is with immense gratitude that we’d like to thank all our sponsors for donating such generous prizes.
MORE (Madikwe Safari Lodge, Lion Sands Game Reserve), Samba Tours, Tsogo Sun, Garden Route Game Lodge, Goche Ganas Nature Reserve, Turnberry Hotel, Hotel Verde, Waterfront Adventures, Table Mountain Cableway, Ashanti Lodge, The PottingShed, Thompsons Africa, Hylton Ross, Tri Active Lodge, Green Gorillas, The Kelway Hotel, Walker Bay Adventures, Southern Right Charters, Lindsey Gibaud, Lean on Me, Overberg Asset Management, Hermanus Nissan & Purple Puppy Studio, we could not have done this without your support.
We all know that it’s all about location, location. And considering this there was only ever one option when it came to selecting our venue, and that of course was La Pentola. I approached Chef Shane and from the very beginning he was very open to assisting us, even when I mentioned that we want a very specific menu. We could hardly host a fund raiser dinner for SASC and offer food which were on the SASSI Red list! Especially since the SASSI ambassador, Ray Chaplin, was one of our guests! We were determined to educate our guests to the palate pleasing potential of sustainable seafood. Chef Shane and his team did a marvellous job of transforming the sustainable seafood into tantalizing treats. We introduced our guests to sustainable seafood with Chef Shane’s delectable version of Mussels Provencal. After all the plates were practically licked clean, they were replaced by puffy parcels of Monkfish Thermador, which seemed to just magically melt in the mouth. Dessert was a creamy traditional Crème Brule which rounded the meal off with perfection. And what would a dinner like this be without complimentary wine? Creation Wines, we thank you for sponsoring the wondrous wine. Both The Shark Ally & The Whale Pod wines were served, perfect blends for a sustainable seafood event.
A great time was had by all as laughter & bids intertwined throughout the auction & raffle draws.
A big thank you to our MC & Auctioneer, Blake Albert, for keeping us all entertained.
On behalf of the sharks & SASC, White Shark Projects would like to thank everybody for their contribution, especially those who bought tickets & who supported us on the night, we are very grateful. Let’s do it all again next year!
Inge Altona-de Klerk
