GROWING TOGETHER Thinking and Practice of Urban Nature Conservators written by Bridget Pitt and Therese Boulle for the SANBI Cape Flats Nature partnership IS BN 978-0-620-47357-6 Published by SANBI Cape Flats Nature 2010 Urban Nature Programme, PO Box X7, Claremont, 7735 Printed by Eagle Screenprint, Maitland, Cape Town Designed by ROTHKO, Observatory, Cape Town Available on www.capeaction.org.za All rights reserved. Copyright subsists in this material. It may be reproduced without fee to build the thinking and practice of urban nature conservators, and adaptive co-managers more broadly, as long as no charge is made for copies, and as long as this book is fully acknowledged as the source. No part of this book may be reproduced for profit by any means without the prior permission of SANBI Urban Nature. How to cite this publication Pitt, B.& Boulle, T. 2010 Growing together: thinking and practice of urban nature conservators, SANBI Cape Flats Nature, Cape Town. GROWING TOGETHER Thinking and Practice of Urban Nature Conservators written by Bridget Pitt and Therese Boulle for the Cape Flats Nature partnership of the South African National Biodiversity Institute’s Urban Nature Programme. 1 This book is a contribution to the Cities and Protected Areas Specialist Group of the World Commission on Protected Areas of IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature. IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental network — a democratic membership union with more than 1 000 government and NGO member organisations and almost 11 000 volunteer scientists in more than 160 countries. www.iucn.org IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas is the world’s premier network of protected area expertise. WCPA has over 1 400 members, spanning 140 countries. Its mission is to promote the establishment and effective management of a worldwide representative network of terrestrial and marine-protected areas as an integral contribution to IUCN’s mission. www.iucn.org/wcpa WCPA’s Cities and Protected Areas Specialist Group works to improve the lives of city dwellers while strengthening protection of nature – broadly defined – within cities and in larger ecosystems. It has some 100 members from over 35 countries. www.citiesandconservation.org 2 The Cape Flats Nature Partnership Cape Flats Nature Cape Flats Nature is a South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) partnership with founding partners the City of Cape Town, the Table Mountain Fund of WWF and the Botanical Society of South Africa, supported by the Table Mountain National Park of SANParks and Cape Nature. Cape Flats Nature was founded in 2002 to build good practice in sustainable management of nature sites in the City of Cape Town’s Biodiversity Network in a people-centered way that develops local leadership for conservation action and benefits the surrounding communities, particularly townships where incomes are low and living conditions are poor. This book “Growing Together: Thinking and Practice of Urban Nature Conservators” articulates and develops the practice that has developed in the partnership. SANBI The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) is mandated by the National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act of 2004 to champion the exploration, conservation, sustainable use, appreciation and enjoyment of South Africa’s exceptionally rich biodiversity for all people. The Cape Flats Nature partnership project is implemented as part of SANBI’s Urban Nature Programme, which improves human wellbeing in cities by catalysing care for biodiversity in cities and beyond. City of Cape Town The City of Cape Town leads conservation efforts to meet local biodiversity targets in the City through its Biodiversity Network. The City’s Biodiversity Strategy is one of several implementation strategies for the 2001 Integrated Metropolitan Environmental Policy. The City’s Biodiversity Management Branch implements the Biodiversity Strategy through the Biodiversity Network. The City of Cape Town has a complex relationship with Cape Flats Nature as it is a founding member, funder, and target of project interventions, as many of the initiatives catalysed by the project are mainstreamed into the City. Table Mountain Fund The Table Mountain Fund (TMF) of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a capital trust fund designed to provide a sustainable source of funding to support biodiversity conservation within the Cape Floral Kingdom. TMF is a funder and founder member of the Cape Flats Nature partnership and has played a key role in transferring lessons to the wider conservation community. The Botanical Society of South Africa The Botanical Society is an NGO with over 15 000 members. Its mission is to win the hearts and minds and material support of individuals and organizations for the conservation, cultivation, study and wise use of indigenous flora and vegetation of southern Africa. The Botanical Society initiated the scientific research that laid the basis for the City’s Biodiversity Network, was a strong motivating force behind the formation of the Cape Flats Nature partnership, and has remained an active partner by collaborating on specific projects. CapeNature CapeNature is the provincial conservation authority, a public institution with the statutory responsibility for biodiversity conservation in the Western Cape. It is mandated to promote and ensure nature conservation, render services and provide facilities for research and training, and generate income. Cape Nature has experience in urban conservation at Driftsands Nature Reserve and is informally involved with the Cape Flats Nature partnership. Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) TMNP is a 25 000-hectare urban park in Cape Town run by the national conservation authority, South African National Parks (SANParks). The vision of Table Mountain National Park is A Park For All, Forever. TMNP works within its ‘People and Parks’ portfolio, in a way that is very much aligned to Cape Flats Nature’s approach, and is informally involved with the partnership. 3 Acknowledgements There are many people who have contributed to the practice that is articulated in this book and to the development of the book itself. Our greatest thanks go to the nature conservators who work on the ground at urban sites developing a practice that takes care of people and nature and who catch most of those curved balls that come flying at them in the process. Their work is extremely challenging and often unacknowledged. None of the nature conservators’ achievements would be possible without the hard work and support of their community partners, many of whom are volunteers. Thank you for your efforts, often in difficult circumstances, and your commitment to learning with us about what it takes to integrate nature into the life of people and communities. Many conservators and members of the Cape Flats Nature project team contributed case studies and their wonderful creative thinking in many workshops and conversations over the past eight years. These case studies are a rich record of our practice and have been used extensively in this book. Thank you Cassandra Sheasby, Charlene Liedeman, Charline Mc Kie, Dinilesizwe Gudlindlu, Hlangalandile Mananga, Jerome September, Kego Mabihi, Lewine Walters, Luzann Isaacs, Marilyn Martin, Neliswa Sihawu, Ntsiki Mlotywa, Sabelo Lindani, Shahieda Davids, Stacy-Anne Michaels, Sven Ragaller, Thumeka Mdlazi, Zoë Davids and Zwai Peter. The authors interviewed many people whose insights are woven into the text. Thank you to Adele Pretorius, Alice Ashwell, Andile Sanayi, Asieff Kahn, Bongani Mnisi, Brett Myrdal, Charline Mc Kie, Dalton Gibbs, Dorothy Taylor, Howard Langley, Ismail Ebrahim, Jan Geldenhuys, Julia Wood, Kelvin Cochrane, Kleinbooi Mabo, Koos Retief, Lindela Mjenxane, Luzann Isaacs, Mark Ogilvie, Natasja Davids, Neil Major, Noloyiso Dlamini, Richard Williams, Sabelo Lindani, Senza Kula, Sue Soal, Thomas Molefe, Tshepo Mamabola, Xola Mkefe and Zwai Peter. Sue Soal and Howard Langley made critical and insightful contributions to shaping Cape Flats Nature’s approach and the practice described in this book through project evaluations and ongoing support. Thank you. A reference group has guided the writing and production of this book. Thank you to Caroline Petersen, Dalton Gibbs, George Davis, Koos Retief and Lewine Walters for your time, effort and input. Many reviewers took the time to read drafts and give feedback: Abigail Kamineth and Xolani Nikelo (Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality: Environmental Management), Alice Ashwell (Environmental educator and researcher), André Mader and Shela Patrickson (ICLEI Africa/Local Action for Biodiversity), Bianca Currie (Nelson Mandela University: Social Ecology), Brett Myrdal (SANParks: Environmental Planning), Caroline Petersen (SANBI: Fynbos Programme Learning Network), George Davis (SANBI: Biodiversity Planning and Mainstreaming Communications), Henrik Ernstson (Stockholm Resilience Centre: Systems Ecology), Howard Langley (retired conservationist), Pat Holmes, Dalton Gibbs and Bongani Mnisi (City of Cape Town Biodiversity Management Branch), Sue Soal (CDRA), Tania Katzschner (University of Cape Town: Architecture, Planning and Geomatics), Ted Trzyna and Pedro Menezes (IUCN/WCPA Cities and Protected Areas Specialist Group) and Timm Hoffman (University of Cape Town: Plant Conservation Unit). We have done our best to do justice to the feedback and deeply appreciate your effort. Thank you to Bridget Pitt for her