2019 Eco-Logic Awards finalists announced

Director of The Enviropaedia and the Eco-Logic Awards David Parry-Davies reminds us that: “If we look at how the year has started, there’s no doubt that our situation is dire. However, the 2019 Eco-Logic Awards can lift us out of a pessimistic and helpless attitude about our future by identifying the people, products and organisations that give us hope because they provide real solutions for climate change and other environmental challenges that we face. We will celebrate the achievements of today’s eco-champions who are giving us the resources and creating the opportunities to build a better world to live in for ourselves and our children.”

This year’s finalists are:

Climate change:

• Department of Agriculture: SmartAgri plan
• Global Wheeling
• Hotelstuff/Greenstuff
• TOMA-Now: What to do with aliens?

Eco-innovation:

• Dekro Paints: Amoriguard A-Gain
• Interwaste: Waste Derived Fuel Services
• Prime Plus Packaging: Biodegradable Cassava Starch Bags
• UCT Bio-Brick: Growing bio bricks from human urine

Recycling and waste management:

• Baoberry: i-Zewata
• Green Cape: The Western Cape Industrial Symbiosis Programme (WISP)
• Reclite: Recycling of problematic waste glass previously categorised as ‘non-recyclable’
• Sun City Waste Management Project

Eco-build:

• Dekro Paints: Amoriguard A-Gain
• Hotel Verde
• Streetlight Schools
• UCT Bio-Brick: Growing bio-bricks from human urine

Water:

• Enviro Options
• The GreenCape Sector Development Agency: Water Resilience Initiative
• Virgin Active South Africa: Journey to Net Zero Waste Water
• Wattapac

Green economy:

• Cape Town Environmental Education Trust: CTEET Training and Development Programme
• GreenCape Sector Development Agency
• Wessa: eSteam
• Wessa: Tourism Blue Flag project

Biodiversity:

• City of Cape Town: Biodiversity Management in the City of Cape Town
• Kloof Conservancy: The Aller River Pilot Project (ARPP)
• Korsman Conservancy: Environmental Rehabilitation Project
• Landmark Foundation: Shepherding back biodiversity

Municipality:

• City of Cape Town Disaster Risk Management: Women & Girls (Invisible) Force of Resilience
• eThekwini Municipality: The Aller River Pilot Project (ARPP)
• Knysna Municipality: Disaster Management
• Knysna Municipality: Invasive Plant Management Skills Development Programme

Eco-community:

• Korsman Conservancy
• Sustaining the Wild Coast: Xolobeni Community
• Total South Africa and SANParks 60 Year Partnership
• WESSA: Young Reporters for the Environment Programme

Eco-youth:

• Jade Bothma: Oceano Reddentes NPC
• Joshua Potgieter and Imraan Samuels: Guerilla House
• Kyle Cato
• Rocco Antonia Da Silva: The future kids

Eco-angel:

• Craig Foster: Sea Change Project
• Esther van der Westhuizen: The Animal Sanctuary at Butterfly World
• Mashudu Makhokha: Lapalala Wilderness School
• Rhian Berning: Eco Atlas

Eco-warrior:

• Daniel Nyarenda
• Mandla Gqamlana
• Margo Tamzone Adonis
• Sinegugu Zukulu

The awards will encourage greater awareness of action taken against the impacts of urgent issues, and in doing so, generate exposure for these eco-efforts. Parry-Davies points out that previous winners of the Eco-Logic Awards have reported on benefits such as increased public awareness and credibility. “We’ve had winners experiencing boosted sales of eco-friendly products and services,” he says. “But this is not all. It’s an opportunity for community and non-profit projects to attract more sponsorship from government and corporates. It’s an opportunity to foster more community support, employee engagement and target audience buy-in.”

The ‘Glamorously Green’ Eco-Logic Gala Awards evening will be held on 5 June 2019 at the Table Bay Hotel in Cape Town.