Press release
INDIVIDUAL WINNER
Dr John Kani received the Living Planet Award in the individual category for his work as the longest-serving trustee of the WWF Nedbank Green Trust, and for his donation of time and famous voice (whom many will remember as the voice of Rafiki in the remake of the Lion King) in support of WWF’s work.
This is the first time that Dr Kani’s contribution to the environmental cause has been acknowledged. Over the course of a long and prestigious career, Dr Kani has received many awards, more recently an Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2023 for his services to drama and theatre.
Alongside his service with the WWF Nedbank Green Trust, he generously contributed audio and visual material to several WWF campaigns. These include Earth Hour, a global movement that connects people with nature, a WWF “Nature Matters” campaign, as well as the narration for a documentary titled Wild Zambezi, spotlighting the environmental risks facing the Lower Zambezi River.
The pioneering partnership between Nedbank and WWF South Africa began in 1990 when very few companies were talking “green” or sustainability. At that time, Nedbank recognised the centrality of the natural environment; that it underpins all human needs from food to energy, water and livelihoods.
Over its 35 years of existence, the WWF Nedbank Green Trust has disbursed more than R300 million to some 200 community-based conservation projects. Dr Kani served as a trustee for 32 of those 35 years, stepping down from this role in 2022.
WWF CEO Dr Morné du Plessis commented: “Through the Living Planet Award, we recognise exceptional individuals and organisations in South Africa who make significant contributions to environmental conservation and inspire people to live in harmony with nature. During Dr Kani’s decades of service, the WWF Nedbank Green Trust funded catalytic projects that have brought real change to the lives of South Africans and to the natural environment on which we all depend. With this award we say ‘thank you, Tata John Kani, for your service’.”
ORGANISATIONAL WINNER
The winner of the Living Planet Award in the organisational category is the Overberg Renosterveld Trust (ORT), which has worked tirelessly to secure the last remnants of one of the world’s most threatened veld types in the neglected lowland habitats of the Overberg in the Western Cape.
It is here that intensive farming has seen 95% of the original veld converted to croplands. In spite of this wholesale loss of what was once a unique jewel in South Africa’s biodiversity crown, the remaining 5% of renosterveld (most of which is in private hands) supports a large range of endemic and threatened animals and plants, in particular bulb species, making it one of the most threatened habitats on Earth.
With support from among others the WWF Nedbank Green Trust and WWF South Africa, the ORT has been working in partnership with landowners and farmers to promote the conservation and restoration of Overberg renosterveld.
This approach includes helping landowners to manage grazing and fire regimes, the eradication of invasive alien plants, the restoration of degraded watercourses and establishing corridors to connect remnants of vegetation to facilitate the movement of wildlife and ecological integrity. The ORT also pioneered the use of ‘easements’ – a mechanism that enables landowners to protect renosterveld in perpetuity by registering a conservation servitude in favour of the ORT on their title deeds.
The driving force behind the ORT is Dr Odette Curtis-Scott, a tireless champion of the renosterveld cause including the many birds, plants, pollinators and mammals it supports. In the course of her work, she has discovered several plant species new to science, two of which are named after her (Otholobium curtisiae and Polhillia curtisiae).
Other milestones include partnering with organisations such as WWF South Africa, World Land Trust, WildLandscapes International, IUCN NL and Mapula Trust to secure critical land for conservation.
The first major acquisition was the Haarwegskloof Renosterveld Reserve in 2012. More recently, the Plaatjieskraal and Goereesoe renosterveld landscapes were added. Together, these acquisitions mean that the ORT now owns / co-owns and manages the largest remaining stretch of renosterveld on Earth. Earlier this year, Haarwegskloof was also officially declared a provincial nature reserve.
Dr Du Plessis commented: “Under the leadership of Odette Curtis-Scott, the Overberg Renosterveld Trust is a shining example of what can be achieved when conservationists work in partnership with landowners with a common objective in mind. Through the ORT’s tireless efforts, creativity and collaboration, ORT has raised awareness and saved remnants of a community of plants and animals that would otherwise be lost to the world.”
