With things slowly but surely getting back to normal as the Covid-19 pandemic recedes, outdoor events are once again starting to pick up.
Wavescape Surf & Ocean Festival co-founder Steve Pike has confirmed the launch of a new and exciting event, including a surfboard swop, an exhibition by sustainable ocean eco-brands and conservation organisations, and activities for children at Jack Black’s Taproom.
“In order to encourage the theme of rejuvenation, the festival presents events that not only celebrate surfing and the ocean, but highlight innovative scientific projects and creative techniques and tools, as well as conservation strategies and tactics, to aid us as we seek to strengthen our role as custodians of the wild spaces and creatures of the ocean,” said festival director Shani Judes.
On March 1, Oceans Alive will host short films and a panel discussion on conservation strategy and tactics with four South African ocean organisations – Sentinel Oceans Alliance, the Litterboom Project, the Sea Change Project and Protect the West Coast – with input from a marine scientist, a former Sea Shepherd activist and a representative of the small-scale fishing community.
“As a new mother who is nurturing a young child, part of this process was to ensure that our role as nature’s protector is passed on to my child, and in a sense the poster speaks about that line of communication between mother and child, and humanity and nature,” Judes said.
The core events of the festival include five days of ocean and surfing films at four venues: The Labia Theatre in town, The Galileo outdoor cinema at Kirstenbosch, a screening in Kommetjie, and ending with a Vans night at The Shred skatepark in Paarden Eiland.
For an epic evening of salty tales, the Slide Night at the Centre returns on Thursday, March 3.
The Artboard Project presents guest with an exhibition at Jack Black's Taproom and a charity auction MC’d by Nik Rabinowitz on Wednesday, March 9.
“The theme for this year’s Wesgro Blue Ocean Master Class on Tuesday, March 8, for aspirant environmental film-makers is the art of filming underwater: the expertise and equipment required,” Pike said.
Along with the underwater theme, Wavescape has arranged an underwater clean-up along the coast adjacent to Jager’s Walk in Fish Hoek on Wednesday, March 2, as the seafloor is littered with fishing lines, nets and plastic debris.
In the wake of an avalanche of problematic mining activities and seismic surveys around South Africa, answers to common questions such as how the public can get involved in conservation campaigns will be discussed.
The festival, which is presented by Vans, is not only about nurturing nature, but also about creating a sense of community among ocean-loving people.