|
What are the DLIST Partners up to? |
 Earthnotes leaves a film library at the ERC
If you missed Earthnotes 2007 and are looking for thought-provoking environmental documentaries to use in your classes, then we have good news for you! The Environmental Resource Centre (ERC) at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) now houses some of the films we screened during the travelling film festival. While many had the opportunity to attend the Earthnotes showings and participate in discussions, we received numerous requests from organisations wanting to borrow films for educational activities. After contacting the various film distributors, we have received permission to donate the DVD copies of 12 different films to the ERC. The copies can be viewed at the ERC (at the Bellville Campus, in Cape Town) or lent to non-profit organisations for educational purposes, though not to private / for-profit organisations or for commercial purposes. For more details, please contact Marion Davids on Tel.: 021 959 6926 or DavidsML@cput.ac.za. Visit the ERC at http://erc.cput.ac.za.
Environmental issues “on air” in the Kunene region
In remote or rural Namibian regions, radio is what people use to keep in touch with what is happening in the country and elsewhere. For some of the issues that are discussed on DLIST Benguela to reach this area, radio hence seemed the best means. In collaboration with the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), a weekly radio programme was developed that aimed at capturing and discussing indigenous knowledge on pertinent environmental and development issues in the Kunene Region. A local member of the DLIST community co-facilitates discussion on air. The programme has been very successful, with listeners actively participating by phoning in to the station with comments and suggestions for further discussion. Some of the topics discussed until now were tourism development in the region, information to empower people, sustainable livelihoods in the region, and access to resources. To find out more about the radio programme please contact Urioukwao Matundu or the DLIST Team.
Ever wondered what “stakeholder participation” really means?
Terms like “stakeholder engagement” and “public participation” have never been so conspicuous as today. But have you ever wondered who the stakeholders are and what participating really means? Taking opportunity of a meeting of IKM (the NGO implementing DLIST) in December last year, DLIST tested a short course on Stakeholder Participation. Initial ideas for the course came from a recent IW:Learn course on “Public Participation in International Waters Management”. By test-running our version with government, NGO and academic participants from countries such as South Africa, Angola, Namibia, Madagascar and Zanzibar, we were able to add their perspectives and improve it. The DLIST Team is now working on the first draft version of a modular course that can then be tested again, using some of the meeting participants as trainers. To find out more or give us your suggestions, please contact the DLIST Team.
New batch of distance learners at CPUT
New distance learning courses are on their way: the University of Namibia is planning to have a version of its “Integrated Coastal Zone Management” course available online for DLIST users. Meanwhile, the existing “Sustainable Development in Coastal Areas” at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (South Africa) has kicked-off again. This year sees 15 students taking part on a distance learning basis (1 from Kenya, 3 from South Africa and 11 from Namibia). They constitute a mix from the government, private and NGO/CBO sectors. In campus, the 28 contact students have already had the opportunity to visit Langa to discuss issues around housing, water, sanitation and inequalities in development, as well as the Port of Cape Town for an overview of the port and its activities. And a lot more is planned—the Palmiet Pumped Storage Plant, the Klipheuwel Wind Farm, and the Bellville South Waste Water Treatment Plant and Landfill. Find more about the DLIST courses here or contact Ilyas Omar about the course at CPUT.
 Namibian youth gets to know their coast better
Namibia is going through the exciting process of defining a common vision for the coastal zone. The participation of all stakeholders in the process is at least as important as the end result. In an effort to involve the youth and prepare them to fully take part in the planning and development of their coast, DLIST-Benguela, in collaboration with the NACOMA project and the Walvis Bay Multipurpose Centre, facilitated a Coastal Environment Week in December 2007. Youth members from Walvis Bay, for instance, had the opportunity to watch environmental documentaries (which had been screened in the Earthnotes travelling film festival), to engage in discussions and to go out and explore the coastal environment. There is also talk about the youth playing a stronger role in a number of coastal processes beyond NACOMA, and DLIST is currently investigating how it can assist in such an endeavour. Prof Odendaal, the advisor to DLIST, says: "The youth along this coast is as enthusiastic as I have encountered anywhere in the world. The best contribution DLIST can make here is to assist them to unleash and channel the tremendous energy and enthusiasm they have, rather than impose things on them. It is simply inspiring and fun to work with them". To find out more about these initiatives please write to the DLIST Team.
|
