Freshwater ecosystem and water-management education

UWC's water-science engagement includes work with De Aar farmers and water managers, an advertised May 2025 research Open Day and the Diamonds on the Soles of our Feet water-literacy initiative. The latter connects schools and citizen scientists with water-cycle learning and practical water-quality sampling. The full accounts retain historical foundations, 2025 activity and programme-specific audiences. [AQ23] [AQ22] [ED05]

Evidence and context

Working with water managers and communities

An open forum for water-research exchange

UWC’s Institute for Water Studies announced an Open Day with the WISA Western Cape Branch, scheduled for 21 May 2025. Its advance programme invited researchers and water-management partners to exchange knowledge on remote sensing, mining-related water pressures, groundwater modelling and water-resource management. Announced contributors included CSIR researchers and Water Research Commission chief executive Jennifer Molwantwa. The programme placed surface water, groundwater, ecosystem linkages and the needs of water users within a shared research discussion. [AQ22]

Water hyacinth at Hartbeespoort Dam, accompanying the May 2025 IWS Open Day announcement. The photograph’s date is unverified; this is not the UWC campus. Credit: Photographer not credited on source page; supplied by University of the Western Cape. Image source.

Working with farmers on sustainable groundwater use

UWC’s De Aar groundwater partnership brings together the university, the Department of Water and Sanitation, CSIR, Emthanjeni Local Municipality and local farmers. A university account dated August 2024 traces the institutional collaboration to 2013 and describes aquifer research to estimate recharge and guide safe abstraction in the town’s water-allocation planning. The work includes 24-hour pumping tests and collaboration with farmers to understand recharge, yield and sustainable use. Three PhD students, six master’s students and a postdoctoral scholar participated in visits in November 2023 and April 2024. UWC’s Professor Thokozani Kanyerere leads the project alongside CSIR’s Harrison Pienaar and DWS’s Lucky Baloyi. Farmers’ participation helps connect research recommendations with practical groundwater-management needs. [AQ23]

Connecting water science with community learning

Diamonds on the Soles of our Feet brings water science into everyday community learning. UWC-affiliated researcher Jaqui Goldin and Carolina Suransky’s 2025 study describes an initiative that began in rural Limpopo in 2019 and developed through partnerships with citizen scientists, teachers and schools. Learners connect the water cycle with upstream and downstream relationships, including how pollution can affect other water users. Classroom activities are paired with practical sampling for nitrates, phosphates and turbidity. The paper dates the Boetse Secondary School fieldwork to 2023 and reports continued engagement in Limpopo in January 2025. [ED05, Physical pp. 1–3,6–7]

The initiative expanded to twenty schools in Narok County, Kenya, in March 2025. Its approach combines water-quality sampling with observation, stories and visual documentation, adapting learning to local experience. The study includes World Water Day activities on 22 March and emphasises collaboration and care in how knowledge is created. In an October 2025 interview hosted by UNESCO, Goldin described Ecolink as the project’s practical implementation partner. These accounts document water-literacy learning and international exchange, without measuring changes in ecosystem condition. [ED05, physical pp. 3 and 8–10] [ED16, project activity and implementation]

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Community learning on sustainable fisheries, aquaculture and tourism

The Eco-ACE partnership combined ecological modelling, fisher knowledge and community engagement during 2022–2024. Its science-engagement methods included an Afrikaans adaptation of the Fish n' Ships game. The retained account also documents coastal livelihood communication and separately dated international field-school learning, preserving the roles and audiences involved. [M01] [M02] [M21]

Evidence and context

Working with coastal communities on fisheries adaptation

Co-designing climate adaptation with small-scale fishing communities

UWC participated alongside the University of Cape Town and Nelson Mandela University in Eco-ACE, an NRF-supported collaboration running from 2022 to 2024. The project brought ecological modelling together with social research and community knowledge to explore climate adaptation in small-scale fisheries. Its coastal case studies included St Helena Bay, Melkhoutfontein and the Eastern Cape. This partnership connects scientific analysis with the people whose livelihoods depend on coastal ecosystems. [M01]

A 2024 conference presentation describes interviews with fishing crews, factory workers and rights holders, community engagement, and work integrating small-scale fisheries into ecosystem models. The team also adapted the Fish n’ Ships card game to the southern Benguela and translated it into Afrikaans as a science-engagement tool for understanding sustainable fishing. The presentation identifies continuing experimentation, knowledge-sharing challenges and stakeholder fatigue alongside these participatory methods. [M02, slides 9–13]

Connecting fisheries research with adaptation policy

A 2024 One Ocean Hub/Eco-ACE policy brief drew on an October 2023 workshop with South Africa’s Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment to propose ten climate-adaptation recommendations. These called for responses co-designed with fishers, recognition of local knowledge, stronger institutional coordination and resources for implementation. UWC’s connection to this policy-facing output was through the Eco-ACE partnership. The brief presents recommendations rather than adopted government requirements. [M03, physical pp. 2–4] [M01]

A history of ocean literacy and coastal exchange

Ocean literacy, a beach cleanup and international exchange

UWC’s January 2023 One Ocean activities connected local environmental learning with international exchange. On 14 January, university partners joined a cleanup near the Black River and Milnerton beach with Captain Fanplastic, whose teaching uses visual storytelling and games to explain waste reduction and recycling. Partners included UWC’s Confucius Institute, SANORD and Western Norway University of Applied Sciences. At One Ocean Expedition events on 17–18 January, PLAAS Professor Moenieba Isaacs contributed perspectives on small-scale fisheries, food security and food systems. Together, these activities linked care for a local coastal environment with discussion of aquatic food systems. [M20]

Coastal livelihood knowledge shared by women

Beyond the Blue brought the experiences of 17 women in coastal communities into a public-facing book produced through PLAAS and Mikateko Media. Co-authored by Moenieba Isaacs, Tracey Dennis and Ingrid Jones, the 2022 publication connects fisheries, livelihoods and women’s participation through individual accounts. It is evidence of communicating community knowledge beyond academic publications. [M21]

PLAAS continued to circulate Beyond the Blue in June 2025 through a public page describing the book and sharing women’s accounts of fishing livelihoods. This renewed access to a resource first published in 2022 and helped bring coastal community knowledge to a wider readership. [M21] [M22]

Learning with fishing communities at Chilika Lagoon

PLAAS researcher Siphesihle Mbhele participated in the 2024 Chilika–V2V field school in India, learning with fishing communities through visits, observation and discussion. His June 2025 reflection described a seven-day visit to three communities. A co-authored V2V working paper published in July 2025 confirms the field-school year as 2024 and explains how participants used field notes, discussions with local people and collective reflection to examine conservation, resource access, livelihoods and tourism. The experience connected international early-career researchers with community knowledge about the lagoon. [M23] [M32, physical pp. 1, 6–7 and 10]

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Awareness of overfishing and damaging fishing practices

At the October 2023 Marine Week rocky-shore activity, UWC scientists and partners taught surrounding communities about sustainable use, overharvesting and undersized organisms. A February 2025 public article explained pressures from overfishing, warming and pollution. The full evidence also retains fisher-rights forums and regional governance workshops, with their own scope and dates. [M19] [M34] [M08]

Evidence and context

Sharing fisher knowledge and strengthening regional governance

Listening to fishers through the Fisher People Tribunal

UWC’s PLAAS participated in South Africa’s first Fisher People Tribunal in Kalk Bay on 12–14 August 2024. Ben Cousins, emeritus professor at PLAAS, served on the jury. Convened by Masifundise and Coastal Links, the hearings provided a public forum for coastal and inland fishers’ testimony on governance, conservation restrictions, extractive development and climate pressures. The tribunal was a civil-society process rather than a judicial court. [M08] [M10, cover and introduction]

At the subsequent national fisher conference on 23–25 October 2024, more than 85 fisher representatives from five provinces discussed common priorities. Cousins presented the preliminary jury statement. The organiser’s account records dialogue among researchers and fishing communities about participation, rights and governance, with recommendations intended to strengthen the fisher movement. [M09] [M10, cover and recommendations]

Regional collaboration on adaptive fisheries governance

Professor Mafa Hara of UWC’s PLAAS is a partner in Building Adaptive Fisheries Governance Capacity, alongside the University of Birmingham, Uganda’s National Fisheries Resources Research Institute and partners in Malawi. The project’s stated period is December 2023 to November 2026. Its focus is inland fisheries in Uganda and Malawi, linking community livelihoods with biodiversity protection, climate resilience and more inclusive governance. [M11, project details and partners]

At a workshop in Mukono, Uganda, on 17–18 February 2025, district fisheries officers and other fisheries-management staff discussed preliminary findings and approaches to adaptive governance. The participant record includes UWC’s Hara. The wider project’s community-level study covered eight fishing communities around Lakes Victoria and Kyoga, while this workshop included officers representing 46 districts. These are project-wide participation and research figures. [M12, physical pp. 1, 6–7, 14 and 32]

Hara also participated in the second national stakeholders’ workshop in Mukono on 19–20 February 2025. Fishers, local-government representatives, civil society, industry and researchers discussed enforcement, co-management, information exchange and biodiversity protection. The workshop combined dissemination of research findings with participant feedback on possible governance improvements; its report records the discussions and proposed next steps. [M13, physical pp. 5–10 and 26]

Marine Week learning on the rocky shore

During Marine Week on 14 October 2023, UWC’s Professor Gavin Maneveldt, Dr Martin Hendricks and research students joined SANParks and the Overberg Eco Rangers at the Agulhas rocky shore. Participants came from surrounding towns, including Struisbaai, Bredasdorp, Arniston, Napier and Gansbaai. Outdoor teaching covered intertidal ecology, sustainable use and the importance of avoiding overharvesting and the collection of undersized organisms. UWC’s report places the encounter within a partnership dating to around 2010 and a series of Marine Week shore activities beginning in 2014. Maneveldt also advocated stronger marine protection for the area. [M19, 17 October 2023 report]

Public discussion of seaweed and ocean pressures in 2025

In February 2025, UWC shared Professor Gavin Maneveldt’s explanation of the pressures that overfishing, warming and pollution place on the ocean. The public article explored seaweed as a possible food and energy resource, discussing familiar edible species and the potential of cultivation. It extended marine-science communication to a general audience while presenting future possibilities, rather than claiming that UWC had established a commercial seaweed operation. [M34]

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Events for aquatic conservation and sustainable resource use

UWC's retained programme includes public conservation awareness, participatory learning about wild aquatic foods and exchanges on water security, ecosystem resilience and coastal justice. The dated accounts distinguish earlier community activities and 2024 research events from 2025 public communication. The Marine Week shore-learning example remains in the preceding outreach section. [AQ03] [M18] [ED06] [ED08]

Evidence and context

Conservation awareness through art and access

The Nature Reserve Unit’s collaboration with the Zeitz MOCAA BMW Centre for Art Education began with a photography competition in 2024. MOCAA Art Club learners visited the reserve later that year, and the resulting photographs joined UWC students’ work at an exhibition opening on 10 May 2025. More than 90 competition entries yielded 24 selected photographs. The project introduced participants and visitors to the reserve’s biodiversity, including its protected wetland ecosystems, and linked conservation awareness with creative learning. [AQ03]

Learning about aquatic foods and marine ecosystems

Aquatic foods and participatory food-system learning

UWC researchers Moenieba Isaacs and Jenny Willis co-authored an open-access study of a Western Cape transformation lab on wild foods. Held at Food Jams in Salt River on 2–3 May 2019, the lab brought together 40 participants, including fishers, farmers, Indigenous knowledge holders, chefs, civil-society representatives, government and researchers. Participants explored how neglected and underused foods, including coastal and marine species, could contribute to healthier, fairer and more sustainable local food systems. Shared food preparation and dialogue helped them exchange different forms of knowledge and build relationships. The study, published in Sustainability Science in 2022, documents this earlier participatory research and aquatic-food learning. [M18, physical pp. 1, 3–5 and 17]

Snoek preparation at the 2019 Food Jam, reproduced in the 2022 publication as historical food-system learning. Credit: Laura Pereira. Snoek preparation at the 2019 Food Jam, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-022-01182-3. CC BY 4.0. Unchanged. Image source. CC BY 4.0.

Bringing science law and coastal justice into dialogue

UWC’s 2024 research-engagement programme included the webinar Interdisciplinary Pathways to Water Security and Justice Sustainable Cities and Ecosystem Resilience. Hosted by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation, the discussion connected research on marine and coastal justice, urban water governance and climate adaptation. The account published in the 2024 to 2025 RISE Annual Research Report shows how legal, environmental and social perspectives were brought together to examine water security. [ED06, Physical pp. 65–67; printed pp. 63–65]

UWC’s Research Week, held from 16 to 19 September 2024, also created space for aquatic issues in a wider sustainability programme. Its research themes included water contamination, ocean acidification and the blue or oceans economy. Academics, students and other stakeholders discussed these subjects alongside social, economic and technological questions. [ED08]

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Sustainable harvesting of aquatic food served on campus

UWC's Procurement Policy includes environmental preservation, pollution minimisation and better use of natural resources within its purchasing framework. The complete selected provisions below retain the March 2025 amendment, original implementation date and separate commencement qualification. Aquatic-food learning elsewhere on the page keeps its research and education scope. [PX01]

Evidence and context

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Research and engagement for threatened aquatic biodiversity

UWC's Cape Flats Nature Reserve protects seasonal wetlands alongside a wider biodiversity programme. Coastal research examines saltmarsh plant communities, crab assemblages and South African blue-carbon ecosystems, informing conservation and restoration priorities. The Agulhas mangrove assessment retains its July 2024 preprint status and its identification of threats. [AQ01] [AQ13] [AQ14] [AQ15] [AQ16]

Evidence and context

Protecting wetlands and biodiversity on campus

Protecting seasonal wetlands on the UWC campus

UWC’s Cape Flats Nature Reserve protects seasonal wetlands that provide refuge for aquatic and semi-aquatic species. A February 2025 university account records the wetlands filling after the heavy winter rains of 2024, with frogs, dragonflies, weaver birds and visiting waterbirds observed. The reserve also recorded a marsh mongoose on its camera trap in November 2024. Created as a man-made feature in 1977, these wetlands support environmental education and public recreation alongside conservation. Reserve staff explain their value for groundwater recharge, filtering polluted water and moderating flooding, and identify education and continued protection as priorities. The account describes wildlife observations and the ecological functions of wetlands. [AQ01]

Seasonal wetland in the UWC campus reserve, accompanying the February 2025 article about earlier observations. The image’s capture date is unverified. Credit: Photographer not credited on source page; supplied by University of the Western Cape. Image source.

Recording biodiversity in the reserve

In February 2025, UWC reported that its 2024 Biodiversity Survey recorded 769 species in the Cape Flats Nature Reserve, compared with 558 recorded in 2023. The university associated its conservation work with habitat restoration, species monitoring and public awareness. These figures describe the reserve-wide species inventory across terrestrial and wetland habitats. Its continuing protection of seasonal wetlands connects this wider biodiversity programme with Life Below Water. [AQ02] [AQ01]

The reserve continued this monitoring in 2025. Its annual biodiversity survey ran from 13 to 18 October and brought together 108 participants from schools, clubs and local communities. The Nature Reserve Unit’s report records more than 115 species documented through iNaturalist submissions. These observations update the reserve’s species records and support protection of its threatened habitats. The results cover the reserve’s biodiversity as a whole, including the setting in which its seasonal wetlands are conserved. [AQ30]

A continuing environmental-education resource

UWC describes its Nature Reserve Unit as an educational resource for surrounding communities as well as students and staff. The unit combines a 34-hectare reserve, indigenous nursery and environmental-education centre. Its programmes serve learners, educators, schools and organisations; bird walks, photo walks and faunal surveys also contribute observations and species records. The unit’s standing service description places ecological teaching, environmental education and research alongside public recreation. [AQ04]

Understanding estuarine biodiversity and blue carbon

Understanding biodiversity around Berg Estuary tidal creeks

Research by Nomcebo Mngomezulu, Anusha Rajkaran and Dimitri Veldkornet examined how tidal creeks shape saltmarsh biodiversity in the Berg River Estuary. Six transects sampled during 8–12 June 2022 and 10–15 March 2023 linked vegetation records with groundwater and sediment conditions. The study found greater plant-species richness along transects with creeks and identified plant communities distinct from adjacent saltmarsh areas. Its authors recommend including creek habitats in vegetation surveys and incorporating environmental variables into coastal-ecosystem monitoring. Published online in October 2024 and in a 2025 journal issue, the research helps conservation practitioners recognise fine-scale habitat differences and select plants suited to local conditions when planning restoration. [AQ13, pp. 4–5,9]

Monitoring ecological change at the mangrove saltmarsh boundary

A June 2024 paper co-authored by UWC’s Anusha Rajkaran examined crab communities where mangroves meet saltmarshes at the Nahoon and Tyolomnqa estuaries. Comparing 2023 surveys with 2016 records, the researchers documented changes in community composition and a new southern distributional limit for two mangrove-associated fiddler crabs. The work shows why conservation needs to consider animal communities as coastal vegetation changes. The study examined established stands of historically planted mangroves and their changing ecological relationships with neighbouring saltmarshes. [AQ14]

Nahoon and Tyolomnqa mangrove, ecotone and saltmarsh habitats in Figure 2, published in 2024. The study compares 2016 and 2023 field data; photograph capture dates are unspecified. Credit: Photographs: Anusha Rajkaran. Figure 2 in Katharoyan, Rajkaran and Peer (2024), Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2024.1389428. CC BY 4.0. Unchanged. Image source. CC BY 4.0.

Connecting biodiversity, blue carbon and restoration planning

A 2025 multi-institutional study involving UWC’s Anusha Rajkaran assessed knowledge and future priorities for South Africa’s estuarine blue-carbon ecosystems. It considers saltmarshes, seagrasses and mangroves within dynamic estuaries, including connections with reeds, sedges and forested wetlands. The authors recommend sustained monitoring, attention to under-studied carbon stores, inclusive restoration and protection arrangements, and alignment with international reporting approaches. They also caution that the small area of these ecosystems limits some carbon-credit opportunities. The paper sets out a research and conservation-planning agenda, including priorities for future restoration and long-term monitoring. [AQ15]

Estuarine and ecotonal habitats in Figure 2 of the 2025 blue-carbon publication. The photographs’ capture dates are unspecified. Credit: Janine B. Adams and co-authors. Estuarine and ecotonal habitats, Figure 2, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2025.109360. CC BY 4.0. Image source. CC BY 4.0.

Assessing threats to Agulhas mangrove ecosystems

A July 2024 ecosystem-assessment preprint co-authored by UWC’s Anusha Rajkaran applied the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems framework to the Agulhas mangroves. The authors’ published abstract describes mangroves in 31 estuaries along South Africa’s eastern coastline and assesses the ecosystem as Endangered. It identifies pressures including development, altered freshwater and tidal flows, harvesting and pollution. The assessment identifies conservation priorities for a threatened ecosystem and was released as a preprint that had not been peer reviewed. [AQ16]

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Research for marine practices and technologies that reduce harm

UWC's IMBM contributes marine microbial cultures, genome data and bioactivity research to BlueRemediomics. The wider consortium aims include reducing industrial waste, reusing by-products and improving aquaculture processes; the full account keeps these potential applications at their stated development stage. Coastal microplastics research adds evidence and prevention recommendations relevant to marine pollution. [M14] [M15] [AQ31] [AQ07]

Evidence and context

Investigating microplastics in coastal ecosystems

A dedicated laboratory for coastal microplastics

The Laboratory for Microplastics and Coastal Research in UWC’s Department of Biodiversity and Conservation Biology was launched in April 2023. A stated R4.6-million investment over 2021–2025 supported specialised equipment, including a LUMOS II FT-IR imaging microscope used to identify polymers in plastics collected from estuaries and other coastal settings. Led by Anusha Rajkaran, the laboratory connects microplastics research with the health of mangroves and other coastal ecosystems. [AQ05]

Marine research infrastructure documented in 2024

A June 2024 NRF-SAIAB account identifies UWC as one of four university partners in the Joint Marine Laboratories programme, alongside Fort Hare, Zululand and Walter Sisulu universities. UWC’s laboratory specialises in understanding microplastics and their ecosystem effects. The partner institutions collaborate on marine research and student training, bringing university facilities into a national network that develops scientific and technical skills for ocean stewardship. Anusha Rajkaran is identified as UWC’s principal investigator for the Laboratory for Microplastics and Coastal Research. [AQ06b]

Translating microplastics science into policy advice

A September 2025 NRF-SAIAB briefing by Anusha Rajkaran, Rosemary Eager and Stephanie Nicolaides synthesises evidence on microplastics in aquatic ecosystems and the services they support. It calls for comparable monitoring of water, sediments and organisms, stronger attention to pollution at source, research across scientific disciplines, and public education. The briefing highlights gaps across South African estuaries and recommends a coordinated role for the South African Macro-, Meso- and Microplastics Network. The briefing offers research-informed recommendations for authorities and conservation organisations. [AQ07]

Public guidance on reducing plastic leakage

In August 2025, UWC published Anusha Rajkaran and Conrad Sparks’ explanation of how microbeads enter rivers, estuaries and seas, and why reducing pollution requires more than addressing one type of plastic. Their commentary on South Africa’s proposed microbead restrictions recommends standardised monitoring, clear implementation arrangements, prevention of illegal dumping and research into alternatives. It is a practical example of making marine-pollution research accessible to a wider public. Its recommendations address public policy, implementation and consumer practices. [AQ08]

Marine microbiomes and practical science education

Marine microbial research through BlueRemediomics

UWC’s Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics is a BlueRemediomics partner. The project’s partner profile assigns UWC a role in contributing marine microbial cultures and genome datasets and investigating biosynthetic pathways for potential antimicrobial and cosmeceutical compounds. This connects the institute’s microbial BioBank with an international research effort to understand marine biological resources and explore their possible applications. [M14]

The Horizon Europe-funded consortium’s dissemination and exploitation plan, resubmitted on 18 November 2024, identifies UWC in collaborative work on cosmeceuticals, antimicrobial peptides and culture collections. It describes research in progress and potential applications, including aquaculture, at early stages of technological development. These prospective uses are distinct from commercial products or demonstrated environmental improvements. [M15, cover and physical pp. 30–32]

UWC’s Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics participates in BlueRemediomics, an international research programme running from December 2022 to November 2026. IMBM describes its contribution as developing cosmeceuticals and antimicrobial peptides from microbial collections with partners at Italy’s Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn and the University of Aberdeen. The wider consortium aims to develop marine-microbiome tools and products, reduce industrial waste, reuse natural products and by-products, and improve aquaculture processes. Its public data-management plan, revised in December 2024, identifies UWC’s genome-sequencing and bioactivity work and locates its microbial strains in the Biodiversity Biobank hosted at IMBM. The programme links marine biodiversity research with the development of potential sustainable industrial applications. [AQ31] [AQ32] [AQ33, p. 11]

Making marine genomics accessible to teachers and learners

On 12 April 2025, UWC’s Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics and DIPLOMICS co-hosted the BlueBiobankBiotech workshop for high-school Marine and Life Science teachers. The one-day programme combined marine microbial genomics with practical training: teachers sequenced bacteria collected from South Africa’s coast as part of research catalogued in the National Microbial Biodiversity BioBank. The project’s retrospective account describes teachers’ interest in taking this knowledge into their classrooms, making marine science more accessible to school learners. [M16]

On 21 July 2025, the same partnership held a full-day BlueBiobankBiotech workshop for Grade 10–12 learners. In the Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics’ public account, shared by DIPLOMICS, learners extracted genomic DNA from coastal marine bacteria and received hands-on sequencing training. Their samples contributed to Biodiversity Biobanks South Africa, hosted at the institute. The programme also introduced learners to marine-science research and careers. [M17, IMBM event account]

A broader platform for ocean governance research

UWC’s Global Environmental Law Centre includes biodiversity, ecosystems and oceans among its research themes. Its work addresses equitable and sustainable fisheries, ocean governance, marine plastic pollution, water law and the legal protection of aquatic ecosystems. These themes provide a wider legal and governance context for the university’s aquatic research and engagement. [M24]

PLAAS and the Land Deal Politics Initiative convened the Land, Life and Society conference at UWC on 7–9 October 2025. Oceans, water and fisheries formed part of its programme on resource rights, food systems and climate. The opening ministerial address acknowledged fisherfolk among the participants, while the conference’s Cape Town Declaration recorded that scholars had gathered from 53 countries. The declaration proposed priorities for sustainable and equitable relationships among land, water, food and climate as an input to international debate. [M25] [M30, physical p. 1] [M31, Oceans and Water theme and participation]

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Water-quality standards and discharge guidelines

The Infrastructure Management Policy places environmental compliance, water-efficient infrastructure, plumbing maintenance, incident records and risk control within UWC's governance framework. Its selected provisions remain fully visible below, including practical and financial qualifications. The water-quality studies elsewhere retain their separate research purpose. [P01]

Evidence and context

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Action planning to reduce campus plastic waste

The November 2025 residence-waste thesis measured sampled plastics in two residences and recommended prevention, source separation and possible single-use restrictions. A separate October 2024 study modelled a proposed national deposit-return system. Their full accounts retain the difference between research recommendations, modelled benefits and implemented campus action. [ED11] [ED12]

Evidence and context

Understanding plastics before they reach waterways

A master’s thesis by Lisakhanya Nqaba, dated November 2025, examined waste in UWC’s Chris Hani and Basil February residences. Its physical audit ran from late September to early November 2024 and classified sampled waste into 25 categories, including eight plastic categories. The samples contained 157.09 kilograms of plastics. The study recommended stronger prevention, separation at source and awareness, and discussed possible single-use-plastic restrictions. These were research recommendations. The audit sampled selected bins in two residences; it was not a university-wide annual inventory or a measurement of material reaching the sea. [ED11, title; physical pp. 67–71 and 84–89; printed pp. 53–57 and 70–75]

UWC, Eunomia and Aquila Environmental’s October 2024 study assessed the costs, benefits and risks of a proposed national deposit-return system for beverage packaging. Interviews, workshops and surveys brought the perspectives of waste reclaimers, buy-back centres and informal businesses into the design questions. By examining collection incentives and return arrangements, the work explored how packaging could be recovered before becoming litter. Its collection rates and environmental benefits were modelled possibilities for a proposed system, rather than measured campus recycling results or outcomes of an implemented national scheme. [ED12, physical pp. 2–6 and research methods]

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Policy context for preventing and reducing marine pollution

The published supplier terms require relevant UWC procedures and safety requirements to reach service providers and address hazard reporting. The full document retains its undated status and contract-scope qualifications. UWC's separate procurement and infrastructure environmental provisions remain visible in their preceding sections. [PX03] [PX01] [P01]

Evidence and context

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Planning to minimise aquatic ecosystem alterations

UWC's reserve protection, Council biodiversity commitments and infrastructure environmental responsibilities provide an institutional context for caring for local aquatic habitats. Their full texts are retained under Aquatic biodiversity and Water-quality governance. The associated research identifies pressures and priorities within particular ecosystems. [AQ01] [P01]

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Monitoring aquatic ecosystem health

UWC-linked research measures pollution in connected rivers, estuaries, coastal waters and organisms, and studies wetland change and ecological pressures. The full accounts identify sampling sites, methods and dates, including historical samples reported in later publications. They retain the difference between particular research measurements and continuous operational monitoring. [AQ09] [AQ10] [AQ11] [AQ17]

Evidence and context

Following pollution through rivers estuaries and coastal waters

Tracing sewage-related contaminants in Hout Bay

Research published in July 2025 by a team including UWC’s Environmental and Nano Science Group examined contamination in Hout Bay’s connected river and coastal environments. The study analysed pharmaceuticals and personal-care chemicals in mussels, alongside microbial indicators in river water and seawater. Its 2020 and 2021 samples showed persistent chemical contamination in marine organisms and substantial faecal pollution at some river sites. The authors called for improved wastewater management and longer-term monitoring. The pharmaceutical measurements came from mussel tissue, while water testing addressed microbial contamination. Published in 2025, the study reports field conditions sampled in 2020 and 2021. [AQ09]

Map dated 25 April 2024, reproduced in the Hout Bay study published in July 2025. This depicts study geography, not a photograph of 2025 activity. Credit: Cartographer: Denzil Bent (map dated 25 April 2024). Ojemaye et al. (2025), Environments 12, 257, Figure 1. https://doi.org/10.3390/environments12080257. CC BY 4.0. Image source. CC BY 4.0.

An estuarine view of pharmaceutical accumulation

A UWC–UCT study published in August 2025 investigated pharmaceuticals at five sites in Cape Town’s Zandvlei Estuary and in its sandprawns, important sediment-dwelling ecosystem engineers. The research detected accumulation of several medicines in the animals and highlighted the vulnerability of temporarily closed estuaries to wastewater-derived contaminants. The findings strengthen the case for assessing pollution in organisms as well as water. Sampling took place on 4 August 2022; the authors explicitly note that the single sampling period limits wider generalisation. The findings provide a dated baseline for investigating ecological risk and the movement of contaminants through estuarine food webs. [AQ10]

Testing wastewater treatment and coastal PFAS contamination

In November 2024, UWC- and UCT-affiliated researchers published an assessment of five per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in wastewater and False Bay’s marine environment. They examined treatment stages at Zandvliet wastewater treatment works and analysed seawater, sediment and biota from eight coastal sites. The study found that the treatment processes examined did not completely remove these persistent chemicals, supporting the need for better effluent quality and continued ecological monitoring. Its field samples were collected in 2017/2018, placing the reported treatment performance and coastal observations in that historical period. [AQ11]

Comparing ways to control freshwater microplastics

A 2024 systematic review co-authored by UWC-affiliated Sershen compared interventions for preventing or removing microplastics from natural and constructed freshwater systems. It examined 124 studies across treatment, source-control, stormwater and in-situ approaches. The synthesis stresses that laboratory success does not automatically establish scalability or suitability for every setting, and that downstream clean-up depends on effective upstream prevention. This synthesis provides an evidence base for selecting pollution-control methods and identifies the need to test their suitability under local conditions. [AQ12]

Making water-quality evidence accessible to the public

In July 2025, UWC republished a multidisciplinary research team’s public commentary on sewage contamination and the communication of water-quality evidence in Cape Town. Drawing on their studies of rivers, lakes, aquifers and coastal waters, the authors advocated more timely release of monitoring results, clearer communication of changing contamination risks, and independent scrutiny of scientific claims. They also described sharing their research through media articles, a website and a documentary. This contribution connects aquatic-pollution research with public access to evidence and informed discussion about wastewater management. The article presents the authors’ proposals for stronger monitoring transparency and public communication. [AQ29]

Mapping freshwater ecosystems and pressures

Mapping long-term wetland change across the Limpopo basin

Institute for Water Studies researchers used cloud-based Earth observation and machine learning to examine wetland and land-cover change across the Limpopo transboundary river basin from 2000 to 2020. Their article, published online in November 2023 and in a 2024 journal issue, identified declining wetland extent and the role of land-use change. The analysis offers spatial evidence for prioritising protection and management. The study contributes spatial analysis for freshwater conservation and identifies pressures requiring further management attention. [AQ17]

A less intrusive way to map wetland plants

A January 2024 study co-authored by UWC’s Timothy Dube tested drone multispectral imagery and machine learning to map ten plant species in a seep wetland in Steenbras Nature Reserve. Using images captured in October 2018, the pilot established a baseline near groundwater-abstraction sites and reported overall classification accuracy of 87.4%. The method offers a way to monitor small wetland habitats with detailed species information. The pilot provides a methodological baseline for tracking wetland plant distributions and evaluating future change near groundwater-abstraction sites. [AQ18]

Connecting wetland change with waterbird records

Zaahira Yassin’s UWC master’s thesis, dated November 2025, combined satellite observations, citizen-science records and public landscape imagery to investigate De Hoop Vlei, a Ramsar-listed coastal wetland. Sentinel-2 observations spanning 2016–2025 were used to analyse seasonal changes in vegetation, water extent and turbidity. These measures were examined alongside Coordinated Waterbird Counts records and geotagged imagery describing how visitors experience the wetland. The study identified potential waterbird indicators and showed how ecological observations can be considered together with recreation, aesthetic appreciation and wildlife observation. This integrated approach offers a research framework for monitoring wetland condition and informing conservation awareness. [AQ35, physical pp. 1,3–4,60–67]

Connecting surface-water and groundwater quality

A June 2024 paper by Department of Water and Sanitation and UWC-affiliated researchers evaluated river and groundwater quality across five major catchments in the Mzimvubu-to-Tsitsikamma water-management area. The analysis combined historical records from January 2015 to December 2022 with field investigations conducted between February 2021 and November 2023. Seasonal comparisons and water-quality indices made the results more accessible for water-resource management. The authors assessed research measurements against South African water-quality guidelines, providing evidence about pressures across linked river and groundwater systems. [AQ19, section 2.2]

Community perspectives on floodplain-wetland governance

Palesa Jessica Mokgala’s UWC master’s thesis, completed in November 2025, examined how wetland-management policies connect with livelihoods and community participation in the Msunduzi River Basin. The research formed part of a Water Research Commission-funded project and included household surveys conducted in July 2024, alongside stakeholder interviews and a review of African wetland governance. It identified limited awareness of relevant policies and concerns about participation and effectiveness, recommending clearer communication and more inclusive management. The thesis contributes community perspectives to freshwater stewardship and identifies recommendations for improving participation and policy communication. [AQ20]

Historical foundation Heuningnes river and wetland change

Yamkela Mbambi’s 2023 UWC master’s thesis used remote sensing and geographic information systems to investigate land-use change and the morphology of rivers and wetlands in the Heuningnes catchment. Examining 1990–2020 imagery, the study linked changes in land cover with shrinking water-body areas and offered evidence to inform water-resource conservation and planning. Completed in 2023, the thesis forms part of the historical foundation for UWC’s freshwater and catchment research. [AQ21]

Studying microplastics in a managed aquifer-recharge basin

A UWC master’s thesis by Sebastian Georg Stenzl, dated August 2024, investigated microplastics in sediments from Basin 7 of the Atlantis Water Supply Scheme. Ten sediment cores were collected during sampling trips on 22 June 2022 and 1 March 2023 and analysed in depth sections to examine relationships between microplastic characteristics and sediment properties. This extends the university’s pollution research beyond coastal surface waters to a managed aquifer-recharge setting. The repository made the thesis available in December 2025, after the fieldwork and thesis completion. [AQ25, declaration; pp. 76–77]

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Programmes supporting good aquatic stewardship

PLAAS's Living Landscapes practitioner learning connects biodiversity conservation with rights, livelihoods and land, water and ocean governance. The 2024 and 2025 courses were funded for selected participants, and the wider programme supports continued practitioner exchange. The complete evidence retains eligibility, dates and the mixed landscapes involved. [M05] [M27] [M29] [M06]

Evidence and context

Connecting conservation and community livelihoods

Training conservation practitioners in biodiversity and social justice

PLAAS at UWC and Wageningen University co-hosted a five-day practitioner course in Durban from 26 February to 1 March 2024. Fully funded by the Oak Foundation, it brought together 27 selected professionals from 11 African countries, including South Africa. Participants worked in biodiversity conservation, natural-resource management and land, water and ocean governance across government, conservation organisations, civil society, community-based organisations and the private sector. Teaching and a field visit connected biodiversity with rights, gender, access and livelihoods. [M05, course description, participant list and funding statement]

Practitioner learning in 2025

In 2025, PLAAS offered its five-day Living Landscapes short course, New Thinking on Integrating Biodiversity and Social Justice, for 27–31 October in Kleinmond. Supported by the Oak Foundation, the course was fully funded for selected participants. It targeted professionals in conservation, natural-resource management and land, water and ocean governance, including community-based organisations, government and NGOs. Topics included conservation approaches, rights, gender, livelihoods and field-based learning. The participant booklet included a City of Cape Town reserve supervisor based at Edith Stephens Wetland Park. A later PLAAS account confirms the 2025 cohort’s continued learning through a December masterclass on other effective area-based conservation measures. [M27, funding, content and eligibility] [M28, physical pp. 1 and 10] [M29, retrospective account of 2025 activities]

The course formed part of Living Landscapes in Action, led by UWC’s PLAAS with Wageningen University and the University of Cape Town. Its research and engagement focused on iSimangaliso, Mapungubwe and Cape Town landscapes, bringing ecological protection together with social justice. The Cape Town project description identifies Rondevlei, Zeekoevlei and their corridor towards False Bay, where wetland conservation intersects with neighbouring settlements, livelihoods and urban services. [M04, landscape descriptions] [M35, project leadership and partners]

In July 2024, the Oak Foundation described how Living Landscapes researchers worked with communities around Cape Town’s wetlands and with fishing communities near iSimangaliso. It also reported that alumni continued sharing knowledge, opportunities and conservation challenges through monthly online meetings of the Mazingira Yethu practitioner network. This extended the course’s exchange of experience beyond the classroom. [M06]

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Local community partnerships around shared aquatic ecosystems

UWC's PLAAS research worked with communities and conservation officials around Cape Town wetlands and with fisher representatives near iSimangaliso. Its February 2025 briefs draw on embedded community engagement and propose stronger local knowledge, communication and co-management. The full evidence retains these as research-based governance proposals and relationships. [M33] [M07]

Evidence and context

Listening to Cape Town’s wetland neighbours

PLAAS’s February 2025 Policy Brief 63 brought further attention to communities around Cape Town conservation areas. It drew on two years of relationship-building by a locally based research associate, with UWC and UCT researchers joining interviews with communities and conservation officials. The sites included Edith Stephens and Rondevlei nature reserves. The authors called for community participation and local ecological knowledge to shape conservation decisions and sustainable resource use. These recommendations arose from community research rather than a reported programme of habitat maintenance. [M33, physical pp. 1–2 and 5]

Community knowledge and co-management around iSimangaliso

PLAAS Policy Brief 65, published in February 2025, drew on more than two years of embedded research with Dukuduku and KwaNibela communities around iSimangaliso Wetland Park. Two UWC-based associate researchers worked in these communities, collaborating with Masifundise Development Trust fisher representatives to examine conservation and livelihood tensions. The brief includes community accounts dated 2023, 2024 and 2025. It recommends meaningful co-management, clearer responsibilities, accessible communication and stronger inclusion of women, young people and local ecological knowledge. These are proposals for improving governance, rather than reported implementation outcomes. [M07, physical pp. 1, 7–11]

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Location-specific watershed management strategy

UWC's Institute for Water Studies shared Nuwejaars catchment research with communities, conservation bodies and water authorities in October 2022. The engagement built on work begun in 2014 and installed hydrological-monitoring infrastructure, connecting groundwater, surface water, water quality and aquatic species. The dated account remains below. [AQ24]

Evidence and context

Historical foundation sharing Nuwejaars catchment science

In October 2022, UWC’s Institute for Water Studies shared catchment research with communities and organisations around Elim, Napier and Bredasdorp. Presentations and discussion covered groundwater and surface-water links, water quality, alien vegetation, and aquatic plants and animals. Participants included conservation bodies, water authorities, research organisations and community groups. The engagement built on work begun in 2014 and hydrological monitoring infrastructure installed by the Institute. This October 2022 event illustrates an established approach to communicating freshwater science with people who use and manage the resource. [AQ24]

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