The month of May celebrates the advent of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere. We want to celebrate a pioneering South African couple who are making waves in both hemispheres. Their English estate, The Newt, is the official sponsor of the Royal Horticultural Society’s Chelsea Flower Show. While their South African estate, Babylonstoren, is acknowledged as the only (RHS) Royal Horticultural Society Partner Garden in Africa ... Read More

There are many reasons why this protea is South Africa's national flower. I like these survive & thrive analogies ... Proteas are hardy plants that can survive harsh conditions; drought, heavy rains and even massive bush fires because they are re-sprouters, a very effective survival strategy, but won’t be happy in temperatures below -4C ... Read More

Flowers are a lens on human nature and our search for meaning. A metaphor for a mortal world suddenly fathoming its fragility and resilience. More than a pretty object to be admired, they are a ravishing system of aliveness — a kind of silent symphony of interconnected resilience. ... Read More

''If I could fill your stocking with books, it would be brimming with these to ensure that the connection with Nature is never lost. Lockdown books to inspire and feed creativity'' ... Read More

Can travel be sustainable is a vexed question. Tourism has a hefty carbon footprint – and is playing a significant role in the ongoing climate crisis. As climate changes, so do the environments in which wildlife & wilderness thrive ... Read More

How the tradition of 2-minutes of silence during Remembrance occasions was born, a unique South African gift to world, a simple peaceful gesture that in deep solitude remembers the end of all war – not the beginning ... Read More

Cape Town’s social media is abuzz with sightings popping up all over the Peninsula.  Two cute-as-pie Caracal kittens were spotted recently frolicking in the fynbos of Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden. A project to protect these beguiling, nocturnal creatures places reflective artworks in caracal roadkill “hotspots”. It aims to raise awareness around issues such as roadkill of indigenous and endemic species & encourages people to SLOW DOWN! ... Read More

National Arbor Week is a time for us to plant indigenous trees as a practical and symbolic gesture of sustainable environmental management. ''Each generation of humanity takes the earth as trustees … We ought to bequeath to posterity as many forests and orchards as we have exhausted and consumed'' ... Read More

A director of Kew Gardens in London remarked, “it is out of the question the most wonderful plant ever brought to this country and one of the ugliest.” Some plants are over 3,000 years old, growing since the beginning of the Iron Age, when the Phoenician alphabet was invented and David was crowned King of Israel ... Read More

In spring each year the Cape's West Coast erupts in a riot of colours.  It's our yearly blessing following the winter rain - and part of our unique botanical bounty. The West Coast National Park is also a birding site so legendary that it's a Ramsar site (deemed to be of international importance for the conservation of wetland birds).   ... Read More

David Marchese's interview with Jane Goodall, in The New York Times inspires: 'Traveling the world I see so many projects of restoration, animal and plant species being rescued from the brink of extinction, people tackling what seemed impossible and not giving up. These are the stories that ... give people hope'' ... Read More

Africa is a vast continent straddling the equator, boasting six time zones. It's a vast area of profoundly differing vegetation, climates, topography and animal life that occupies the myriad niches provided by these variations. The good news is that there is always a good safari season in Africa. You just need to know what you want to see and where you’d like to see it – then the ‘when’ becomes pretty simple ... Read More

I sit here quietly thinking about what it means to me to be a visitor to South Africa or even African. It seems easier to explain the effect that this land has on me ... which creates a frisson of excitement, passion each and every day, a vivid, immediate sense of being alive found nowhere else ... ... Read More

Biodiversity is our most valuable but least appreciated resource – Edward O. Wilson. When biodiversity has a problem, humanity has a problem. Despite all our technological advances we are completely dependent on healthy and vibrant ecosystems for everything life-giving. Biodiversity is the foundation upon which we can build back better ... Read More

Conservation is about protecting a shrinking asset. We need to think about environmental investing. Go from the defensive to the offensive. Look at the big role ecotourism plays in conservation in Africa. If Covid has taught us one thing, it’s that our choices matter. ... Read More

Lots of Causes to Celebrate! South Africa has just taken steps to end its multimillion-dollar lion-breeding industry. The voice of our planet - David Attenborough - is still fighting the good fight, another year on. And ''The Octopus Teacher'' gets Oscar gold for the Best Documentary. ... Read More

Shine a light on the serious environmental problems we’re facing, from the climate crisis to air pollution and deforestation. Focus on the need to reduce our impact on the planet as we recover from Covid-19, and how we can play a role in repairing the damage we’ve done. Join Earth Day. ... Read More

Travel + Leisure is one of the world’s most influential travel publications. Each year they publish their must-visit places. Cape Town's Camps Bay has just been included among the greats in its ’25 Most Beautiful Beaches in the World’. It's my go-to place of solace in my universe that I feel immensely priveleged to share with you ... Read More

The New York Times declared the next phase in tourism to be “regenerative travel” (or leaving a place better than you found it.) Eminent travel journalist Sophy Roberts asks what will be the right way to travel in future? Michael Lorentz shares the inspiring comeback story of Chad’s Zakouma National Park  ... Read More

World Wildlife Day is about celebrating, enjoying and respecting wildlife. It's also about making us think just how close wildlife is to the tipping point to extinction. And what's being done by wildlife warriors to bring it back from this destiny. Hear how they respect, understand and afford dignity to wildlife. And put their lives on the line ... Read More

The documentary My Octopus Teacher ushered in a new approach to nature filmmaking, where interaction between humans and other creatures takes center stage. The book Sea Change is as equally visually and textually stunning. Yo-Yo Ma says it ''invites us to explore further and love more deeply'' ... Read More

The Cape Floral Kingdom is a biological treasure chest that entranced botanists in Europe after the arrival of European explorers in South Africa in 1652. The botanist, Carl Thunberg, devised the taxonomic system of naming all plants and animal species still in use today. The name of the Disa genus of orchids derives from a Swedish legend ... Read More

There is something about the mystique of Africa, called mal d'Afrika. The symptoms are extraordinary. There is no known remedy. Your life will never be the same again. When you are in the African bush, far away from familiar surroundings, you feel as though you have come home ... Read More

Saype, the world's most famous land artist, chose Cape Town as host to the ninth stage of his global project because his work symbolises the breaking down of political and social barriers between communities. Depicting the largest human chain in the world, it invites people to help each other, show kindness and live tolerantly together ... Read More

Every journey comes at a financial cost, an environmental cost, and a social cost. Before booking a flight, ask yourself: Are these quality miles? Find the answer not on a spreadsheet but in your heart. Purpose-driven travel! ... Read More

Coming up on October 08th in our new webinar series, is The Cape's spectacular botanical landscape. Three renowned ''green'' experts will show you what makes this the world's richest natural garden. Adam Harrower of Kirstenbosch, Ernst van Jaarsveld of Babylonstoren, & Sean Privett of Grootbos! It's spring time here - and we are bursting to share our botanical bounty ... Read More

One of South Africa’s most sought after illustrators has created a classic botanical chart in a fresh style that is beautiful as a work of art as well as functional. The Flowering Plants of South Africa features a collection of 85 interesting and indigenous plants that includes the plants’ scientific names, bugs & critters used for pollination ... Read More

This cycad is a reminder of my Eastern Cape roots and an opportunity to show you a dell full of cycads in Kirstenbsoch Botanic Garden. South Africa has such botanical riches and eye-opening green bounty ... Read More

Disasters are known as powerful ignition tools for radical ways of transforming business practices. To harvest emerging ideas trend forecaster Li Edelkoort is organizing a platform to counterbalance the World Economic Forum - The World Hope Forum ... Read More

Louis Schwartzberg is an inspiring visual artist who celebrates life and reveals the mysteries of nature, people and places ... by providing breathtaking imagery using time-lapse, high-speed and macro cinematography ... Read More

“A lot of little random acts of wildness can lead to something amazing” since we are actively turning to nature for comfort and solace in a very scary time. Join in. Become more conscious of the biodiversity crisis and more aware of other species ... Read More

The mission of the Blood Lions Campaign is to increase awareness around interactive captivity wildlife attractions & “canned” hunting. It is a “call to action” around how to treat wildlife ethically ... Read More

Visionary pioneer Garth Owen-Smith said: 'Conserving our natural environment will not make you materially rich, but there is no greater satisfaction than having made our planet a better place to live on, even if it is just in a very small way’ ... Read More

Could this be a once-in-a-century opportunity to reset the economy and to escape the clutches of high-carbon industry that have caused the climate catastrophe? It's a lifetime chance to shape the future, not just respond to it, and requires a collaborative approach between all spheres of society ... Read More

A visionary who used trees as an instrument of civil disobedience, started a movement that reimaged the ecological and economic landscape and modeled a new form of civic agency for nature & humanity, is Wangari Maathai, the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize    ... Read More

Stationery that stops aliens and thwarts a silent killer! By handcrafting beautiful art that works (as opposed to works of art), planting seeds of inspiration, and growing sustainable solutions ... Read More

Since we are being compelled to transform our social behaviour worldwide, we share this in the hope that it reminds you of South Africa's zest for life, and energy-bursting talent  ... Read More

How about a good news travel story? Apart from record-breaking, isnt this journey so inspiring? Outdoing any bird, fish or mammal ever tracked. It's the longest-ever recorded of any animal in history! ... Read More

“Many of the pandemic scares we’ve seen in the 21st century are the result of viruses that exist in nature being able to suddenly ‘jump’ and infect humans.” Though trade in pangolin meat and scales has been banned internationally, domestic sales of medicines containing pangolin scales are still allowed in China  ... Read More

As a species, our best design stories still lie ahead of us. For over 25-years, Design Indaba Cape Town has presented a slew of visionary thinkers whose innovations have truly shaped our globe ... Read More

The most valuable thing on the planet isn’t money or the material things it can buy. It is time. So it’s not accidental that we talk about “spending” time, as if it were money ... Read More

Music is an extrordinary example of how culture connects us and can help us to imagine and build a better future. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma believes there are many more - and has set out to prove it. What better way to step into a new decade than this video with a powerful message? ... Read More

The votes have been counted, the results are in ... the greatest city in the world is a coastal gem, ... Read More

The World's 100 Greatest Places of 2019 of TIME magazine revealed three Southern Africa inclusions. Lekkerwater and Omaanda to stay in, Wolfgat to dine at.   ... Read More

Out of a compilation of The 50 Most Beautiful Places in the World by Conde Nast Traveler, here are five of their greatest African hits: awe-inspiring wonders and out-of-this-world landscapes for the very top of your travel list  ... Read More

A behind-the-scenes look at the global wildlife tourism industry that shows how animals are treated once the selfie-taking crowds have gone  ... Read More

The Cape is home to the smallest of the planet’s six floral kingdoms, & the Cape Floral Kingdom has a high number of unique species found nowhere else on Earth ... Read More

A-Z Guide of Not Killing the Planet when you Travel: Conde Nast compiled 26 do-able steps for eco-friendly travel. This is about the cosequences of overpacking ... Read More

We shine shine the spotlight on game-changers who make the way we see, taste, sail, and circle the world that much more incredible. Peter Fearnhead, the tenacious co-founder and CEO of African Parks, is helping to write a hopeful chapter in a conservation narrative typically dominated by heartbreak and loss ... Read More

The award-winning display at The Chelsea Flower Show was inspired by the diversity of South Africa's Floral Kingdom where designer Leon Kluge shows that South Africa is home to many worldwide flower exports ... Read More

If you're on a trip and start to ask yourself, I wonder who came up with those e-scooters? Or the ... Read More

Grootbos Private Nature Reserve outside Cape Town just announced as overall winner of the African Responsible Tourism Awards at the World Travel Market Africa, 2019 ... Read More

Inspiring People Changing The Way We Travel / David Attenborough - whose aim is to remind people of the interconnectedness of living things ... Read More

When Jimmy Fallon heard that one of SA's finest wildlife photographers was Martha Stewart's ranger on her "incredible" SA safari, he just had to interview him. ... Read More

You really can't overstate the case for visiting Cape Town. It's just come tops in the Telegraph award for The World's 50 Best Honeymoon Hotels & Destinations ... Read More

A young South African has made a big splash at the World Economic Forum (WEF) with legendary wildlife activist Jane Goodall MBE ... Read More

The challenges faced by Africa's rapidly growing cities are unique. Chief Resilience members from Accra, Addis Ababa, & Cape Town share how their cities are working to solve these ... Read More

Some good news events formed part of the celebrations focused on creating awareness of the endangered African penguins and marine conservation ... Read More

Battery Park is Cape Town's new urban park connecting the V&A Waterfront to the city. It’s a green space with a series of scenic routes, recreation and retail activities - to say nothing of spectacular views ... Read More

Through her lifetime of research and books, Renata Coetzee has built both national and international awareness of the culinary heritage of various cultural groups in South Africa ... Read More

''The only walls between humans and elephants are the ones we put up ourselves'' ... Francoise Malby-Anthony carries on Lawrence's dream ... Read More

Go hunting in the first wildflower national botanical garden in South Africa. Explore the world's richest natural garden - the Cape Floral Kingdom  ... Read More

Treat children and animals with kindness, and pass this wisdom on to generations to come says Credo Mutwa, whose cosmology is a lodestar to us regaining balance & harmony in Africa ... Read More

Mountains referred to as the ‘Genesis of Life’ with the best preserved ancient rocks on Earth, contain the oldest signs of life in the world ... Read More

A paper cutout inspired by the pincushion protea - and a play on the word “froufrou” - generating two local initiatives we love ... Read More

The biggest private project of its kind in South Africa - a pioneering alien vegetation clearing project at Vergelegen wine estate revealing natural treasures of indigenous vegetation  ... Read More