This Week - Dr Anton Wolfaardt, Mouse-free Marion

This is very much a follow up on last year's talk to hear progress on the campaign to eradicate mice from Marion Island.  It is very much our flagship Conservation Project and at that time we were the largest single Rotary Club contributor to the project but there have been considerable developments subsequently and it will be very interesting to hear about progress as it seems that the actual operation is soon to begin.

Anton has worked for more than 25 years in the field of seabird and marine conservation, a journey which started on Marion Island in 1994, where he spent a year working as a seabird field researcher.

He subsequently spent five years on Dassen Island, off the west coast of South Africa, working initially as a contract researcher and later as the conservation manager of the island. One of the main focuses of Anton’s research at Dassen Island was to assess the impact of oil pollution events, including two large oil spills – from the Apollo Sea in 1994 and the Treasure in 2000 – on the biology, ecology and conservation status of African Penguins. This research formed part of Anton’s PhD research, which he completed at the University of Cape Town in 2007. After leaving Dassen Island, Anton worked as a Regional Ecologist for CapeNature, the conservation authority for the Western Cape Province of South Africa.

In 2008, Anton headed to the Falkland Islands to take up the newly created position with the Joint
Nature Conservation Committee of ACAP (Agreement on the Conservation of Albatross and Petrels) Co-ordinator for the United Kingdom (UK) South Atlantic Overseas Territories, including the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Tristan da Cunha (including Gough Island) and the UK’s interest in Antarctica. The position was based in the Falkland Islands, with regular travel to and work in the other territories.

After returning to South Africa in late 2013, Anton continued to serve as the Co-convenor of ACAP’s Seabird Bycatch Working Group and worked as an environmental consultant focusing on seabird and marine issues, as well as a lecturer and guide on expedition ships visiting the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic regions. In February 2021, Anton took up his current position of MFM Project Manager.

Last Week - Project Meeting

The monthly Project Meeting was off to a good start with Bill Brunjes giving us an update on the plans for our second major fundraising event, the Annual Golf Day.  Very few members of the club actually play golf but he emphasised the need for companies to sponsor greens as that is the major source of income.  

Considerable time was spent hearing about the new project, Rest-a-While, an old NGO that is battling to survive as government grants seem to have evaporated and they were expecting R500 000 that is obviously not going to come.  The Community Service Committee is busy completing their investigations as to how we can help and there will be a proposal to the Board next week.  It seemed that the whole club is in favour.  It is the strength of this club that it supports NGO's that assist people whose only income are social grants or less and in today's economic climate that is so important.

Here is our Paul Harris Fellow, Adrian Gore, CEO of Discovery Health spending a day in a wheelchair as part of the Little Eden CEO Campaign.  Little Eden requires R14 160 per month, per resident so it needs to raise R61 million per year to keep providing them with quality care.  

Next Week - Business Meeting

That doesn't need a write up!

International - South Africa in partnership with Wyoming

What began with an enthusiastic health worker telling U.S. Rotarians about water scarcity in

 South Africa has blossomed into a partnership that has overhauled kitchens, bathrooms, and other sanitation facilities at nearly a dozen schools serving more than 7,200 students. 

It began with Julia Heemstra, who grew up in South Africa, speaking to a meeting of the Rotary Club of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in 2018. Club members decided to support her in providing handheld water filters — and were eager to do more. Heemstra connected the Wyoming Rotarians with the Rotary Club of Grahamstown, South Africa, which was at the time rehabilitating sanitation facilities at Ntsika Secondary School. “They had an inconsistent water supply. When the water is shut off, the schools have to shut,” says Stuart Palmer, a past governor of District 5440. “We were seeing the children shortchanged in their education.” 

The clubs partnered on a global grant to do that work, then a district grant to upgrade the water systems at 10 additional schools. Then, in 2022, the two clubs received a $400,000 global grant to upgrade toilet and kitchen facilities at seven of the schools where they’d previously worked. “Seeing the incredible change — you not only have water, but you’re getting a face-lift on all these schools — it’s huge,” Palmer says.

This Week - Project Meeting

 The Project Meeting is to discuss progress on existing projects and possible new ones.  As I can't guess what will be coming up here are some pictures of the completed water project at Bethany Home for Abused Women & Children.

Johannesburg is having multiple problems with water and Bethany cannot afford to have no water with so many women and children dependent on it for ablutions quite apart from the need for constant washing of clothes, bedding and dishes.  The club has solved the problem by installing a JoJo tank as you can see and an automatic pump.

When water is available from the municipality it flows into the tank and obviously throughout Bethany Home.

When there is no water the pump automatically switches on and supplies the home with water and switches off again when municipal water is again available.

Not shown is the security cage that has been fitted to protect the pump.

Last Week

Roxanne Bredenkamp, Chairman of the Germiston & Bedfordview SPCA, gave us an interesting talk on the problems they have faced over the previous financial year.  It is to Roxanne's credit that she has
managed to sort everything out and is concentrating on maintenance which has been much neglected.  She has a committee that is dedicated to getting things right and the club was impressed by her personal integrity and candour.  It's seldom that organisations dependent on support from the general public admit to mistakes and misjudgments and she is sure of our support.

Next Week

Dr Anton Wolfhaardt will be giving us an update on Mouse-free Marion.

Here's what Marike Stander, a researcher from the University of the Free State has to say about her visit.

International - Australia

The First 2000 Days of Life is a project of the Rotary Clubs of Corrimal, Dapto, Fairy Meadow and Kiama. Research has shown that the first 2000 days of life has a significant impact on a child’s development and their future health and well-being. It is now known that the in-utero experience of a baby followed by a child’s early life experience predicts their chances of succeeding at school, of doing well in life, and of having chronic diseases as an adult.

Given the importance of raising awareness of this research, the four clubs are working with local New South Wales healthcare professionals and agencies to deliver the key messages under the First 2000 Days Framework. Rotary is providing the important link between health and agencies as Rotary works across the community providing funding and support to many agencies supporting local families.

The project is known as the ‘Illawarra Shoalhaven First 2000 Days Community Project’. The aim of the project is to make the community aware of the importance of the first 2000 days, to communicate the key messages from The NSW First 2000 Days Framework and let people know where to seek further information and help if required.

To accomplish these outcomes the project has:

• produced a flyer to deliver the key messages 
• developed a peer education program with Health to be delivered to agency staff and other key community groups. This will give staff a deeper understanding of The First 2000 Days Framework to enable them to deliver the messages to families in a way that meets their specific needs
• in addition, we will be conducting a media campaign to get the key messages on the importance of the first 2000 days out to the wider community.

Please download a copy of the First 2000 Days Flyer

This Week - Roxanne Bredenkamp, Chairman of the Bedfordview and Germiston SPCA

Last week, thanks to Hennie Scholtz' expertise, we have finally finished the refurbishment of the large pen at the SPCA.  Why it has taken so long is because of the dire financial straits the SPCA was in and we didn't want to continue until we were certain the the branch wasn't going to be closed by head office.  Also the SPCA's requirements have changed as Roxanne has remarkably paid off all their debt and has everything back on track.  It promises to be an interesting talk.

Last Week

The Business Meeting came up with some important decisions, the most noticeable being the way the weekly meeting is structured when we have a guest speaker. In future the speaker's spot will follow Porky Pig and any Rotary Business will follow.  This allows more flexibility for the speaker who may want to leave directly after the talk and also the speaker is not compromised by Rotary Business taking longer than anticipated.

The other aspect of the meeting that is of such value to the club is the new projects that are coming through that involve our new members.  This is vital for the continuing growth and development of the club.

Members who have been in longstanding executive positions in the club have seen the need to handover and mentor members taking over those positions.  We are definitely looking for an accountant to join our club who is familiar with the Sage Pastel accounting system so that there can be a smooth handover in the future.

Next Week

It's a Project Meeting.  With so many new projects being proposed it promises to be a very interesting meeting.  Next week I should be able to give you more details as to what we will be hearing about and discussing.

International - Canada

The Rotary Club of Olds, Alberta, is livening up its process for awarding grants to community groups. In November, representatives of about a dozen organisations pitched their proposals at a contest modeled on Dragons’ Den in which venture capitalists judge entrepreneurs’ proposals for investment. The organisations were allotted five minutes to make their pitch, followed by five minutes of questioning by a panel of Rotarian “dragons,” or judges. Club President Randy Smith concedes that the awardees would have received their share of the roughly Can$10,000 regardless of who won. But he says the spirited affair gave the groups, including Interactors and Fire Department Cadets, an opportunity to hone their presentation skills and showcase their creativity.

 
 

This Week - A Business Meeting

There's not much to say about an impending Business Meeting so here is a cartoon instead.

Last Week

Lorenzo Barry's talk and presentation was quite an eye-opener.  It was very interesting to hear how he became involved in small farmers' problems and it was an excellent presentation on how he sees the possibility of moving forward and what further research is required.

What made it especially interesting was that he sees the problem as a business opportunity for his partnership and the farmers concerned and that certainly resonated with the club.  We look forward to having him back to discuss it further

 Next Week

Roxanne Bredenkamp, Chairman of the Bedfordview and Germiston SPCA will be talking to us.  It's going to be an interesting talk as they have been in dire straights and she has managed to sort everything out and repay their debts and concentrate on maintenance and refurbishment.  The involvement of the former Satellite Club has really helped move things forward.

Our Inspectorate recently encountered an interesting case involving a juvenile Chacma baboon being kept in improper conditions. Thanks to a concerned member of the public, we swiftly intervened and rescued the baboon, ensuring she receives proper care at an accredited wildlife facility. At GBSPCA, we strongly oppose the keeping of wild species in captivity unless for bona fide conservation or rehabilitation purposes.

International - Hungary

When the operator of a summer camp for children with Down syndrome or other cognitive disabilities announced in 2021 that she could no longer run the week long programme, the Rotaract Club of Kecskemét stepped up. The initiative to keep the programme going has become “our club’s biggest and favourite project,” says Anna Antalfalvi. She and other members of the university-based club are education and psychology students. “Our aim is to help children develop through activities during the day. This allows parents to relax and work through their difficulties in support groups.” The club’s eight active members and a few volunteers run workshops, cook, serve, and clean. The camp, which is free for participants (17 children and their families in 2023), costs the club about $3,100 a year. “Our sponsoring Rotary club helped for the first time this year, providing a day’s food and cooking a lunch on another day,” Antalfalvi says. “When they personally experienced the atmosphere of the camp and the importance of the work we do there, they decided to make it part of their annual fundraising goal to help fund the camp.”