NRF-SAEON Invites Entries to the 2024 Ocean Competition

The South African Environmental Observation Network (NRF-SAEON), in partnership with the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), has launched the 2024 Ocean Competition. Open to all learners from grades R-12 in South Africa, this annual competition aims to inspire and educate about the beautiful oceans and highlight some of the challenges they face.

It is a platform for the creative expression, awareness raising, environmental stewardship, and the cultural diversity of South Africa’s people to connect to the oceans. To keep the competition intellectually stimulating to learners, NRF-SAEON has set the following five themes for each category of Poetry, Artwork or Video:

1. How do you or your community connect to the Ocean?
2. Indigenous Knowledge and the Ocean
3. Marine pollution in the Ocean
4. Climate change and the Ocean
5. Sustainable fisheries and the Ocean

Learners are encouraged to enter the competition in the categories of Poetry, Artwork and Video with their entries encompassing any of the five themes.

Says Dr Mary-Jane Bopape, NRF-SAEON Managing Director, “The Ocean Competition is important to our objective of raising awareness among the country’s learners about ocean science. Over the years, the competition has made learners aware that people can aspire to become ocean scientists regardless of whether they live in a coastal community or not. To demonstrate this point, our 2023 winners came from both coastal and inland communities, among them Orange Farm, Phalaborwa, Gqeberha and Cape Town.”

“The 2023 competition attracted more than 250 entries across the three categories from schools across the country. We encourage more schools to dive into the depths of their creativity and enter this year’s competition. Let’s continue to explore, learn, and protect our precious oceans together.”

Entries close on 04 June at 5:00 pm.

Further competition details can be found here.