eNews
#02 2023
A media release issued by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, titled Science and innovation provide speedy response to flood-stricken Eastern Cape, was published by several government-related and Eastern Cape news sites. The Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Dr Blade Nzimande, hailed as successful the swift response by the Department of Science and Innovation’s entities, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) and the South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON) to the floods in the Eastern Cape.
This followed the previous week’s torrential rains which devastated parts of the Eastern Cape, destroying infrastructure, homes, water and electricity, and disrupting teaching and learning. These heavy downpours also claimed three lives.
Egagasini Node
To coincide with Earth Day on April 22, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released a new video, the Evolution of the Global Ocean Observing System. The video was posted on the homepage of the Global Ocean Monitoring and Observing Program (GOMO) website and shared via this Earth Day story. It was also shared on NOAA Research’s social media pages under the account @NOAAResearch. Prof Juliet Hermes, manager of SAEON’s Egagasini Node, was one of the oceanographers interviewed for the video, who shared their insights, passion and projects with viewers.
Grasslands-Forests-Wetlands Node
An opinion piece on grasslands and global change, Grasslands critical to mitigate climate change by field technician Dr Paul Gordijn, was published in The Mercury of March 17 and syndicated to Pretoria News and Cape Times to be published on the same date. You can also read the full article in this edition of SAEON eNews.
SAEON eNews is the bimonthly online newsletter of the South African Environmental Observation Network.
SAEON is a research platform funded by the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and managed by the National Research Foundation (NRF).
SAEON serves as a national platform for detecting, translating and predicting environmental change through scientifically designed observation systems and research.