Read our latest posts and news.
Not All Dragons Are Friendly: The Unexpected Invasion of Hylocereus undatus
By Claude Schippers & Jolandie Buck Driving along the farm roads between Brandwacht and Grootbrak, you begin to notice something unusual climbing the slopes. At first glance, it looks striking, large, sprawling succulents draped over shrubs and trees. But look...
Small Insects, Big Impact: Tackling Invasive Prickly Pear in the Gouritz Region
By Claude Schippers, Jolandie Buck & Dr Wilhelm De Beer Driving down some of the dusty back roads of the Gouritz Cluster Biosphere Reserve, with landowners and conservancy members who know this landscape intimately, we looked out over the valleys. A notable...
Act Early, Protect More: Understanding Foot and Mouth Disease
By Simthandile Ponti, Smallholder Farmer Programme Manager Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is a severe, highly contagious viral disease of cloven-hoofed ruminants that is a persistent and severe challenge for South Africa’s livestock industry. While it does not pose a...
Restoring the Bergfontein Wetland: Progress and Next Steps
By: Claude Schippers, Donovan Kotze, Lee-Ann Pretorius and Mark Jantjies Wetlands are special ecosystems where land and water meet, often called the “kidneys of the landscape” because of the important ecosystems services they provide. They regulate streamflows,...
From Curiosity to Contribution: Real Stories of Citizen Science from the Gouritz Region
By Antonnet Botha Citizen science is built on a simple but powerful idea: that everyday people, guided by curiosity and care, can contribute meaningfully to scientific knowledge. It happens when hikers pause to photograph a flower, when a farmer notices an...
Seeds of Change Project: A Year of Growth at Goedgegun Primary School
By Erin Martin Planting a Vision What started as a garden project soon revealed a much deeper need at Goedgegun Primary School. When we first visited the school in February 2025, they had already been without running water for months. GCBR stepped in to assist,...
Discovering Nature Together: How iNaturalist is Connecting Communities in the Garden Route
By Antonnet Botha Nature is everywhere around us, in our gardens, along rivers, on hiking trails, and even in the cracks of pavements. Yet so much of this everyday biodiversity goes unnoticed. Around the world, communities are beginning to change that by using...
CAREER OPPORTUNITY WITHIN THE GOURITZ CLUSTER BIOSPHERE RESERVE
The Gouritz Cluster Biosphere Reserve (GCBR) is an action-oriented non-profit organisation founded in 2011. We drive programmes and catalyse initiatives that nurture resilience in nature and communities within the 3.2-million-hectare region that has been designated...
BRIGHTSTAR LIFESTYLE TRAINING with Arnel Huisamen and Zenariah Poole
By: Joneill Du Plessis (GCBR MABYouth) On the weekend of 6 - 8 February 2026, the GCBR MAB Youth and Grade 12 learners from Gerrit Du Plessis Secondary School received a BrightStar Lifestyle Training with Dr Arnel Huisamen and Zenariah Poole. The training consisted...
World Wetlands Day: Protecting Water, Life, and Communities in the GCBR
By Antonnet Botha Wetlands are some of the hardest-working ecosystems on Earth, and yet they’re often the easiest to overlook. They don’t always shout for attention, but they quietly clean our water, reduce floods, store carbon, and provide safe...