Honorary officers recognised by Ezemvelo
This is the honorary officer's third award this year.
THE North Durban honorary officers from the Beachwood Mangroves Nature Reserve were once again honoured by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife. The team were recently awarded the Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife Excellency Award. This is the second time they have won the award in three years that recognises the officer’s dedication to raising awareness about the mangroves.
The honorary officers are no strangers to accolades, in 2014 they won the prestigious Biodiversity Award at the Enviropaedia Eco-Logic Awards and they also won an external award at the KZN Ezemvelo Excellency Awards. Earlier this year they were given a Certificate of Merit from Ezemvelo and they won a silver medal at the eThekwini Sustainable Awards.
Basil Pather, reserve manager at Beachwood Mangroves Nature Reserve said he was delighted with the award.
“We don’t do this for recognition but it says so much for the passion of the honorary officers. This is just an incredible achievement and we are delighted to receive the award. We last won this award in 2014 so it’s great to win it again. This is a team effort and the officers are raising awareness and engaging with the public about conservation in and around Durban, as well as here at the reserve.We are completely floored by the award.”
“I think the team really sum up what being a volunteer is, having heart. There’s nothing stronger than an environmental volunteer’s heart, and we have plenty of that. We will continue our work, that means doing whatever is necessary for the environment,” Pather said.
