Marine cultural heritage (MCH) represents all tangible and intangible traces of human interaction with the marine environment. This includes the remains of sunken urban structures, shipwrecks, coastal archaeological sites but also traditions, knowledge systems, and a variety of cultural expressions that define the identity of local communities in their use of the marine environment of history. Manifestations that are protected by a series of international legal frameworks like the UNESCO 2001 Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, the 2003 Convention on the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage or, among others, the 1972 Convention on the Protection of the World´s Natural and Cultural Heritage. The Rising from the Depths Network (RftD) aims to harness the potential of MCH for the sustainable development of East African communities. Throughout its 27 projects, RftD has been able to identify ways in which the MCH contributes to the improvement of coastal communities’ livelihoods and has identified gaps and strengths in management approaches and policy development. Areas, where the projects have worked, include some of the most iconic World Heritage sites in East Africa like Lamu Old Town in Kenya, Zanzibar’s Stonetown, and Kilwa Kisiwani in Tanzania, or Mozambique Island in Mozambique.

The UNESCO World Heritage Convention underlines the duty of each State Party to ensure “the identification, protection, conservation, presentation and transmission to future generations of the cultural and natural heritage referred to in Articles 1 and 2 and situated on its territory” (Article 4). Each State Party needs to ensure “that effective and active measures are taken for the protection, conservation and presentation of the cultural and natural heritage situated on its territory” (Article 5), and this includes –although it is not stated it is indeed assumed – the maritime areas and internal waters that are under its jurisdiction. MCH is part of that cultural heritage that needs to be effectively identified, protected, conserved, presented, and transmitted to future generations.

UNESCO and the Rising from the Depths Network organize this thematic workshop to explore the challenges, values, and significance of MCH within World Heritage sites in East Africa with the aim of improving management practice and drawing policy recommendations.

Challenges

The increase in coastal and marine infrastructure development in East Africa, together with an increase in the people living along the coast, and the development of important tourism strategies connected to each countries’ development agendas is placing enormous pressure on communities and their environment, affecting their cultural identities, expressions and heritage. In most of East Africa, the extension of MCH is not yet known. This is due to the lack of appropriate capacities, protocols, or management approaches that could carry out a systematic, inclusive and participatory inventory of the region´s heritage. The inability to register, understand, and study the potential of MCH can be seen in its very absence from the different nominations of East African coastal sites to the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Objectives

This Workshop aims to create awareness of the MCH linked to World Heritage sites, and the threats it is facing. It should also investigate the synergies between different international charters like the UNESCO 2001 and World Heritage Convention. It will present the results from RftD projects in relation to World Heritage sites, and it will underline the importance of community-based integrated management approaches to natural and cultural heritage. The workshop also intends to:

• Highlight the importance of people-centred practices for both the conservation of natural and cultural heritage sites, and the resilience of local communities.
• Raise awareness among policy-makers, heritage practitioners, World Heritage site managers and local communities of the potential of MCH in the design and implementation of management plans and strategies.
• Strengthen dialogue and exchange between experts in the region, consolidating a Network of MCH specialists.
• Identify scientific and management gaps in MCH and World Heritage preservation and conclude with a series of recommendations and needed actions to inform the elaboration of policy briefs that could guide UNESCO Member States in the Region.

Programme and Registration

• You can participate in the workshop by registering HERE
• UNESCO-RftD Workshop_Programme

This University of Surrey based project innovates and consolidates the festival of the sea approach to reharbouring living marine cultural heritage in East Africa through modern craftwork. Children from Anidan Children’s Shelter work with artists using cyanotype printing to engage with UN SDG themes, ‘pollution and plastics’, and issues of ‘food security’, ‘living heritage’ and ‘a good life’.

The project involves UK artist Bronagh Corr-McNicholl (Northern Ireland) working virtually alongside artists Corrie Wingate, Monia Antoniolo and Laura Mwani (Kenya) and Romeo Paul Niwass Lantoarison (Madagascar) to realise a living marine cultural heritage project. Materials are exhibited at The Flipflopi Project in Lamu. Funding is gratefully received from the AHRC/GCRF via The Rising from the Depths Network.

Project Images

Related Pages:

The Rising from the Depths Network (RftD), aiming at harnessing the potential of Marine Cultural Heritage (MCH) in contributing to economic, environmental, and social- of sustainable development, has worked over the past four years to change and disrupt traditional narratives that have ignored the relevance of Marine Cultural Heritage and its potential in realizing a just and sustainable development for coastline communities.   

The path towards the consecution of several of the targets and SDGs of this development frameworks pass through the adoption of innovative, inclusive and participatory policies that align local communities’ necessities to the international commitments of States. As the RftD Network’s projects are showing, MCH is an intrinsic component of the livelihoods of traditional coastal communities in East Africa. It’s an element inseparable from the way they interact with their environment, providing both understanding and means to use it for their social, spiritual, and economic benefit. However, the rapid infrastructural and economic development experienced in the East African coast, together with the lack of legal mechanisms and policies that truly include local communities’ interests in consultative processes or impact assessments, is negatively affecting not only their livelihoods but also their fundamental rights to safeguard, enjoy and utilize their own MCH. Equally, the ignorance of traditional knowledge and regulatory systems within the design of national development strategies results in the destruction of a repository of cumulative historical and archaeological knowledge that is key to facing humanity’s challenges. MCH, including underwater archaeological remains, tangible heritage on land, as well as the associated intangible practices bore by the local communities contributes in the society’s combined efforts to alleviating poverty, increasing the quality levels of education for all, ensuring gender equality, mitigating the effects of climate change, or safeguarding the survival of our oceans.  

RftD organizes an online workshop on 3 March 2022 to interrogate the role that national, and international law plays in supporting and realizing the potential of marine cultural heritage within the context of sustainable development. At the same time, the workshop illustrates gaps and deficiencies in MCH preservation and community involvement of the current legal mechanisms in East Africa through the results of several cases studies from the RftD Network. 

Traditional boat building in Lamu, Kenya. Traditional knowledge and practices are disappearing due to the rapid economic development in many parts of the East African coast. The need to develop inclusive and participatory policies is key to ensure that the potential of Marine Cultural Heritage for sustainable development, as well as the rights of community members, is fully understood and considered © Dara Davitti

Objectives 

This workshop will provide an overview of how law affects and interact with MCH. We will consider the main international instruments in force in East Africa as well as how these has been (or not) translated into the national policies. 

 It also intends to reflect on the outcomes of the RftD Network and several of the issues identified with regards to the role of coastal communities in the decision-making processes that affect their marine natural and cultural resources, questioning whether the current legal framework give adequate space to local communities to voice their concerns and participate in the development process.  

The workshop will feature presentations from awardees of RftD sponsored innovation projects and early career researchers from RftD network as well as internationally recognised experts in the field of cultural heritage and international law.  

Date: 3 March 2022, 2-5 pm (GMT)

Download the Programme

Registration LINK

Marine Heritage in Northern Mozambique – return to the Ilha

Wes Forsythe and Ana Margarida Sousa Santos

Rising from the Depths returned to Ilha de Mozambique in November to catch up with community members, share information arising from our activities and investigate new opportunities for improved outcomes for Maritime Cultural Heritage. The Northern Mozambique project had achieved a key target of completing a wide-ranging geophysical survey in the environs of the island in late 2019. However, the hiatus caused by the worldwide pandemic had resulted in missed field seasons and a regrettably long interval between survey activity and the pursuance of other objectives. This was particularly the case for the more community-focused elements of the project, which aimed to canvas community, business and institutional opinion on a range of topics relating to the Ilha’s rich maritime heritage, such as environment, livelihoods and accessibility.

Accordingly, as soon as Mozambique was removed from the UK’s ‘red list’ flights were booked and preparations made (a window of opportunity as it turned would close on the day of our return). Arriving in Nampula for the two -hour drive to the Ilha we reflected on the time that had passed and how the island had fared in our absence.  Ilha de Mozambique has been a World Heritage Site for 30 years, based almost exclusively on its colonial architecture. In contrast its maritime heritage has not received the recognition it deserves and has been compromised by the activities of salvage operators pillaging European shipwrecks for commercial purposes. Thanks to the efforts of dedicated heritage advocates the practise of licensing such companies was ended some years ago. The establishment of Centro de Arqueologia Investigação e Recursos da Ilha de Moçambique (CAIRIM) in 2018 served to put maritime heritage interests on a new footing, becoming a focus for training and research on the island. The centre are key partners in the Northern Mozambique project, along with Eduardo Mondlane University, Ulster University and the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal.

CAIRIM were the generous hosts of a workshop conducted by the project team in order to re-establish contact with the community, summarize the key results of the geophysical survey and explore future directions for maritime heritage in the region. The workshop was attended by a range of institutions and local government representatives (the mayor, museum, tourism board, Lúrio University, GACIM – the conservation agency); businesses (tour operators, shop owners); citizens and students. Attendees appreciated our efforts to personally update them on the project and were tremendously helpful in identifying key stakeholders and their contacts for interview over the following weeks.

L-R Ana Sousa Santos (RftD), Chafim Braga (CAIRIM), Wes Forsythe (RftD) and Crimildo Chambe (CAIRIM).

A further highlight was meeting with a local youth group involved in recording elements of intangible heritage from the Ilha. They were engaged in collecting a broad collection of relevant material including rituals and beliefs, language, peoples, neighbourhoods and slavery. The work is coordinated by CAIRIM’s Chafim Braga and toward the end of our trip Chafim organised a further three-day workshop presenting the intangible heritage work as a series of story-mapping projects. The workshop brought together the youth activists, members of CAIRIM’s maritime archaeology research team, and heritage professionals from Ilha and elsewhere in Mozambique. While Marine Cultural Heritage is the main focus of CAIRIM, the presentations at the workshop often elided the sharp distinction between built heritage and marine heritage, allowing for a much more integrated understanding of Ilha’s heritage landscape. This has both advantages and disadvantages when it comes to conservation efforts and the definition of spheres of responsibility blurring the arenas of intervention by different entities. Alongside the presentations and discussions there were visits to the Museum and a brief dive along the Fort showcasing the island’s diverse heritage landscape.

The time between the two workshops was spent in discussions with stakeholders, which provided context and a broader base from which to interpret on-going activities, threats, challenges, and opportunities in the Ilha. Combined with scheduled interviews were a series of serendipitous conversations with residents in Ilha as well as visitors, the Portuguese cooperation agency, and NGO workers involved in a series of local initiatives that were either directly or tangentially related to Marine Cultural Heritage, and whose perspectives and experiences were valuable. These conversations and observations helped understand the heritage environment in the Ilha as one of intense activity, with a wide diversity of projects. Activities undertaken at present address both natural and cultural environments and include the collection of plastics washed ashore, the revitalising of arts and crafts, work with school children to raise environmental concerns, and the collections of local histories and maritime traditions. While positive, these activities seldom see their efforts rewarded with continuity. Cultural Heritage in the Ilha is understood as beneficial in a province with socio-economic difficulties and low employment, however it remains remote to most of the population not working directly within the tourism or heritage sectors, suggesting the need to further awareness, and harness the local potential for development in ways that offer improved livelihoods. The project will now take these findings forward to propose a series of policy and protection recommendations aimed at regional and national agencies.

The Rising from the Depths workshop at CAIRIM

The project was pleased to return to the Ilha after a long absence and gratified by the response from the local community and all the support received by CAIRIM. Our work on long-term environmental change as a context for marine heritage continues to have resonance as a means to enhance the understanding of individual sites and climate change more broadly. While the challenges facing islanders are considerable there is reason for being optimistic that this most outstanding site for marine cultural heritage in Mozambique can offer a means to improve outcomes for communities in future.

Workshop on Maritime Cultural Heritage in Mozambique

When?

22 December 2021 (13.00-15.30 Central African Time / 10.00 – 11.30 GMT)

Overview

We are delighted to invite you to attend a research workshop to share your insights into the social benefits of the conservation of maritime cultural heritage in Mozambique, concerning the challenges and opportunities in a time full of uncertainties. The workshop is part of a research project that seeks to develop a future framework for Community Involvement and Social Investment for A Sustainable and Inclusive Management of Maritime Cultural Heritage in Mozambique. The project is led by the research team based in the University of Glasgow (UK) in partnership with Eduardo Mondlane University (Mozambique) and UNESCO Mozambique. It is one of the several interrelated research projects funded by the Rising from the Depths network sponsored by the UK’s Arts and Humanities Research Council through its Global Challenges Research Fund that aim to utilise Maritime Cultural Heritage to deliver sustainable development.

Objectives

The purpose of this workshop is to bring together representatives from the local and national government, higher education (e.g., universities), tourism industry, charitable organisation as well as local communities to discuss how local maritime cultural heritage is used and perceived, as well as how we could progress towards inclusive management of maritime cultural heritage in Mozambique.

In particular, the discussion will focus on the following issues

• What are the key political and legislative challenges hindering the protection of maritime cultural heritage in Mozambique?
• What are the impacts of major development projects, such as port infrastructures, on local communities’ wellbeing?
• What is the role (negative/positive) played by the tourism industry in maritime cultural heritage conservation for future generations?
• What is the relevance of maritime cultural heritage for the local population?
• How important is conserving maritime cultural heritage in the national and local policy agenda?
• What do policymakers need to do in order to conserve maritime cultural heritage?
• How local communities could become involved in the management of maritime heritage in Mozambique?
• How to maximise the social benefit of maritime cultural heritage to local communities, especially for women, minorities, youth, and the deprived?

Expected Outcomes

All discussions will be recorded and fed into a technical report – mapping of legislative and governance challenges to the conservation of maritime cultural heritage in Mozambique.

Workshop Programme & Participation Information

Workshop 1: Marine Cultural Heritage, Climate Change, and the Environment

Occurred: 27 October 2021 (10 am to 1 pm, UK)

Overview and Discussion Points

In the same week as COP26 commences in Glasgow, the Rising from the Depths (RftD) Network met to discuss how their projects have been effected by climate change, and how the Network has worked to mitigate the effects of a changing climate on vulnerable coastal communities and their natural and cultural heritage. Speakers from East Africa and the UK discussed a range of environmental and cultural issues, from both community and policy-level perspectives. The presentations and subsequent discussions highlighted several overlaps between regions, particularly regarding the identification and translation of Marine Cultural Heritage (MCH) into policy. Various opportunities to develop the role of living practices, and traditional and local knowledge within frameworks such as Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), Marine Reserves, as well as policy instruments such as Tanzania’s National Adaptation Plan were highlighted. Ultimately, evidence was provided for both the vulnerability and centrality of cultural resources to the sustainability of local communities in the face of climate change. A major benefit of the RftD approach was seen to be providing a regional ecosystem approach (with a social and cultural element rather than focusing in technical aspects) and, most importantly, in giving communities in the region a voice.

Projects Presented

• Using fishers’ traditional maritime knowledge to improve small-scale fisheries management in northern Madagascar, Chris Poonian, C3 UK
• Establishing a framework for Traditional Heritage Knowledge in Sustainable Development of East African Small-Island and coastal communities (THeK-EA), Chris McGonigle, University of Ulster, and Chepkemboi Labatt, Kenya Marine and Fisheries Institute
• Incorporating Marine Cultural Heritage Protection into Tanzania’s National Adaptation Plan, Hayley Roberts, Bangor University
• East Pemba maritime heritage project, Mark Horton, Royal Agricultural University
• Embracing social learning in the management of ecosystem services in Chonguene district, Gaza province, Mozambique, Zacarias Alexandre Ombe, Universidade Pedagogica
• Marine Cultural Heritage in Northern Mozambique, Wes Forsythe, Ulster University
• The Kisima Project: Historic and future well management on Kilwa Kisiwani, Tanzania, Elgidius B. Ichumbaki, University of Dar es Salaam
• CoastSnap Mozambique, Luciana Esteves, Bournemouth University

 Primary Findings

Various challenges have been identified across projects, and were often contrasted with the challenges facing natural resources in the region:

• Regarding the integration of cultural values into policy, speakers brought up two primary challenges: the lack of knowledge regarding how to measure and value MCH alongside natural resources; and how to translate these values into community-centric management when there is a lack of understanding and capacity at a policy-maker level. The identification of the right policy-makers, as well as the engagement of targeted dialogue with them, was identified as a major challenge to influence change in the region.There is a lack of clarity at the governmental level not only on the value of marine cultural heritage but on what it actually is – in that most governments view cultural heritage (especially underwater cultural heritage) as a costly resource to be protected rather than a source of information and practice that can inform sustainable approaches. Often the importance of heritage is reduced to its role in sustainable tourism. One of the lessons of the Rising from the Depths projects funded so far is that marine heritage is much more than tourism – it is culture – it is a living and past resource that can inform future practice in the marine zone.The younger generations are not engaging with traditional practices and cultural traditions are being lost. Younger people as a group face the most instability in terms of climate change – as traditional knowledge is not being passed on, communities are losing potential resilience to social and cultural change.
• With regards to coastal development and community practice, most projects identified a community awareness of the fragility of the natural and cultural coastal resources. Local voices were put at the center of discussion, although it was recognized that work needs to be done to integrate local knowledge and belief systems, as well as cultural sensitivity into coastal development, particularly regarding eco and sustainable tourism protocols and regional over-fishing.

• Regarding future research, oppositional constructs were identified regarding the value of MCH between the Global North and South, as well as between professional practitioners, policy-makers, and communities. Further work needs to be conducted to understand and minimize structural inequalities between these constructs, to effectively integrate cultural values into policy. An example of structural differences in local knowledge was identified between generations, and it was suggested that integrating scientific evidence with local practice may re-engage younger generations with sustainable and traditional protocols.

• Overall, the social and cultural elements of climate change were identified by a number of projects, yet still remain undervalued, and under-researched. Future work needs to be conducted into understanding how to identify, monitor, and integrate cultural services into climate change mitigation strategies for the benefit of both the natural and cultural resources, and the communities which depend on them.

It was clear that significant work has been achieved to kickstart these discussions in the region, and future work should focus on disseminating these results into policy and practice.

Wes Forsythe, from the University of Ulster, presenting on their finsing during the RftD project “Marine Cultural Heritage in Northern Mozambique”.

Concluding Remarks

Throughout the discussions, it became clear that traditional livelihood systems, practices, and beliefs – which form the customary regulation frameworks of coastal communities – are at risk of being lost due to a lack of awareness at a governmental-level, and a lack of inclusion within national development policies. The survival of local communities largely depends on the sustainability of marine resources, which in turn, depend upon the re-centring of sustainable, traditional knowledge and practices.

A clear understanding of MCH values and practices, together with local representatives in the policy and decision-making processes, is essential to ensuring preservation and the sustainability of livelihoods at a local level. This is particularly the case when coping with the global challenges posed by climate change. Certainly, RftD projects are showing the direct relation and impact of global policies within the local, living realities of MCH, as well as how urgent it is to include local voices, traditional knowledge and regulations into the wider debate and policy making.

The Workshop also showed that it is only through interdisciplinarity, and community and ecosystems-based integrated approaches that transformation can be achieved. In this sense, it is important to reflect on how we address MCH from an expert perspective to a community one, from the Global North approach, to the needs, narratives and understanding in the Global South.

This was the first workshop organized between the Rising from the Depths Network Innovation projects.  A Second RftD Workshop will dive more into this community-based approach throughout the governance of marine cultural and natural resources within the innovation projects, and a third one will look into creative industries and traditional arts related to the Marine Cultural Heritage and its use.

June 2021

The WITH Coastal Style project, supported by the Rising from the Depths (RftD) Network is researching the role of material heritage amongst women in coastal Katembe district, across the bay from the Mozambican capital city, Maputo. The project focuses on understanding and highlighting the complex relationship between tradition and change in the lives of women in Katembe through the capulana, a cloth worn by women throughout Mozambique. Through discussion about capulana, the project provides a forum for women to discuss wider issues relating to their lives at a time of major infrastructural development around Maputo.

In March 2020 flights were booked, visa applications processed, accommodation arranged. The plan was for the National Museums Scotland (NMS) team (Sarah Worden and John Giblin) to join the team in Maputo (Co-Investigator Valda Marcos, Post Graduate Researchers Emilia Machaieie and Claudio Mondlate, and photographer Yassmin Fortes) for the installation of a temporary exhibition at the Fortress Museum in Maputo, a milestone in the delivery of the project. Just days away from travel the pandemic hit our project plans and everything was put on hold. Challenging as this was, we are delighted to report that on 28th May 2021, over thirteen months later than originally planned the exhibition opened. Sadly the NMS team were still unable to travel to be part of the installation and opening event. As curator of the host venue, Co-Investigator Moises Timba co-ordinated the content, installation and opening of the exhibition with the rest of the Mozambican team.

Invitation to the WITH Coastal Style Exhibition opening event

The Exhibition

The exhibition takes as its focus a group of women from Katembe, a coastal fishing community on the South Western side of Maputo Bay who participated in the project research. Proposed urbanization of the Katembe area following the construction of the Maputo-Katembe Bridge in 2019 is likely to impact on the material practices and living traditions of the residents of the small fishing communities in the area. Life by and on the sea, catching, selling and eating fish, is a source of community solidarity that spans generations in Katembe. Through a series of powerful photographs taken among the mothers, daughters, sisters, and friends of Katembe the visitor is introduced to the project, the women, their coastal environment and the role of the cotton printed capulana in their lives as an expression of identity and cultural heritage.

The bi-lingual text panels (Portuguese and English) outlining the research emphasise the collaborative nature of this international project. A personal quote from one of the research participants relating to the significance of the capulana introduces each section panel.

‘I use capulana because I am a Mozambican woman!’

Dona Zena, 22 years, Mahlampfane, Katembe, November 2019

‘Every woman always has to wear a capulana … capulana can be useful in various situations … be it menstruation, pregnancy, carry a baby, go to the market, go to the hospital, in case of accident … ‘

Dona Cristina, 54 years, Guachene, Katembe, November 2019

Collected during the research interviews, these responses are incisive and thought-provoking and, with the images, have been selected to generate discussion and debate concerning the role of material heritage in connecting communities.

The exhibition is ready for visitors in the gallery space of the Fortress Museum

Opening Event

Covid restrictions limited the number of invited guests at the opening event, but a range of institutions were represented, including: Eduardo Mondlane University, Director of Culture, Faculty of Art and Social Sciences, CECOMA (Communication centre of UEM), Ministry of Culture and Tourism (National Director of Heritage), UNESCO, Fisheries Museum (Project partner), and ISARC (Higher Institute of Art & Culture, Mozambique). Among the other guests were university assistants and artists based in Maputo. A welcome speech, including a message from Sarah Worden (NMS), was delivered by RftD Network Co-ordinator for Mozambique, Solange Macamo, Lecturer of Archaeology and Heritage Management in the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology (UEM), who has, throughout the project, provided invaluable support and guidance to the project team

One of the exhibition gallery spaces at the Fortress Museum

Following the opening speeches refreshments were served and a lively performance by Sekerekane, a local female dance group. The sound for the event was organized by Julio, a DJ from the School of Communication and Art (ECA) /UEM).

Exhibition opening speeches in the grounds of the Fortress Museum

A group of women from the project research group also attended the opening, with transport from Katembe organised by the Fisheries Museum. Project team members Emilia and Claudio were on hand to guide the group through the exhibition in which the women are the ‘stars’, and to record their re-actions to the displays to include in the research. Wearing their matching capulana, the design selected by the group in November 2019, as a thank-you gift to the women for their participation in the project, their presence made a powerful visual statement of the role of the capulana in group identity.

The opening event included entertainment by Sekerekane dance troupe

Project team members Moises, Claudio and Emilia with representatives of the Katembe research group

Invited guests view the exhibition displays

Emilia introduces members of the Katembe research group to the exhibition

Members of the Katembe research group, wearing matching capulanas, are among the first to visit the displays

Members of the team have participated in a number of broadcasting events to talk about the project and the exhibition including national Radio station SFM and CECOMA, a centre of communication of UEM who also interviewed others in the project team. Moises Timba also made an appearance on the popular TVM Bom Dia Mocambique programme to talk about the exhibition. Media interest has also included interviews with Yassmin by Mazanga for Radio Mozambique and for Flash radio programme.

We look forward to further project outcomes including the preparation and opening of an itinerant, touring, exhibition in Katembe where the research took place organised by the Fisheries Museum in Maputo, taking the project in a different format to schools and local communities later in the year. You can see more details of the project in the link  Rising from the Depths » Women’s Identity, Textiles and Heritage: Coastal Style in Mozambique (WITH Coastal Style) and in the dedicated page of the National Museums of Scotland, at Women, identity, textiles and heritage in Mozambique | National Museums Scotland Blog

Wycliffe Omondi, PI of Mtwapa: Utilisation of Marine Cultural Heritage by a Multicultural Community shares images taken during his initial fieldwork at Mtwapa Beach:

Project Co-Investigator, Solange Macamo, has joined the WITH Coastal Style team during their interviews in Katembe.

Solange said: “I have joined the field work, in Katembe and I have learnt how to interview women there, for collecting  data about textiles. Women were proud to tell their life history related to textiles. There are both social and economic values associated to the textiles, as part of the marine cultural heritage,  specifically in Katembe. My role in the field was to help to translate whenever it was necessary.”

You can read the full blog on the visit here.

Members of the Rising from the Depths Network might be interested in an upcoming conference being held in South Africa:

Coastal Hazards in Africa

October 2020 | Durban, South Africa

The purpose of this meeting is to bring together scientists and managers interested in African coastal zones in order to develop our understanding of these risks and hazards while considering the current state of coastal zones around Africa. Additionally, this meeting provides a platform to discuss and propose measures to address and manage these risks. Click here for the conference website. Submit abstracts by 29 February 2020.