!Khwa ttu’s Interns Discover the Ancient Wisdom of the Ocean with Sea Change

Last month, !Khwa ttu’s interns were given the opportunity to walk the salt-trodden path of their ancestors, along the wild coastline of the Cape Point Nature Reserve. Led by the passionate Sea Change team, including renowned trackers Craig Foster and Craig Marais, they learned to read the signs left behind by creatures of the coast, to understand the language of the tides, and to sense the silent stories told by footprints in the sand. 

One of the most profound moments was when the interns waded into the ocean, many for the very first time. In the 14-degree water, they were called upon to learn lessons in bravery, and on the shoreline afterwards, they were asked to reflect on the same aquatic journey their ancestors would have taken many moons ago. The students then worked with Kieran McShane, a highly knowledgeable UCT tracker and researcher, who took their personal experiences and crafted them into a beautiful book. 

For all of our interns, it was the first time their names and voices have appeared in a book. A story they can now take back to their families and communities, to help share what they have learned. A piece of themselves they can pass down, as their ancestors passed down knowledge before. !Khwa ttu is deeply grateful to the entire Sea Change Project team for their unwavering commitment to the restitution of this ancient knowledge and for giving our interns not only a connection to their past but also hope for their future.