2018 WESSA Annual Review

Water, energy and food form the basis of a self-sufficient economy, and as such, also forms the basis of the WESSA Water and Energy Programme. South Africa is a water-scarce country with small amounts of arable land, and a heavy reliance on fossil fuel energy. The Water and Energy Programme offers integrated projects which aim to identify innovations in energy efficiency and water conserva- tion with South African learners. The resultant positive actions contribute to the sustainable use of water and energy, and the associated learning develops prac- tical skills for a sustainable future. Mitigate Now!: Learners and their families audit their elec- trical consumption. They then implement mitigation strategies and challenge other schools to do the same through an on-line system. Amanzi Ayimpilo: Amanzi Ayimpilo, or ‘Water is Life’ supports learners in rural areas to build adaptation installations which will increase their resil- ience to a changing climate. Clean Currents: High school learners build small-scale re- newable energy installations and intro-

duce these to their community at open days. The Clean Currents project is imple- mented in 12 schools in 6 provinces and learners have been building installations at their schools, experimenting with various designs of solar cookers; solar water heat- ers; and water harvesting projects. River Stewardship Project: Young learners test the water quality of the river and compare their results with oth- er schools from upper catchment to lower catchment areas. Water-Energy-Food Nexus Project: The relationship between water, energy and food is supported in rural villages with the school as the demonstration hub. Learners kick-start their projects with the installation of an integrated biogas system which generates gas that is used to cook the school meals; generates biogas slurry as organic fertiliser for use on the school food garden; provides water for the food garden and thereby provides fresh vegeta- bles for the school feeding programme. Energy and Change Project: Grade 6 learners from rural areas are pro- vided with energy kits which enhance their learning of electricity and simple circuits. This project is directly aligned to the CAPS curriculum.

Clean Currents Sustainable Energy Projects:

6 participating provinces

180 students involved

96 planned installations

12 participating schools

19

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