Terra Nova Humanitarian Projects
Various Projects at Red Hill Creche
Redhill is just a couple of kilometres away from the Cape Point Nature Reserve. Some people would love to live in this unspoilt, stunning area, but for the inhabitants of Redhill it is a never-ending cast, which causes a tougher life. The solitude makes it hard to find work or even send the kids to school. In summer 2006, a bush fire destroyed a couple of houses and damaged some facilities. However, the little ones are the most effected, due to a lack of well-balanced nutrition, primary health care, parental care, and education. Therefore, a charity organisation founded the Redhill Community Pre-School Project, which advocates children to have a fair chance for a better future. The Kids are prepared for school life, are taught the simplest skills of daily living and thus get to experience how beautiful a childhood can be without hunger and sorrows. At the moment the school operates from old shipping containers, where each container serves as one classroom and one container as a kitchen. Terra Nova continuously supports Red Hill Creche. Christmas Tree and School…
read full articleThokozani Brothers – Afternoon Activity Centre for children in Khayelitsha
The Thokozani Brothers are an Acapella Adult Men Choir that perform regularly for both local and international audiences. All the men originate and still live in Khayelitsha, one of Cape Town’s largest townships. Many kids in their community spend afternoons on the street, while their parents are still at work, and therefore often face danger or the risk of getting mixed up in the wrong crowds. The Thokozani Brothers all share a passion for music and singing, and thought it great to teach these kids something useful and meaningful, instead of being left to their own devices, during these afternoons. Soon the Thokozani Brothers Children’s Afternoon Programme was born. Since 2007 nearly 80 kids have the opportunity to participate in this afternoon programme where they are taught life skills, music, singing and dancing. The brothers share the afternoon duties with other part-time volunteers and life-skills facilitators. Thanks to the generous donation of our clients Aral & City Innovation in May 2009, they were able to buy music instru-ments and sound equipment, which has enabled them offer music lessons to the…
read full articleThe ORCA Foundation – Planet Green Ocean Blue: Carbon Neutral Travel
Planet Green Ocean Blue is one of the initiatives of the ORCA Foundation – a non-profit organisation set up in 2001 based in Plettenberg Bay on the world famous Garden Route in South Africa. Planet Green Ocean Blue’s work embraces best practices in sustainable environmental activities that use local labour while also playing an important role restoring indigenous forest and reducing the carbon emissions that are threatening our planet. They are restoring denuded areas in the Garden Route, South Africa by planting in areas where conditions are ideal for an indigenous forest to be restored to its former status. They have carefully monitored agreements with land owners to ensure the trees will be kept safe once planted, and with the aid of nurseries and experts they select that the best suitable trees are planted to ensure their survival. Terra Nova is proud to announce that every year we calculate our annual carbon offset, and have planted trees to neutralise this accordingly, making us the first official carbon neutral tour operator in South Africa. We have been given the GPS coordinates…
read full articleJikeleza Dance Project
The Jikeleza (Xhosa: “turn around” or “pirouette”) Dance Project, established in April 2002, currently teaches dance (African, contemporary, Spanish and classical ballet) and music (marimbas and drumming) to children and young people from the informal settlement of Imizamo Yethu and the Hangberg Harbour community in Hout Bay, in Nyanga township and at the Learn-to-Live Program for street children in Green Point. In addition to providing high quality, dedicated dance and music training, offering its young beneficiaries creative, fulfilling and developmentally based recreational opportunities and exposure to participation in professional performances, the project has a number of value adding components. The transfer of performing arts skills for greater employability (the development and preparation of young dancers and musicians for employment in professional companies or as educators); Its reintegration initiative with homeless children from the streets as well as the monitoring and support of rehabilitated street children; and Educational and awareness raising initiatives around community issues such as HIV/Aids, substance abuse, sexual exploitation and abuse, and environmental concerns, among others. The organisation, which has experienced rapid growth and considerable success since its…
read full articleFood Tents
Most NGOs and schools with feeding schemes constantly battle to source and secure supplies of nutritious food. Without proper diets needy people, especially children, are vulnerable to fatigue, lethargy, poor concentration, study problems and disease, which impairs their growth, restricts their potential and worsens their suffering. A FoodTent is like a big tent made of shade cloth. It can be erected in 45 minutes. A FoodTent stands 2m high, 4m wide and 9m long. This revolutionary, make-shift greenhouse increases the production of fruit and vegetables significantly, feeding approximate fifty people per month. The produce from a FoodTent can be used to supplement a current feeding scheme or initiate one. To qualify for a FoodTent all organizations need is sufficient space, access to water, a small amount of manpower and the will to feed hungry tummies. FoodTent installations make fantastic, fun, inexpensive, easy-to-do half day staff community projects. Staff from the Terra Nova team joined one of these builds in October 2009 at the Zanokhanyo Orphanage/Children’s home in Khayelitsha, where Nolubabalo and her husband look after 25 children with very little…
read full articleDreamfields Soccer and Samsung – growing dreams
Since October 2007, The Dream Fields Project has used the excitement around soccer in South Africa to leverage significant investment in soccer facilities and equipment for township and rural schools. DreamEvents bring schools, sponsors and the community together for a tournament, an exhilarating all-day celebration of the power of soccer to inspire the best in all of us. Terra Nova has partnered up with Dreamfields and incorporates Dreamfields concept into incentive-programs. Samsung Digital Printing from Germany were very excited to get involved with Dreamfields and sponsored DreamBags containing soccer kits for 4 Primary Schools in Moruleng close to Pilanesberg National Park, on a recent incentive-trip to South Africa. The children were very happy as for most of them it was their first proper soccer outfit and they were able to play at the new Rustenburg stadium, especially built for the FIFA Soccer World Cup 2010. A mini-tournament was played between these 4 schools and a friendly match was played between the local soccer team and our client Samsung. Everyone involved enjoyed a very fun and emotional day. DreamBags mean so…
read full articleHabitat for Humanity – House Builds
Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI) is a non-profit, Christian housing organization that operates as a worldwide ministry seeking to provide simple, decent and affordable housing to communities, in need, throughout the world. Habitat for Humanity South Africa (HFHSA) has been actively building in South Africa since 1996 and to date over 2200 houses have been constructed across 17 communities. As a community development organization HFHSA engages with local communities in the greater Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg areas. There are many ways in which individual and groups can support the community development work of HFH. Building opportunities are available for corporate, church and school groups as well as individuals. Two of the Terra Nova staff, Thomas Lucet & Nici Meyer joined in on the annual “Desmond Tutu Building on Faith week” as part of 1750 volunteers who helped build 22 homes in 5 days in the Mfuleni community of Cape Town.
read full articleRustenburg Childrens-Choir & SOS Childrens Village
The Bright Stars Youth Development Project was founded in 2003. Due to many children showing great potential but nobody to support them, this project was created. Children from the community and the SOS Children’s Village come together and since Music and Rhythmic is in their nature a music group was started up to keep the children busy in their spare time and bring them together. The children choir has approx 25 members in the age between 7-18 years. The Choir performs at local functions in the community, in the church and different parties. They sing traditional African songs, but can also sing more known songs, such as „lion sleeps tonight“ and „raise me up“. The choir is very young but through their enthusiasm have become well known already. Terra Nova often invites the choir to perform and welcome guests on their visit to South Africa and these clients are very happy to support the Youth Development Project in return. Recently money was collected from a German Automobil Club and Insurance Company, so that the Bright Stars Youth Development could set…
read full articleNeighbourhood Old Age Homes (NOAH)
NOAH is a model of housing and services for the poorest elderly people of the Western Cape. With 12 houses for the fit elderly, 2 assisted living facilities, 2 community centres, a primary health care clinic and a growing network of social clubs, NOAH provides a fully integrated package of care. Each year, NOAH reaches out to over 700 elderly people – helping them to feel secure and happy, stay connected to their communities, retain their dignity and independence and remain healthy and active for as long as possible. As many of our clients wish to support the children of South Africa, Terra Nova wanted to do something special for the elderly community as well. Most senior citizens of NOAH do not have the financial means or support to even leave the townships they live in. They very rarely see the beauty of Cape Town that we admire every day. This is why we invited 90 elderly people from NOAH and took them to one of our beautiful botanical gardens, where we enjoyed a morning of craft activity, delicious tea…
read full articleGo for Goals Soccer Tournament
The brief from a car manufacturer was to design a round trip “off the beaten tracks” with a social aspect, as their intention at the end of the trip was to donate vehicles for a good cause. Terra Nova executed a unique 4-day tour around the Western Cape with “soccer” as the theme. Highlights of the programme were soccer tournaments for street children on the beaches of remote towns, as well as a final playoff in the townships of Cape Town, culminating in the donation of two Mercedes Sprinter vehicles for a local soccer charity. The organisation assists underprivileged children by developing life skills and upliftment through sport. With the two sprinter vehicles, the organisation are now able to transport children to and from their homes to training facilities and matches.
read full articleBeach Soccer Event
One of our clients was interested to include a team-building activity with a social aspect into their travel itinerary. Terra Nova decided to organise an interactive soccer tournament with local underprivileged Children on Camps Bay Beach. Delegates were divided into groups and allocated a team of children, which they had to coach and support throughout the “round robin” soccer matches. The interaction between visiting guests and children was unbelievable. Delegates took their role very seriously and worked hard to encourage their teams to win the event. The loud cheers attracted a huge amount of spectators on the beach. The children were energetic and determined to win. They also enjoyed a fun day on the beach, which few of them have ever experienced, as well as the interaction with the foreign visitors. Funds donated by our client helped sports clubs in the townships to support their talented players and thus get them off the streets as well as maintain their sports grounds and buy new equipment.
read full article