Here’s the official blurb:

In today’s fast-paced and highly pressured society many South Africans’ health and wellness has been compromised by a time-starved lifestyle.

The Look & Feel Good expo is South Africa’s first, all-encompassing premium health, wellness and lifestyle event that will reflect the global move towards health, wellness, longevity, positivity, vitality, environmental awareness and sustainability.

Visitors to the Look & Feel Good expo will be exposed to a collective, indulgent lifestyle experience as they engage actively with exhibitors in a positive and dynamic environment.

To be honest, it sounds a bit hyped to me, but then these big expo’s so often do.  I’ll be going, out of curiosity, to see what’s on show at their ‘Greening Platform’ (though I’m not too fond of the phrase ‘going green’, or of ‘greening’, either), and perhaps the ‘Happiness Platform’ as well (!).

Anyway, I’m all for health, happiness and wellbeing – so I’ll be wandering along tomorrow and perhaps I can boost all three.

The Look & Feel Good Expo runs from Friday through Sunday at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

Dates and times:
10-12 September 2010
Fri: 11am-6pm
Sat: 9am-6pm
Sun: 9am-5pm

Cost:
Adults – R60.00
Scholars, students & pensioners – R40.00 (ID required)
Kids U10 FREE

And, since 2010 is the International Year of Biodiversity and Conservation, it’s bound to be an extra-special display.

Event Details:

“The Biodiversity Expo is the annual one – stop – shop for all your biodiversity conservation needs”

The year 2010 is the International Year of Biodiversity and Conservation. The Biodiversity Expo 2010 was designed to address the failure of many South Africans to recognise the true value of biodiversity. The Expo serves as a communication and education tool to reach those South Africans who will be responsible for the future of our countries environmental wealth.

Biodiversity Expo 2010 will have more than 30 conservation exhibitors. Exhibitions will focus on various conservation issues ranging from threatened species to calculating your carbon footprint. There will also be live animal displays, music and theatrical presentations.

Date & Time: 25 March 2010 to 28 March 2010 | 09h00 – 16h00
Entrance Charge: The Expo is free to all and is at the Visitor Centre, but free garden entry is subject to special conditions.
How to book / obtain tickets: Contact Augustine Morkel on a.morkel@sanbi.org.za
Venue / Location: Old Mutual Conference Centre, Kirstenbosch NBG

Description: The Expo will have more than 30 conservation exhibitors exhibiting on various conservation issues ranging from threatened species to calculating your carbon footprint. Thursday and Friday are primarily targeted at schools and we are expecting a rush on the Thursday and Friday mornings – general welcome as well.

On Sunday we have a special program, sponsored by Cape Nature, planned where Avril Kinsey and other musicians will be performing various music pieces related to environmental issues. We will also have the Jungle Theatre Company presenting “Hoerikwaggo”, an interactive performance that speaks to young and old, kindly sponsored by the Provincial Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning. SANBI’s guest speaker, Dr. Guy Midgley, one of SA’s leading experts on climate change will be doing a presentation.

To close off we will have Cape Nature launch their new program on CTV. The partnership with the Frank Joubert and the Ibhabhatane Project sees learners from previously disadvantaged communities interpret “Biodiversity” through art and this will be displayed from the Thursday to the Sunday.

Contact Details: Augustine Morkel on a.morkel@sanbi.org.za

More details available on the SANBI website.

Meet a Western Leopard Toad

The hard-working ToadNUTS (Noordehoek Unpaid Toad Savers) asked me to highlight the following part of the expo:

“The western leopard toad is a locally endemic frog species, occurring in the southern reaches of Cape Town and around a handful of breeding localities in the Overstrand region of Gansbaai, Standford and Cape Agulhas National Park. This attractive toad is listed as endangered with extinction by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature for reasons such as the loss of habitat to urbanization and agriculture; and road mortalities by motorists. Regardless of these impacts, the leopard toad still manages to hold on for dear life living in urban gardens with a multitude of threats impinging on its survival daily. These resilient toads are an exceptional example of how biodiversity can show resistance and strength under the most difficult circumstances.

Visit the Biodiversity Expo at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and meet a western leopard toad and volunteers in person, as well as other fantastic exhibits showcasing what conservation in South Africa has to offer. “

The Design Indaba conference is currently running and will end on Friday 28 February. The event will see the likes of Jonathan Shapiro (Zapiro), Martha Stewart, Wooser Collective, Michael Edwards, ZA News, Mokena Makeka and Doug Pray, to name but a few, giving presentations.

Unfortunately, tickets for the conference are already sold out. However, a real-time broadcast of the speakers’ presentations (dubbed the Young Designers Simulcast) will be available for students and emerging designers under the age of 25, details of which are available on the official website.

International All Stars from every discipline under the sun have been showing off their inventive prowess at the Design Indaba Conference since 1995. Drawing fans from creative, corporate and educational sectors alike, the conference has become the playing field for the imaginative at heart.

Championing creativity that enhances every aspect of the world around us, Design Indaba recognises graphic design, advertising, film, music, fashion design, industrial design, architecture, craft, visual art, new media, publishing, broadcasting and performing arts shoulder-to-shoulder.

The Design Indaba expo forms part of this weekend’s highlights in the mother city. The expo kicks off on Friday until Sunday and I have it on great authority that it will be jam-packed with all sorts of interesting stalls and up-and-coming designers (up to 260 of them, in fact!).

Design Indaba Expo is a 100% local-is-lekker celebration of South Africa’s ingrained creativity. Advertising, architecture, craft, décor, film, fashion, graphic design, interior design, jewellery, new media, publishing, product design and visual media, are all presented shoulder-to-shoulder.

Each of the over 260 exhibitors is evaluated and endorsed by an advisory panel of top South African designers, stylists, critics and industry experts. Setting a high curatorial standard, all products are original, contemporary and innovative, not to mention conceived and manufactured in South Africa.

A chock-a-block daily programme of additional activities will fuel the buzz. All-day fashion shows, a short-film festival, the new Design Indaba Kids workshops, a suave designer bar, tantalising designer food and daily Pecha Kucha presentations by leading local creatives are just some of the highlights to look forward to.

One promising exhibitor that I have come across is the team behind the ‘kô_sit’ concept (derived from the Afrikaans term ‘kom sit’). The team has developed both a means to dispose of man-made waste (including newspaper, plastic bags, shredded paper and old fabrics) and a means to uplift an under-privileged community.

In short, they’ve designed a sustainable product to be used as furniture in a market in the suburb of Idas Valley with the hope of the concept sparking a creative initiative within the community. Recycling initiatives in the local schools will provide the innards of the furniture, for example. As a result of increasing world-wide attention on going ‘green’, I can imagine that sustainable designs will form a large proportion of the products exhibited.

Expo ticket prices are inexpensive (R50 for adults) and can be booked through computicket. Doors open from 10:00 – 20:00 on Friday and Saturday and until 18h:00 on Sunday.

I’ve been three times now, last year, the year before that and back in 2005, where I saw the exhibit at the Natural History Museum in London.  Every single time was exceptional, with incredible images that stay with you long after you’ve left the building.  And this year’s offering looks set to be just as tasty.

To give you some idea of what it’s all about:

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition is an international showcase for the very best photography featuring natural subjects. The competition is owned by two UK institutions that pride themselves on revealing and championing the diversity of life on Earth – the Natural History Museum and BBC Wildlife Magazine – and is brought to South Africa by
NHU AFRICA.

Each year thousands of entries are received and judged by a specially selected expert panel. From vivid, colourful landscapes to intimate portraits of animal behaviour, the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition offers an extraordinary insight into the beauty, drama and diversity of the natural world.

If you need a visual teaser, take a look at the online gallery, but it really truly is worth going to the exhibit itself at least once, probably twice (and it only costs R15 a pop).

Some of the photographs I’m particularly looking forward to seeing are those in the ‘One Earth Award‘ category:

This award highlights conservation issues or actions and the interaction between humans and the natural world. Images must demonstrate the power and resilience of our planet and its impact on us. Whether graphic or symbolic, each picture must be thought provoking, memorable and encourage respect or concern for our natural world.

So, the exhibit is already on at the South African Museum, and will run until the 13th of March 2010.  I haven’t seen it yet, but will definitely be heading there very soon…  Miss it, and you will definitely be missing out!

(Photo credit: Robert Friel, UK)