Global Issues Network

1. GLOBAL ISSUES NETWORK
ENDEAVOURS
2017

2. TIE RECIPIENTS AS AUGUST OF 2017
• Logan Tait
• Derek Reissenzahn
• Finn Geldenhuys
• Chris Kotze
• Max Godfrey
• Michael Beckurts

3. PROJECTS
• World Biotech Tour – Logan Tait
• YESLP Conference – Logan Tait, Aedan Foulkes, Anton van Wyngaarden &
Derek Reissenzahn
• Learning resources donation – Logan Tait
• Riding for Rhinos – Callam Tait, Matt Perrott & Christopher Hyslop
• Nkonka Tagging Project - Callam Tait, Matt Perrott & Christopher Hyslop
• Rhinos in Africa donation – Max Godfrey
• Sustainable Agriculture Society – Aedan Foulkes, Anton van Wyngaarden,
Logan Tait, Alex Jankovich, Campbell Reyburn, Dave Cuthbert, Hugo Janssens,
Jack Graham, Nic Vine-Morris, Patrick Bowman, Tom Barty and Tom Coombe
• SAIIA environmental affairs – Finn Geldenhuys, Chris Kotze & Derek
Reissenzahn
• Human Impact projects – Finn Geldenhuys, Chris Kotze & Derek Reissenzahn
• House sustainability surveys – Logan Tait, Calvin-Ziegler Smith, Derek
Reissenzahn, Jamie Diggle, Navaar Rajoo, Jonathan Pletts,
• Increasing house sustainability initiative – Logan Tait
• Cedarberg cards – Michael Beckurts
• ISWEEP Engineering Expo – Junho Ko
• Owl Box – Finbarr Lebona, Lloyd Wood

4. WORLD BIOTECH TOUR 2017
• In June 2017, Logan Tait competed in
the Cape Town leg of the ‘World
Biotech Tour’.
• He presented a speech on his research
into the human microbiome, which
was coupled with an extensive
research essay he wrote on the topic.
• He won the competition and will be
travelling to Johannesburg in
September to compete against South
Africa’s other finalists and could go
through to Japan to represent South
Africa.

5. YESLP CONFERENCE
• The Youth Environmental Sustainability Leadership Programme was
held at Bishops on the last weekend of the July holiday.
• Logan Tait, Aedan Foulkes, Anton van Wyngaarden and Derek
Reissenzahn all represented Bishops.
• The four Bishops boys all presented speeches about sustainable
issues and met with the heads of various institutions to facilitate
discussions around sustainability in schools.

6. LEARNING RESOURCES DONATION
• Following Logan Tait’s success at the World Biotech Tour, he won a
high-end, Lasec microscope as a prize.
• He decided to use this microscope to kick-start another Global
Issues Network Project where he has donated it to the Ilingelethu
Secondary School, in Paarl.
• Along with his donation, he will be leading a demonstration and
practical display for a group of students attending the school, in
order to encourage scientific and biological exploration.

7. RHINOS & LEOPARDS DONATION AND
RESEARCH
• Max Godfrey completed a research project on
leopards. Aimed at finding out whether
leopards where leaving high concentration
predator conservation areas for low
conservation, relatively predator free areas, to
raise their young.
• This movement can expose them to potential
illegal hunting, and so he looked to find a
solution.
• His second project, followed on from a group
of grade 12's last year (2016), and was a charity
fundraiser, to raise funds towards the fight
against rhino poaching.
• By cycling the Cape Town cycle tour he raised
over R50 000 from kind donations towards this
noble cause.

8. SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE SOCIETY
• The Sustainable Agriculture Society, or
SAS, was founded by a group of grade
11 pupils with a passion for
permaculture.
• Their aim is to sustainably promote
food security within their community
and influence other people to change
their food consumption habits, for the
better.
• They occupy a small plot of land
beside the Oaks field where they grow
various organic vegetables, fruits,
legumes and more.
• They are placing an emphasis on
giving back to the ground staff and
cleaning staff.
• There is a plan to incorporate a social
responsibility element within our

9. SAIIA ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS
• Derek Reissenzahn, Finn Geldenhuys and Christopher Kotze all participated
in the SAIIA environmental affairs project.
• As a group, they wrote an essay that argued for Nuclear Energy as a viable and
preferable energy solution to provide reliable and high-yield energy production
to facilitate the transition to renewables. The essay was selected by SAIIA and
as a result, the group traveled to the Cradle of Humankind where they
presented the essay to a panel of judges.
• The group also attended workshops that dealt with issues of sustainability and
assessing policy documents. Derek received an award for “best speaker”.

10. HUMAN IMPACT PROJECT
• Derek Reissenzahn, Finn Geldenhuys and Christopher Kotze also
participated in the Human Impact on the Environment Project.
• They partnered with a group from Christel House.
• Together the groups produced a presentation that followed the
“Famelab” format where they presented various practical changes that
could be implemented into Bishops and Christel House in order to
increase their level of sustainability.

11. HOUSE SUSTAINABILITY SURVEYS
• During the first and second term of
2017, representatives from the three
boarding houses and five day boy
houses conducted research into the
consumption and wastage of water
and electricity in their respective
houses.
• A visual audit was conducted with the
results being photographed and
logged, as well as a ’Survey Monkey’
questionnaire in White House.
• The representatives have
subsequently worked with
“Terrafirma”, a company which
monitors the use of resources in
building, in order to increase their
understanding of issues and decrease
their wastage.

12. INCREASING HOUSE SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE
• Following an analysis of the results
of the boarding house usage audits,
Logan Tait has begun to
implement practical solutions in the
houses to promote sustainability.
• This includes the replacement of
liquid hand-soap with waterless
hand sanitizer, research into an
effective grey water system, the
implementation of lighting sensors
and more.

13. CEDARBERG CARDS
• The Cederberg Cards project is an ongoing
project, by Michael Beckurts, in aid of the
Elizabethfontein Primary School.
• While on the Bishops Epic he did sketches
and paintings of scenes in the Cederberg
and these have been printed into high
quality greeting cards.
• With the help of volunteers individual cards
and card packs have been packaged and are
being sold privately, at school functions and
at the Bishops School Shop.
• All the proceeds of the cards will be donated
to the Elizabethfontein Primary School.

14. ISWEEP ENGINEERING EXPO
• Junho Ko represented South Africa, in
Houston, Texas at an engineering expo
called the ISWEEP.
• Junho looked at how to lessen the effects of
extreme external temperatures on houses in
informal settlements, with recycled plastic
bottles, filled with water.
• The water in these bottles could also be
heated and used for showering.
• His project was placed third at the expo.

15. RIDING FOR RHINOS
• Callam Tait, Matt Perrott and Christopher
Hyslop launched a project known as ’Riding
for Rhinos’, in which they cycled 600km
from Cape Town to Knysna, in 6 days.
• The students set up a GoFundMe account
and raised R175 000 – this money was used
to fund the transport costs, veterinary costs,
equipment costs and more, in order to tag
and monitor two rhinos in the Kwa-Zulu
Natal area.
• Their contributions to protecting these
creatures gained widespread attention and
inspired other Bishops students to launch
similar projects.

16. NKONKA TAGGING PROJECT
• Following the success of ‘Riding for Rhinos’,
Callam Tait, Matt Perrott and Christopher
Hyslop were joined by Logan Tait, where
the four students travelled to the Nkonka
Wildlife Reserve.
• The students helped to track, tag, monitor
and tag two rhinos, as well as take various
recordings, samples and measurements of
the animals.
• The entire operation was funded by the
money they raised through their cycle.