Vote for SA's Wonders of Nature
2008-10-15 08:52
Birgit Ottermann
Cape Town - Four of South Africa's best known natural wonders have been nominated for the New7Wonders of Nature campaign, a contemporary effort to create a list of seven natural wonders chosen by people through a global poll.
To date over 400 natural wonders have been nominated from more than 200 countries worldwide, but in the end only the top seven wonders, with the most votes, will be chosen.
South Africa's four nominees are: the Cape of Good Hope and Table Mountain in the Western Cape, Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga and Limpopo, and Vredefort Crater in the Free State.
All nominees are clearly defined natural sites or natural monuments that were not created or significantly altered by humans for aesthetic reasons.
The campaign is being organised by the Swiss-based New7Wonders Foundation, after its success in organising the New Seven Wonders of the World, which where chosen by more than 100 million votes in the first-ever global campaign.
Very few votes for SA
According to Tia Viering, New7Wonders Head of Communications, millions of South Africans voted in the first New7Wonders campaign. "However, it seems the people of South Africa are not aware yet of the New7Wonders of Nature campaign?
"The Cape of Good Hope is languishing at rank 78 of 400+ nominees, with Kruger National Park at 134, Table Mountain at 228 and Vredefort Crater an abysmal 396," Viering told News24 on Tuesday.
According to Viering there is huge support for the campaign all over the world. "In Canada, in the US, in Mexico, in Brazil and Argentina for their national sites and for the shared Iguazu Falls, in Bangladesh, the Philippines, India, Serbia, Lebanon, Greece, Israel, Scotland, and many more places."
"My experience has been that people are invariably interested and happy to participate, glad to be a part of something positive and global - sharing as opposed to dividing," Viering told News24.
"But they simply have to find out about New7Wonders - kids, parents, people from all walks of life, they all vote and send us photos and pass it on, as soon as they hear about New7Wonders. It's getting the word out that is the really hard part!"
Spectacular landscape
Cape of Good Hope, one of the great capes of the South Atlantic Ocean, and Cape Town's iconic Table mountain are arguably the top tourist destinations in the Western Cape with their spectacular unspoilt scenery and rich flora and fauna heritage.
Both sites form an an integral part of the Cape Floral Kingdom (Fynbos), the smallest but richest of the world's six floral kingdoms.
The Kruger National Park is South Africa's largest game reserve with nearly 2 million hectares of wilderness across the provinces of Mpumalanga and Limpopo.
Home to an impressive number of species (336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds and 147 mammals, including the Big Five) it offers the ultimate safari experience.
The Vredefort Crater, also known as the Vredefort Dome, in the Free State is regarded as the biggest and oldest clearly visible impact crater on Earth.
Approximately two billion years ago an asteroid or comet some 5 to 10 kilometres wide is believed to have hit the earth just to the south-west of Johannesburg.
The result of the dramatic impact is a most spectacular landscape today between the Magaliesberg Range in the northeast and the Drakensberg Mountains in the southern Free State Province.
Only one nominee per country
According to Viering, the News7Wonder of Nature campaign is still in its initial stage, and is open to nominations until 31 December 2008.
"Nominations can be submitted for the New7Wonders of Nature campaign until December 31 2008. However, from 1 January 2009 only one national nominee per country will be allowed to proceed - the highest ranked in the voting on 31 December 2008," Viering said.
Therefore until the end of 2008, countries with more than one national nominee will be racing to choose the national representative that is allowed to continue into 2009.
Nominees shared by more than one country will remain and continue into 2009.
Voting for the campaign will continue through July 7 2009.
Thereafter, the New7Wonders of Nature Panel of Experts, under the leadership of Prof Federico Mayor, former Director-General of Unesco, will review the top 77 nominees and choose the 21 finalists, to be announced on 21 July 2009. The 21 finalists will be put to popular vote.
Official Supporting Committee
Check the world map on the New7Wonders website to ensure that your favourite natural site has been suggested, then get in touch with local authorities to make sure they form an Official Supporting Committee (OSC) for the nominee.
"It is important to note that without an OSC, a nominee cannot participate in the next stages of the New7Wonders of Nature campaign. Unfortunately none of the South African nominees have OSC's yet. Even though it's so easy to set one up - instructions are available on the website," Viering said.
You can only vote once in each stage (nominee/Top 77 stage and finalist stage) via the New7Wonders website, identifying yourself using your email address.
To vote for or nominate your favourite South African natural wonder click here.
- News24