//EDITOR’S LETTER – Nicky Furniss

How many of you remember watching the TV show 50/50 in the eighties or early nineties? It was broadcast on a Sunday evening on SABC and was so called partly because it was a duel English and Afrikaans medium programme. As many of you will know, the reason for this was that back in the day one of the SABC channels was divided between English and Afrikaans broadcasting. English programming was broadcast on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; and Afrikaans programming was flighted on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays (which necessitated those of us who were Afrikaans challenged tuning in to Radio 2000 for the English simulcast of such English shows as Beverly Hills 90210 and Life Goes On which had been dubbed into Afrikaans). Then, of course, Sundays were a mishmash of both English and Afrikaans shows, with 50/50 – being in the prime evening slot – including both languages. 50/50 is a wildlife and environmental show – because, believe it or not, it is still on air today, making it the longest running environmental show in the world – and features segments on wildlife documentaries, conservation stories, interesting animals and the like (50/50 also referring to the balance between humans and nature). I used to love that show, but it caused my mother endless anxiety, because at least once every two or three episodes I would end the evening in tears. It was incomprehensible to me that we could watch a pair of lion cubs for 20 minutes and then the documentary filmmakers would not intervene when one was wounded and eventually died. Or that the researcher would not help the chick that had fallen out of its nest – and don’t get me started on any mention of culling. Eventually my mum took to turning off the TV anytime there was a warning saying: “The following story may offend sensitive viewers.” She did the same for the daily news when there was any mention of dogs or cats. And on those occasions when she wasn’t fast enough with the off button, I would be told: Nature must be allowed to follow its own course and humans should not interfere in that. It was a hard pill to swallow for my nine-yearold self – and even sometimes now with my marshmallow heart for anything animal related – but I eventually understood and accepted the concept. Which makes it all the harder to accept the fact that we as humans – whether we intend to or not – are interfering with nature every single day, and its toll is getting harder and harder for the earth to bear. From extreme cases of poaching, hunting, habitat destruction, over-fishing and mass pollution, to the everyday things we do without even thinking about them. Buying peanut butter made using unsustainably sourced palm oil, accepting vegetables wrapped in non-biodegradable cling wrap, using harsh chemicals to clean our homes (which affects our own health too, by the way), driving to the shop which is a 10- minute walk away, not standing up more for animal rights (whether vocally or by “voting with your wallet” by not buying products that exploit or abuse animals). You may not personally be burning down rainforests or poisoning rivers, but by not trying to change your own destructive everyday behaviours, you are contributing to the problem. I am by no means a saint and am guilty of all of the above, but I am trying to be more aware and to make better choices every day. Because lots of tiny actions add up to huge ones – you just have to take a look at a 2 m tall termite mound to understand that. We’ve deliberating packed this edition with a host of wonderful animals and beautiful nature, to remind all of us of the privilege we all have of living on this planet. But if we’re not careful, our whole future will become a story to offend sensitive viewers and our children will be crying more than just once every few weeks. Let’s make a change! Nicky