and focus instead on the seaweed the endless underwater forests of kelp. i think we should check out the cave and have a look if the sharks are there. i ve come here with a group of activists who want to draw the world s attention to this extraordinary, but little known ecosystem. they re calling it the great african sea forest. we hear so much talk about coral and about the great barrier reef, but there are these giant underwater forests, and they are so important, just as important when it comes to climate and climate change. there s a big value in these kelp forest ecosystems. they protect from storm surges because they break the waves, they prevent coastal erosion, they sequester a lot of carbon which is mitigating global climate change.
the exotic creatures crowding the cold waters near cape town and focus instead on the seaweed the endless underwater forests of kelp. i think we should check out the cave and have a look if the sharks are there. i ve come here with a group of activists who want to draw the world s attention to this extraordinary, but little known ecosystem. they re calling it the great african sea forest. we hear so much talk about coral and about the great barrier reef, but there are these giant underwater forests, and they are so important, just as important when it comes to climate and climate change. there s a big value in these kelp forest ecosystems. they protect from storm surges because they break the waves, they prevent coastal erosion, they sequester a lot
and then itjust happens. i put my hand out a tiny bit. it was here that these divers filmed a documentary my octopus teacher. it became a global hit. but the kelp is the bigger story, covering a quarter of the world s coastlines. for now, the kelp in south africa is so plentiful that it can be harvested sustainably, for all sorts of human uses, from fertiliser to face cream. the mineral rich fronds can grow half a metre a day. but these forests, acutely vulnerable to rising sea temperatures, are struggling elsewhere, hence the push to raise public awareness. we thought we have to give it an identity, and the reason for that was because if we want to do any kind of long term conservation of this ecosystem, we need to make people aware of it first. when you think wild, you think serengeti, mara, you know, great barrier reef.
we, in ourworld, we in the literacy charity world, children s book authors, we visit so many schools, we know how unequal this provision is and how essential it is to provide this funding for school libraries, and the support for teachers and a reading culture, as i say, we are going to be showing how, in these gold standard primary school libraries, how they really can transform lives. good libraries can transform lives. the bafta winning netflix documentary my octopus teacher tells story of a film maker who befriends an octopus. it was filmed off the coast of cape town in one of the world s richest ecosystems now the makers of the documentary are part of a campaign to preserve the underwater forest. our africa correspondent andrew harding went under water to bring us this report. the sea life here is spectacular. but try for a moment to look past the exotic creatures crowding the cold waters near cape town
the exotic creatures crowding the cold waters near cape town and focus instead on the seaweed the endless underwater forests of kelp. i think we should check out the cave and have a look if the sharks are there. i ve come here with a group of activists who want to draw the world s attention to this extraordinary, but little known ecosystem. they re calling it the great african sea forest. we hear so much talk about coral and about the great barrier reef, but there are these giant underwater forests, and they are so important, just as important when it comes to climate and climate change. there s a big value in these kelp forest ecosystems. they protect from storm surges because they break the waves, they prevent coastal erosion, they sequester a lot of carbon which is mitigating global climate change.