John Collier golf

from SA Golf Trader - January | February 2021

Pursuing your personal best in 2021- by Sean Botha

Insight for the South African golf industry

The winner for 2019-2020 was St Francis Links in St Francis Bay in the Eastern Cape and a Special Mention Award went to Eagle Canyon in Gauteng. Jeff Clause, CEO at St Francis Links is seen above second from left with his dedicated team.

John Collier Golf is a boutique governance and environmental consultancy that provides audit, advisory and research services for the South African golf industry. John Collier Golf publishes the John Collier Survey on Governance and Environmental Compliance for South African Golf Course annually, providing the only governance and environmental compliance bench marking data for the South African Golf industry.

Biodiversity and our planets well-being: How golf plays its part.

Principle 13 in the KingIVTM Report on Corporate Governance for South Africa states that; “the governing body should govern compliance with applicable laws and adopted, non-binding rules, codes and standards in a way that supports the organisation, such as golf clubs, being ethical and a good corporate citizen”. In this regard the John Collier Annual Survey illustrates just how much legislation has been promulgated regarding biodiversity. The knowledge of applicable biodiversity laws and their implementation is central to the sustainability of a golf club. There are many clubs throughout South Africa which are doing amazing things regarding biodiversity, but biodiversity loss and the degradation of its contributions to our planet’s well-being continues.

The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the importance of the relationship between people and nature. We are reminded that when

we destroy and degrade biodiversity, we undermine the web of life and increase the risk of disease spill-over from wildlife to people. Responses to the pandemic provide a unique opportunity for transformative change, as an investment in the health, at the local level of the golf club, and in our planet, while also being an investment in our own future.

The United Nations recently reported global data showing that two in five of the world’s plant species are at risk of extinction because of the destruction of the natural world. Seventy five percent of the Earth’s land surface has been significantly altered by human actions, including for example the loss of eighty-five percent of wetlands’ areas. At the same time, sixty six percent of the ocean area is experiencing multiple impacts from human activity, including commercial fishing, pollution, and chemical changes from acidification. There is a view that we are losing a race against time as we are probably losing species faster than we can find and name them.

The direct causes of biodiversity loss are many and have either grown steadily or accelerated in recent decades, however solutions to the loss of biodiversity can be found. It is in this regard that Golf Clubs can make their contribution. Sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity is key to ensure that no one is left behind, but urgent action on biodiversity for sustainable development is needed by everyone. This includes golf clubs and in participating they will emphasise their status as being good corporate citizens. One action golf club management could take is to go back to basics and implement a biodiversity policy and procedure. In this regard recent research published in the John Collier Annual Survey indicates a twenty five percent compliance level by golf courses in respect of having a biodiversity policy and programs in place.

Alistair John Collier is the CEO of the John Collier Survey, he holds a master of laws in environmental law from Wits University and practiced as an advocate specialising in the fields of social security and environmental law. Alistair worked as a certified environmental auditor with the Southern African Auditor and Training Certification Authority and is a golf course assessor for the international body Golf Environment Organisation.

AREAS OF RESEARCH INCLUDE:

Environmental Management Planning; Biodiversity; Landscape and Cultural Heritage; Water Resource Management; Turf-Grass Management; Waste Management; Energy Management; Education and Working Environment; Communication and Public Awareness.