White Desert Foundation is a newly registered UK charity which has the charitable aims of supporting and funding Blue Carbon and Habitat Restoration Projects. The webinar will include an introduction by the White Desert Foundation on the wider benefits of such projects and the importance of charitable funding streams.

The webinar will then go on to detail a case study: the Onrus Catchment-to-Coast (C2C) Restoration and Rehabilitation Project. This project is led by the Overstrand Municipality in Hermanus, South Africa, and focuses on restoring the ecological integrity of the Onrus Catchment— from its source to the sea/coast. The project aims to mitigate the impacts of climate change, improve water quality and water security, protect local biodiversity and habitats, and reduce flood risks and erosion. Through holistic rehabilitation efforts, the project seeks to ensure long term environmental resilience and sustainability across the catchment.

This webinar is free and open for all to attend.

Our speakers

Eleni Antoniades - Trustee of the White Desert Foundation and Chair of the IES's EIA Community 

Eleni is a Project Environmental Lead for aviation and infrastructure projects, with more than 20 years' experience in leading the Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Management of strategically significant aviation and infrastructure projects, across the UK and internationally. Since 2016, Eleni has also specialised in the environmental assessment and sustainability of infrastructure projects in Antarctica. Eleni is Vice President of the Institution of Environmental Sciences, where she has helped shape the organisation's strategy since 2016 and established the EIA Community, which she now Chairs. 

Eleni is also a Trustee of the White Desert Foundation. 

Danielle Smith - Project Coordinator for the Onrus Catchment-to-Coast (C2C) Restoration and Rehabilitation Project

Danielle has played a leading role since its inception. She holds a BA Honours degree in Geography and Environmental Studies from the University of Stellenbosch and brings a strong background in environmental management and sustainable development.

As the project’s first coordinator, Danielle has guided the C2C initiative through its foundational stages, securing critical funding and building strong stakeholder partnerships. The project’s efforts have been recognised at both national and international levels, with invitations to key environmental forums such as the COP16 and the Ramsar COP15 milestone events amongst others.

Ms. Liezl de Villiers – Division Manager: Environmental Management and Conservation - Overstrand Municipality

Liezl is a born and bred Capetonian. Since 1974, she obtained a diploma and degree in Conservation, a masters degree in indigenous forest restoration, and motherhood. Between 1997 and 2010, she worked mainly for conservation organizations such as South African National Parks, CapeNature, and the Department for Environmental Affairs and Water Affairs, within the Working for Water Programme. 

Her career in Environmental Management began in the coastal towns of the Overstrand Municipality in 2010, where she continues to serve as Head of the Environmental Management and Conservation Division. It is here that her interest in Climate Change deepened, as she witnessed first-hand its impacts on our natural systems — from more frequent wind-driven fires and the spread of invasive alien species to intensified floods, coastal storms, and sea-level rise. These changes have underscored for Liezl the urgent need to safeguard our ecosystems and strengthen community resilience against the growing threats of a changing climate.

Her objective is to safeguard the ‘green lungs’ of our conservation areas, extending through agriculture and into urban spaces, by securing ecosystem connectivity that sustains biodiversity, supports tourism, and enhances the social wellbeing of the people of the Overstrand. 

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