Exclusive – Zandile Ndhlovu on fostering a more inclusive ocean

According to Zandi, by giving young people of colour the chance they deserve to safely transform their own narratives about who belongs in the sea.

‘These kids come from communities where they’re never taught to swim and where the ocean is observed through a lens of fear,’ she says.

‘We take them snorkelling so they can see the beauty beneath the surface and then return home to question anyone upholding these predominantly negative ideas.’

This kind of initiative is invaluable amid the climate crisis because it broadens the scope of people committed to fighting for a better future for our Earth.

In strengthening children’s desire to preserve fragile ecosystems, showing them first-hand what’s at stake (or ‘building the next generation of guardians’ as Zandi calls it), the Black Mermaid Foundation is bridging two important gaps.

‘Accessibility equals impact,’ says Zandi. ‘When people say we need to save our seas, our distance from it inhibits us from feeling compelled to act. But responsibility shouldn’t fall exclusively on the shoulders of those on the frontlines to understand the ocean’s suffering. As we increase representation, more people will start to care, and there will be more hands on deck.’

Expanding on the topic of environmental degradation, which concerns Zandi greatly, she tells us that there needs to be internal dialogue in many conservation spaces to amplify voices of colour while avoiding tokenism.

This is because, despite progress throughout the last decade to incorporate those bearing the brunt of worsening natural disasters in solution-based conversations, insincerity is holding us back from recognising that we’re all in this together.

‘We have to unite rather than isolate,’ she says. ‘The Black Mermaid Foundation is always asking how we can create access that fosters connection which is a currency to care. This brings to the surface the longing for guardianship we all have within us.’

The Black Mermaid Foundation isn’t Zandi’s only avenue of change, however.

In partnership with WaterBear, she’s released a documentary which seeks to encourage people of colour to consume more content that pushes them to get involved with reclaiming the ocean and, ultimately, protecting it.

 

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Similar, in part, to Halle Bailey’s casting as the Little Mermaid, which Zandi says is successfully inspiring the global majority to become stakeholders in worlds they rarely see themselves represented in.

‘Stories are told in the imagination, but the power of storytelling is that it expands on how we think and magnifies the possibility of collective human impact,’ she finishes.

‘The Black Mermaid documentary is a story of so many people of colour.’

‘My hope is that in seeing what happens when individuals who look like them expand past what they know, recount tales of their personal battles, express their aspirations to be invited into the spaces they want to enjoy, real, tangible change will be championed in every corner of our planet.’