Naude Dreyer on rescuing sea lions from plastic entanglement, life in Namibia, and the importance of slowing down and finding contentment in life

Oct 18, 2019

"It’s difficult because this is human-caused damage. These animals aren’t dying of starvation or natural disease, plastic entanglement is all human inflicted harm.  And the seals aren’t going to help themselves so, it’s up to us to help them…. I just feel it's our responsibility to try to do something about it.” — Naude Dreyer

Today, it is estimated that between 640,000 and 800,000 tons of fishing nets are dumped or lost at sea every year. These discarded nets, also known as “ghost nets” drift through the ocean entangling whales, seals, and turtles. In fact, according to the Center for Biological Diversity, an estimated 100,000 marine animals are “strangled, suffocated, or injured by plastics every year.”  Obviously, Naude and his team are not going to single-handedly solve this global issue, but they are making a difference in the lives of marine wildlife in their corner of the world. Over the course of the past few years, Naude and his team have personally rescued more than 600 sea lions from plastic entanglement, 300 of which were in the past two years alone. 

In this episode we chat about:

• What it’s like living in Namibia (Fun Fact: Naude was born in the Etosha National Park).
• How Naude first got involved in rescuing sea lions + why it matters.
• The challenges he faces when catching and disentangling sea lions from marine debris.
• The impact our international maritime industry (i.e. human impact) is having on marine wildlife.
• Why it’s so important to educate the next generation about how best to prevent plastic pollution.
• The importance of slowing down and not stressing about the things in life we can’t control.
• How his daughter's battle with cancer helped his family realize what is truly important and meaningful in life.
• His entrepreneurial challenges.
• And so much more!

This was such a wonderful and insightful conversation! Happy listening.

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Note: If you’re feeling at all inspired by the end of this episode and you would like to financially support the work Naude and his team are doing, feel free to check out their GoGetFunding page.