Five new ‘Living Coast’ signs have been unveiled in Hermanus that use Braille, sound, large print and digital information, so more people can enjoy and learn about the coast.
Hermanus, South Africa (07 October 2026) – The Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA) together with government, conservation, accessibility and development partners, has unveiled five prototype Living Coast signs in Hermanus.
The signs are the next step in making South Africa’s coastline more inclusive and accessible!
The new additions were unveiled at the Overstrand Municipality Auditorium and Banqueting Hall in a launch attended by government officials, environmentalists, researchers and youth from Blind South Africa, CapeNature, Overstrand Municipality, UNICEF and the National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities.
The Pionierskool –Worcester Pioneer School for the Visually Impaired marked a special opening of the event with the South African Anthem.
Most coastal signs are made to be read by people who can see them. The Living Coast signs are designed to be used in several ways at once. They combine Braille, sound, large-format text and digital information, so visitors can read, listen to, touch or look up the same information about the coast.
The signs were developed with accessibility partners, including people who experience the coast without sight, so the design is shaped by the people who will use them.
“We need to listen to the people that experience the landscape in a lived reality every single day. They need to be able to guide us to make sure that our intentions are good enough.” says Cindy Cloete, CEO of WESSA.
The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment’s Ryan Peter explained that the project rethinks how coastal information is shared.
“A sign only some of us can use is a sign with a fence around it,” he says. “A sign, we decided, should not only be seen, but it should also be heard, it should be felt, and it should be understood in your own senses and in your own words.”
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The project builds on WESSA’s unveiling of South Africa’s first Braille coastal environmental education signage at Blaauwberg Nature Reserve earlier this year.
The Living Coast Prototype Signs are meant to be a practical model for the future of coastal signage in South Africa. Now with Braille, sound, large print and digital information on one sign, the prototypes show how coastal education can certainly be made accessible to more people!
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