Romario Valentine is totally committed to saving the planet and all the animals that live on it; he has worked tirelessly since 2020 to save birds, and now he is helping seabirds.
Durban, South Africa (29 November 2022) – Romario Valentine is an 11-year-old pint-size planet warrior, author and artist from Umhlanga, Durban. He has dedicated the last four years of his young life to protecting our planet. A noble cause indeed! Now he is hoping to save seabirds, from mice.
Entirely focused on his passions, he has advocated for bird and marine conservation, climate change, and deforestation. Over the last four years of reporting on Romario’s efforts, we have been inspired by his drive to action change, never giving up on his goal to save the planet and inspire others to do the same.
The planet warrior helped 900 endangered birds at Umgeni River Bird Park, Durban, during the covid-19 lockdown in 2020 and raised over R55,000 in 12 months for bird species in Durban and in Western Cape.
He also did a Bird Habitat Restoration Campaign on BackABuddy for abandoned African Grey Parrots at Birds of Eden, Plettenberg Bay, Western Cape. Crowdfunding was used to raise funds to complete a 30×30m aviary so the birds can have a happy place to live freely. The bird sanctuary is home to 3,500 indigenous and exotic endangered birds and is the world’s largest free-flight aviary. He aims to prevent them from becoming extinct.
Coming from Durban, he was devastated when the floods resulted in a mass of pollution on the beaches he held so dearly. As he was on school holiday at the time, Romario took to the beach to do his 220th beach clean.
Once things settled in Durban, he directed his focus on writing his first academic book. Titled “Protect our Planet – Take action with Romario”, he created a comprehensive guide that focuses on key environmental topics – from recycling and reforestation to pollution solutions and climate change.
Romario is now turning his attention to the big seabirds in need; the albatrosses, petrels and penguins, which all play a vital role in the marine ecosystem. Romario has set the goal of raising R11,000.00 for BirdLife South Africa’s “Mouse-Free Marion Project” (MFM). Marion Island is home to these stunning seabirds and it has a mouse problem.
Currently, BirdLife South Africa is on a mission to eradicate rodents wreaking havoc among bird species on Marion Island. The sub-Antarctic island is located South East of Cape Town in the Southern Indian Ocean. Birds such as the albatross – wandering, sooty, grey-headed and petrels are on a rapid decline.
It’s believed that stowaway mice in the 19th century from sealers and whalers’ ships infiltrated the island. These invasive predators have now started eating seabird chicks therefore not allowing them to reach adulthood. The adult birds are affected too not only by the mice but climate change and other human activities. Due to the severity of the infestation, the adult birds have not adapted any defences against these predators.
The MFM project is a non-profit company and has been set up by a partnership between BirdLife SA and the SA Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) to intervene and help protect these bird species to prevent them from extinction and restore the ecosystem which can only be done by eliminating the mice.
By tackling the problem, the birds have a fighting chance against all the other odds set against them. Romario has already raised R2,600 towards his goal of R11,000. Since 2020, Romario has successfully raised R56,000 for causes he keeps close to his heart.
If you would like to take up Romario’s cause for Christmas, you can do so here.
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