Meet Keira King, KZN’s budding ocean conservationist

Keira is a 16-year-old student currently in grade 11 at Crawford International La Lucia. Keira is planning to take a gap year in Bali after matriculating. Her goal is to enter into a marine science or oceanography field where she can collaborate with others to educate people about the importance of the ocean in our lives. “Fun fact, after my first time as a kid snorkeling at the beach, I became so obsessed with it that I started to snorkel in the bath every night”, Keira laughs. 

Keira’s passion for the ocean came about because of her love for nature and her concern for the increasing plastic pollution in our oceans. ” I realized that posting on social media was not the solution to this problem and so I decided to take action”, she explains. Keira swam the Robben Island swim from the island to Blouberg which is 7.5km long and completed it in 2 hours and 12 minutes in 10.5-degree water for the Turtle Rehabilitation program at the Aquarium Foundation at Two Oceans Aquarium. She raised R25 000 for them and was grateful for the people and experiences that she encountered. 

Keira believes that humans are the biggest threat to our oceans, and she is dedicated to spreading awareness about this. She encourages people to live more sustainably, reduce their plastic consumption and participate in local beach cleanups. Keira also believes that inspiring the youth to take action is the key to saving our oceans.

Her latest project is Paddle4Penguins, a 40km paddle from Willard’s beach in Ballito to the Moyo pier in Durban. The event is to raise funds for SANCCOB, The Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds. ” I selected this organization because they are doing amazing work in rehabilitating coastal seabirds that are abandoned or injured”, Keira describes. “African Penguins are an indicator species, which means that if the ocean is in danger, we will see a decrease in their survival rates and breeding habits in them, which is what we are seeing now.” 

This year, she wants to involve more people in her project and make them feel like they are making a difference in our natural world. Keira is collaborating with surf ski paddlers from her local lifesaving club, and she is opening it up to anyone who wants to paddle from any lifesaving clubs from their club to the pier. Keira loves working with people and enjoys feeling the sense of teamwork when completing a task like this.

Keira is truly an inspiration to young people, and her passion for the ocean is contagious. She encourages everyone to take responsibility for our oceans. Her efforts show that individuals can make a significant impact on the health of our planet. By working together, we can ensure that future generations have a beautiful and healthy ocean to enjoy.

Keira is looking for sponsorship for her prone board. She is planning on doing her paddle in July/August. 

If you would like to make a donation or help sponsor Keira, please contact her mom, Candice King on  

Funding Link: https://www.givengain.com/ap/keira-king-raising-funds-for-sanccob/#timeline