G. M. Van Der Heever

First and foremost, Grant van der Heever is a marine scientist that is passionate about our oceans and the sustainable utilization of our marine resources. Grant obtained his MSc degree (Cum Laude) at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) in 2017. Here he completed a project on the distribution and trophic ecology of the two most common demersal catsharks taken as by-catch by the demersal hake trawling industry operating around the West and South coasts of South Africa. In pursuit of obtaining his MSc degree Grant got the opportunity to partake in numerous research cruises with South Africa’s Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries demersal team. During these cruises Grant was able to immerse himself in offshore communities and this is undoubtedly where his passion for offshore marine science grew. Currently, Grant is employed at the South African Environmental Observation Networks Egagasini node (offshore node) where he is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the biodiversity sampling equipment. Grant is passionate about our oceans, particularly our offshore habitats, and is continually thinking of new ways to modify the sampling equipment in order to increase the quantity and quality of data collected at sea. In addition to his passion for the ocean, he is also intent on motivating, inspiring and educating the younger generations about the importance of our marine ecosystems, as well as informing them about the ever-increasing threats our marine communities are facing.