This was Ralph Pina's personal web page. It has moved to www.ralphpina.com

I spent an idyllic couple of days on Mumbo Island, Lake Malawi, kayaking, snorkelling and walking.

See the Google Earth track here and view the photos here.

Lake Malawi is undoubtedly one of the great places in Africa. I plan to return with Marion.

I am

• a founder of ecoafrica.com. Other web properties included krugersafari.com.
• employed by Stellenbosch University's IT division as Director: eBusiness; most recent project entails sustainable IT
• a committed environmentalist, a member of the Cederberg Conservation Group of the Botanical Society of SA and the Wildlife and Environment Society of SA
• a windsurfer, reader, traveller (a Kruger safari; self-drive, overland safari to Namibia), a sea kayaker and hiker (here are some trail diaries)
• an electronic engineer by training, with an MBA from Stellenbosch University
• and an MPhil in Environmental Management - it has given me a framework within which to consider environmental problems and solutions. My research application looked at the role of ecolabelling, or ecotourism certification, as a market mechanism.
• currently doing an MPhil in Renewable and Sustainable Energy because I believe that the twin challenges of our time are the depletion of our endowment of energy sources, mainly fossil fuel, and climate change. Our civilisation is energy intensive and the energy endowment has enabled human population to grow exponentially such that continued growth and energy use are unsustainable. The development and application of alternative, clean sources of energy coupled with energy conservation are the imperatives of our time and there is little time to waste. One leads by influence...
• a Capetonian by birth, a resident of Stellenbosch and proud to be South African
• married to Marion, with two lovely daughters, Leigh and Heather
• interested in tracing the roots of the Pina family. My father is Dutch, from Wassenaar. There is a romantic theory that we are the descendants of Sephardic Jews...
• a rehabilitating soccer fanatic.  Now that South Africa has the privilege of hosting World Cup 2010, I'll have to reconsider that status. I played competitively for almost 30 years, and coached too. I have always followed Ajax Amsterdam, Oranje and FC Barcelona.
• forty-something
• a jazz piano lover

Articles and blog posts

Kruger and climate change (ecoAfrica's blog)
Eco-travel in Africa makes a difference (ecoAfrica's blog)
Is it only about "the Big 5"? (ecoAfrica's blog)
Power down in South Africa (ecoAfrica's blog)
Carbon offsets: should you buy absolution? (ecoAfrica's blog)
The thing about African wilderness trails (ecoAfrica's blog)
Bazaruto, dugongs and peak oil (ecoAfrica's blog)
Ecotourism and flying 2 (ecoAfrica's blog)
Ecotourism, climate change, peak oil and flying (ecoAfrica's blog)
Ecolabels in tourism: do they have a future? (opens in new window)
Ecolabels in tourism: eco-colonialism or eco-protectionism? (opens in new window)
Ecolabels in tourism: what are they and why so many? (opens in new window)
Ecolabelling, certification and accreditation: elements of a possible model for the ecotourism industry in southern and eastern Africa (opens in new window)
Ralph's Wilderness Trail FAQ