By Ryan Peter
Over the years, I have stood in front of many coastal interpretive signs. All but very few tell you what you may not do. Some tell you about the birds, the dunes and rock pools. None can be read by people with poor eyesight, and very few talk to people whose language is isiXhosa or isiZulu.
This changed somewhat on 11 February this year when South Africa's first Braille coastal interpretive signs were unveiled in Eerste Steen at the Blaauwberg Nature Reserve, created by Blind SA's Braille, where blind people contributed directly to the design of the signs.
We continue on 6 October 2026, at Grotto East in Hermanus with the unveiling of seven prototype Living Coast signs as part of a new national series, to be launched during Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa’s (WESSA) Coastal Celebration, celebrating 100 years of WESSA and 25 years of Blue Flag in South Africa.
Living Coast builds on something which started more than two decades ago when the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) installed coastal interpretive signs at beaches around the country as part of the CoastCare initiative. A library of fact sheets accompanied these signs to schools and libraries from Alexander Bay to Kosi Bay.
The signs have served their purpose well. They told us why the dune is important, what lives in a rock pool, and why cars must not be on beaches. Signs age, science changes, and our expectations evolve. Many original signs have become faded, damaged or even lost. Instead of reprinting the signs, however, we asked ourselves a more fundamental question: if we were to design coastal interpretation today, what would it look like?
The answer lies in the principles of the Integrated Coastal Management Act: the seashore and sea are coastal public property owned by the state for the benefit of all South Africans, giving everyone the right of reasonable access. While we spent many years fighting to establish the principle of physical access, we have ignored a different kind of exclusivity – a coast which one can reach but cannot comprehend.
A sign that can be used effectively only by sighted and English-speaking adults is a sign which has already made the decision of whom the coast belongs to. Along South Africa's 3 593 km coastline, this decision has been made countless times, usually without our realisation.
Living Coast represents an attempt to correct this situation. Every installation includes two components. The main board tells the interpretive story using highly readable formats, the specially-designed typeface for people with poor eyesight and an anti-glare coating making the text easy to read in strong sunlight.
Beneath it, there is an independent accessibility rail, placed at the seated height level and designed in such a way that a person in a wheelchair, child or a blind visitor can use it on his/her own. Braille is not a decoration. Each plate with text is manufactured and verified by Blind SA, with the text printed in uncontracted Braille, thus allowing even newer Braille readers to use it.
Once we discovered that each sign requires seven or eight Braille plates instead of the expected three, our first reaction was about the cost. The second reaction, however, was a realisation that this is what taking the reader seriously means.
The content of the signs has been designed to work across the languages. English, Afrikaans, isiXhosa and isiZulu versions can be produced without any changes in the design. Hermanus prototypes include English and Afrikaans versions with Braille, while Afrikaans digital guides have already been made. Other languages will follow as part of this series.
While a physical sign can contain only a limited amount of information, a QR code can give you access to an entire library.
Each Living Coast sign gives visitors access to an expanding range of digital guides, including audio tours, a species guide featuring more than 279 original illustrations, a coastal quiz, a citizen science guide, visitor information, a plain-language fact sheet about coastal policies, tide and weather information, and the national ocean and coast information system. A beach-safety guide, developed in consultation with emergency services, is also added.
The audio plays the same role as Braille. The visitor unable to read the board can listen to it. Cooperating with the National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities, we have also provided synchronised and sentence-by-sentence subtitles for the visitors with hearing loss and those who prefer to read along.
It is a simple goal – to provide the information in the way most suitable to the visitor. Such elements have been implemented in some places elsewhere. Some US and UK national parks provide audio posts together with the interpretive boards. In some places, there are QR codes providing beach information in multiple languages. Wayfinding in Braille is also common in public buildings.
What we tried to develop is the national coastal interpretive system incorporating these elements: Braille, large print, accessibility positioning, multiple languages, narrated and subtitled audio, and a set of digital information accessible via a single code.
The entire Living Coast series will include 97 signs, stretching from the West Coast to the northern coast of KwaZulu-Natal and covering estuaries, dunes, kelp forests, coastal birds and the communities and reserves in-between.
We could have waited until we finished everything. Instead, we decided to install seven prototypes in Hermanus, watch how people use them, consult Blind SA, the National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities (NCPD), Pioneer School learners and Overstrand Municipality residents, and fix our mistakes before launching the signs widely.
This is the value of collaboration. DFFE is leading the design and development of the series. WESSA, the Overstrand Municipality and CapeNature are manufacturing and installing the prototypes. Blind SA is producing the Braille, while the NCPD is providing the expertise on accessibility.
Our coast belongs to all of us. A sign may seem like a small thing, but it is one of the first things telling a visitor whether he/she is welcome.
The first generation of coastal signs told South Africans what was worth caring about. This generation of signs is trying to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to hear, read and touch it.
*Peter is the Director responsible for Coastal Development and Coordination at the DFFE
