Inspiring a love for nature
Contour Enviro Group
Contour Enviro Group is an environmental management company based in Cape Town in South Africa. We were founded in 2017 by career conservationist, Sabelo Lindani.
We have a strong focus on veld management, capacity development, mentorship, environmental education as well as environmental support for agriculture. Contour Enviro Group is driven by high-quality standards and we are ISO 9001: 2015 QMS certified.
Our training division is called Contour Training Academy (operating as Cape Wilderness School), and we are accredited by CATHSSETA (the Culture, Art, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority) and by LGSETA (Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority). We have undertaken various tourism and conservation training interventions in South Africa.
Our vision is simply:
To develop and inspire a love for nature.
We work according to these principles:
In our work capacity, as individuals and as ambassadors for the environment as well as for Contour Enviro Group, we strive to instil a passion for, and an understanding about nature in those we meet.
We hope to leave a lasting impression and a legacy which speaks to the broader goal of protecting natural landscapes for future generations.
Our passion and commitment to conservation must radiate through our quality of services and dedication to our work.
OUR TEAM
Sabelo Lindani
Managing Director
Sabelo Lindani, the founder and managing director of the company, has worked in the conservation sector since 2006, including protected area management for CapeNature, and training and ecological advisory services for the City of Cape Town.
MORE ABOUT SABELO
Sabelo is a member of the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), one of the commissions of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and serves as deputy vice-chair under the regional leadership of the East and Southern Africa Region. He also serves in the capacity development group steering committee of the commission and has served as the regional leader for East and Southern Africa, developing young professionals under the WCPA. He holds a B-Tech in Nature Conservation and and a Conservation MBA with the African Leadership University. Sabelo is trained as an Incident Commander (IC) Type 3 in fire management, and is an experienced trainer and CATHSSETA-registered assessor. He is also the winner of the Tholoana Award of the SAB Foundation Tholoana Enterprise Programme – which rewarded his commitment to his business.
Lincoln Meyer
Education and Training Manager
Lincoln Meyer is an Occupationally-directed education and training practitioner and works at Contour Enviro Group as the Education and Training Manager with over a decade experience in training and youth development focused on environmental and conservation training.
ABOUT LINCOLN
Lincoln, a dedicated professional with a Diploma in Nature Conservation from Unisa, has spent over a decade specializing in Sector Education and Training. He has applied his expertise as a constituent Facilitator, Assessor, Moderator, and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) practitioner, working with various Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs). His focus on Environmental and Nature Conservation training allows him to nurture the next generation’s understanding and commitment to preserving nature.
Over the years, Lincoln’s contributions to organizations such as Wilderness Foundation Africa, the Wildlife and Environmental Society of South Africa, and the Delta Environmental Centre have earned him significant recognition, including being named one of Mail & Guardian’s 200 young professionals under 35 in South Africa in 2015. Though his workdays often involve training in classrooms, it’s the opportunity to cultivate environmental knowledge in young South Africans that truly drives him.
Outside of his work at Contour Enviro Group, Lincoln is an avid traveler with a passion for exploring different foods and embracing new experiences, making him a well-rounded individual with a deep commitment to both his professional and personal pursuits.
Haydon Harvey
Executive Assistant
Haydon joined Contour in 2023 with designs on growing in the field of Project Management. Owing to his versatile background, he has performed as Systems Administrator for Contour by finding ways to streamline and innovate Contours processes.
MORE ABOUT Haydon
His role has since expanded to an Executive Assistant to take on more responsibility.
Solomon Asiya
Vegetation Management – Project Manager
Solomon holds a National Diploma in Nature Conservation from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology and is currently working on his Advanced Diploma. He is a registered Candidate Natural Scientist with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) in the field of practice: Conservation Science.
MORE ABOUT Solomon
In the last four years, he has worked as a wildlife monitor, facilitator and project assistant, and he is currently the Operations Project Manager at Contour Enviro Group. He is a visionary with a strong capacity to transform plans into action. He is strategic in approach and very passionate about conservation. Solomon has been leading a project for the past year, assisting in the establishment of biodiversity conservation and monitoring programmes such as alien invasive species management practices.
Apiwe Mhlawuli
Vegetation Management – Project Manager
Apiwe has a B-Tech Degree & National Diploma in Environmental Management from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. In the last 5 years, he has held various positions as Quality Controller for the City of Cape Town Invasive Species Unit, Project Assistant – Ecological
Management for Contour Enviro Group amongst others
MORE ABOUT Apiwe
Over the past 4 years, his role has been to run, lead and manage ecological management projects where he has also been involved in the development of biodiversity conservation and monitoring programmes such as integrated catchment management plans, alien invasive species management plans, ecological restoration (veld restoration and rehabilitation) and linear infrastructure maintenance and management (roads and trails). In addition, he has been the lead in acquiring and maintaining the ISO 9001: 2015 Quality Management System and certification from 2020.
Peter Viljoen
Integrated Catchment Planner
Peter holds a B-Tech degree in Nature Conservation. He has qualified up to multi-agency coordinator, the highest level of the system in the Incident Command System for veld fires and is trained as veld fire investigator. He has nearly 30 years’ experience in conservation management, primarily reserve management
MORE ABOUT Peter
and Integrated Catchment Management, which focuses on alien vegetation management and veld fire management. Peter has served many years on the Western Cape Disaster Management work group and the veld fire and provincial veld fire ground operations work groups to help determine the standards for veld firefighting in the Western Cape. Peter is skilled in systems development and integrated planning and implementation of operational projects.
Nkululeko Msimango
Finance and Admin Officer
“I am Nkululeko Msimango, currently serving as the Finance and Admin Officer at Contour Enviro Group. With a firm belief in the pursuit of excellence, I am driven by a genuine passion for the world of finance. I have embarked on a new journey with Contour as an Executive Assistant, with the goal of catalyzing a financial
ABOUT Nkululeko
transformation within the company. Prior to joining Contour, I successfully managed my own financial management business for a span of four years, honing my skills and insights in the field. My commitment to innovative financial strategies and dedication to fostering positive change define my professional approach.
CRAIG EDLIN SMITH
Vegetation Management – Project Manager
Craig, who comes from Cape Town, obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Environmental and Sustainability Studies, Geography and Psychology at the University of the Western Cape. His journey as an environmentalist started in 2019 as a volunteer at the Helderberg Nature Reserve. Here he helped implement the environmental education programmes.
ABOUT CRAIG
He then joined the Cape Town Environmental Education Trust (CTEET) as an intern, where he was responsible for assisting the environmental education programmes and field ranger duties. In 2021, he signed up as a volunteer at the Cheetah Outreach, located in Somerset West. He then started working for the City of Cape Town Invasive Species Unit as an Assistant Conservation Officer. He managed the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) teams and the operations of the Value-Added Industries Project, where alien invasive plant biomass is incorporated into a specific cement mixture to form biomass-insulated concrete. During his time here, he obtained his 4×4 training certificate, chainsaw level 1, First Aid level 1, firefighting level 1 and woodchipper operator certificate.
ZUKISANI NDIMBA
Vegetation Management – Project Manager
Zukisani has a degree in Biodiversity and Conservation Biology obtained from the University of the Western Cape. He joined a volunteer programme at the Table Mountain National Park as a first step in his career, before joining the Contour Enviro Group as Project Assistant. Zukisani believes in making our world a better place.
ABOUT ZUKISANI
He says, “I want do all I can to help conserve the planet and help sustain it for future generations to experience this beautiful world. As Julia Hill says “You have to hold yourself accountable for your actions, and that’s how we’re going to protect the Earth”.”
Vuyelwa Millicent Mthomde
Finance and Admin Officer
“I’m Vuyelwa Millicent Mthomde, from Strand. My dream was to study marketing and later finance but unfortunately I had to drop out. In 2007 I was recruited by Sabelo Lindani as a volunteer at Harmony Flats Nature Reserve, who later sent me on a volunteer training and later placed me at the local community clinic for an in-service training. This opportunity led to an employment at the clinic and later I had other opportunities in the health sector where I worked for 14 years. I was unemployed in 2020, when Contour Enviro Group and the Western Cape Community Education and Training College
ABOUT Vuyelwa
brought an opportunity for training unemployed youth in Nature Site Guiding in my community. I was once again fortunate that my enthusiasm helped me get a part time employment with Contour Enviro Group as a student which led to full time employment later on as an assistant to Finance and Admin Officer.
OUR associates
HELEN MARGARET DE KLERK
Associate Professor
Helen has a long-standing interest in conservation, specifically in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing (RS). She believes that the use of this type of technology can answer various conservation and ecology questions in order to help with daily conservation management as well as longer-term conservation planning and decision making. She served 12 years as the GIS Scientist at CapeNature where she headed a team that developed a strategy for GIS implementation to assist conservation managers in daily conservation decisions. This was a first in South Africa and one of the firsts in the world. Since 2010, she has been training students at the University of Stellenbosch in the use of GIS and RS and is currently continuing her research in the use of these systems in conservation and ecology.
PAUL BUCHHOLZ
Independent Consultant
Paul is an independent consultant specialising in Environmental & Geoinformatics. He holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Management and is a seasoned Geoinformatics (GIS) and Environmental Specialist with extensive experience contributing to major multidisciplinary engineering and environmental projects across Africa. He has orchestrated a full lifecycle of engineering and environmental projects ranging in size, value and complexity – ensuring deliverables are achieved on time and within budget. He provides specialist input for major projects and infrastructure developments. His other core competencies include Geographic Information Systems; Environmental Management; Project Management and Business Development.
LIORA-LEE (LEE) SAUL
Independent Consultant
Lee’s background is in Botany and Zoology and she holds an MSc through the University of the Western Cape. She previously served as a regional ecologist on the Western Cape Nature Conservation Board: Scientific Services. Lee has extensive experience in strategic planning and project management. She is familiar with S.W.O.T analyses for long- and short-term outcomes to meet national and international objectives and mandates as well as planning and co-ordination of key deliverables to achieve mandates e.g. World Heritage Site compliance and application. She is skilled in the use of METT-SA and integrated catchment management plans as well as the development of strategic documents such as ecological management plans for reserves and species.
“I joined CEG in 2020 to start a new chapter in my conservation career. CEG has given me the opportunity to use my conservation knowledge and skills in different areas and be part of a winning team. I am able to share my love for nature with a variety of clients from children to adults, communities to farmers, private to government, terrestrial to marine. Ensuring a sustainable environment for all.”
— Corlie Hugo
“I started Contour Enviro Group in 2017 as a way to live out my passion: to inspire a love for nature. Contour Enviro Group makes things happen because of the fantastic team of experts who form part of our team. Each individual brings a high level of expertise and experience to Contour. And together, we ensure our clients are satisfied – every single time.”
— Sabelo Lindani
