Friends of the Liesbeek

Friends of the Liesbeek (FoL) is a registered Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) and Public Benefit Organisation (PBO) committed to the long-term restoration, protection, and stewardship of the Liesbeek River corridor in Cape Town. Since 1991, FoL has worked to rehabilitate this ecologically significant urban river system through ongoing maintenance, ecological restoration, and community engagement. FoL supports the livelihoods of the Liesbeek Maintenance Project (LMP) team, who carry out daily on-the-ground restoration work, including invasive clearing, indigenous planting, litter removal, and wetland rehabilitation. The organisation also runs the Liesbeek Learning Project, an internship and skills-development programme for unemployed youth, providing environmental training and pathways into meaningful green-sector employment. Each year, the organisation works with schools, volunteers, civic groups, and corporate partners to increase connection and stewardship with this green corridor. Public activities include river clean-ups, planting days, environmental education, and collaborative restoration projects such as the Fynbos Snake and Wetland initiatives in Observatory.