“Waste-preneurs” create cleaner communities and earn at the same time

Thuleleni Nokubonga Msomi is a “waste-preneur”. She lives in the SWAPO informal settlement in Copesville and collects material for a recycling programme run by the Wildlands Conservation Trust, the Hilton based conservation NGO. The name waste-preneur  is borrowed from another of Wildland’s projects, the Indigenous Trees for Life Programme, where “tree-preneurs” are given the opportunity to earn by growing and trading indigenous trees. Within these programmes, each individual becomes an entrepreneur, building an income and learning valuable skills.

“I collect newspaper, bottles, cardboard and tins. I get it from places in Honeyville where people dump their rubbish next to the side of the road.” said Thuleleni. “I had collected about 150kgs the last time Wildlands collected the waste. My first collection was 110 kgs, so it is about 260kg in total that I have collected so far.” Waste-preneurs are given credit for every kilogram of waste they collect regardless of whether it is paper, plastic, cardboard or glass.

Urvashi Haridass of Wildlands Recycling said: “People have responded in an overwhelming way to the concept. The programme is cleaning up the communities of rubbish and especially glass which is found in the streets and which is dangerous for children. In return, people are learning that there is value in clearing waste from their communities and people who earn little or no income can feed their families.”

Thuleleni has three children and earns very little in the part-time work she does, so the extra money she receives from the collecting of waste is making a big difference: “I have bought candles, soap, baked beans, tinned fish and soup already at the waste store,”she said.

The store Thulelani refers to is a market held in the community by Wildlands when waste-preneurs and tree-preneurs have credit to spend. Thuleleni is also a tree-preneur with the Indigenous Trees for Life Programme run in SWAPO, Sweetwaters and Edendale in Pietermaritzburg. In January this year she began planting indigenous trees and now has 300 plants growing in her back yard. When the trees reach a certain height, she will trade them in for credit notes and buy goods such as food, clothing and household items at the next tree store.

Andrew Venter, CEO of the Wildlands Conservation trust, said “This is our latest programme and the community’s response has been amazing. Over 21 tonnes of waste was collected in SWAPO in the first three collections. Simply amazing! The Programme has been made possible by Unilever SA whose ongoing commitment to sustainable development must be commended.”

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Picture:  Thuleleni Nokubonga Msomi is a “waste-preneur”. Here she stands with her material ready for collection by Wildlands Recycling. 21 tonnes of waste has been collected in the SWAPO community in three collections by the Wildlands Conservation Trust.

Air miles are putting trees in the ground in KwaZulu Natal

Air miles are being donated towards projects that benefit the environment and provide communities with opportunities to help themselves. By selecting the Living Lakes project instead of using their air miles to fly further, those on the Miles and More programme with Lufthansa and their Star Alliance partners are helping replant forests in South Africa. 10,000 air miles supports the planting and maintenance of five trees as part of the ’Indigenous Trees for Life’ project run by conservation NGO the Wildlands Conservation Trust.

In 1998 Living Lakes was established by the International Foundation for Environment and Nature’s Global Nature Fund. As a lake network, it has been promoting the conservation and restoration of wetlands, bodies of water and their surrounding ecosystems worldwide. The Wildlands Conservation Trust forms part of the network and its Indigenous Trees for Life Programme run in South Africa helps vulnerable communities help themselves by creating opportunities to grow and plant trees thereby contributing to the mitigation of climate change and the of protection of important ecosystems.

Udo Gattenlöhner is Executive Director for the Global Nature Fund that has facilitated the donation of over 5,000 Euros in 2009 (or 52,000 South African rands) from Miles to Help programme for planting trees. “Customers are happy to have a charitable alternative to using their air miles. Frequent travellers do not depend on their free miles and in donating to a project such as this they also become more aware of the need to conserve the environment.” Since the beginning of the programme in 2007 14,000 Euros has been donated to the project.
Philisiwe Mhlongo plants indigenous trees next to her sweet potatoes, beetroot and spinach crops next to the Mkhuze River in the KwaJobe area of northern Zululand, on the north eastern boundaries of to the Mkuze Game Reserve in KwaZulu Natal. “I bought a big pot with the first money I received. At first I planted 200 trees.” She receives two South African rands for every tree she plants, and a further one rand for every quarter that she nurtures the tree and it continues to grow.

“To grow trees helps the environment, my garden is also benefitting because trees keep the water from damaging the plants and the leaves when they fall, they become compost and help my plants to grow. I am very happy to be part of this project and we benefit a lot from it.”

Photo: Mrs Philisiwe Mhlongo standing next to an indigenous tree she planted amongst her crops. People are donating their air miles and helping to keep this programme going.

“Green teams” are making a difference in Richards Bay

The Conservation NGO the Wildlands Conservation Trust continues to make a difference through their Indigenous Trees for Life Programme, creating opportunities for people to earn a living through projects both growing and planting indigenous trees, and one project in the Richards Bay area sees that thousands of indigenous trees are replacing invasive alien plants each month.

Nokthula Mdletshe is a facilitator with the Indigenous Trees for Life Programme and manages the two “Green Teams” that each plant 1000 trees a month in Dube and eSikhaweni near Richards Bay. “The green team members are paid 30c per alien plant they remove. They are paid R2 for every indigenous tree they plant, but importantly they receive 20c per tree per month that they monitor and ensure it stays alive and healthy. We are planting the indigenous trees in wetland areas and next to rivers and dams,” she said.

Ntombifuthi Skhakhane is from the Empangeni area, and at the age 25, she has recently started as a Green Team member. Her income supports her mother and seven siblings. She explained that the trees they are planting in Dube are helping because the indigenous trees do not use as much water as the alien invasive plants. “The aliens absorb all the water from the rivers and the dams. We are removing the aliens, and we are planting trees next to the dams and rivers which is helping to save water.”

Green Team members have also received training in order to develop their skills beyond the work they do planting trees and removing alien invasive plants. “The Green Teams attended a Business Information Workshop recently, presented through Future Works,” said Charmaine Veldman, Programme Manager of the Indigenous Trees for Life Programme.

BHP Billiton Aluminium South Africa has renewed their funding of this programme for the third year running. Supporting the Wildlands Conservation Trust as the implementing partner has proved successful for the company:  “ BHP Billiton Aluminium South Africa is proud to be associated with the Wildlands Conservation Trust project since this project has significant biodiversity benefits while promoting sustainable community development and upliftment at the same time,” said Venecia van Loggerenberg , Community Relations Specialist for BHP Billiton Aluminium South Africa.

Running for the cranes of the Karkloof

A bird flies overhead, its long white neck extends elegantly forward, its grey legs straight out behind, and its giant body is carried by swooping wings.  Below it, a hundred different grasses sway in a gentle breeze over rolling hills between patches of lush forest.  A thick mist hovers in the valley and there is a slight chill in the air.

This is the Karkloof, in the KwaZulu-Natal  Midlands, and its under threat.  In fact, the bird you just saw flying overhead would have had twitchers scrambling for their binoculars, mouths ajar, and counting their lucky stars. Wattled Crane populations have declined dramatically in South Africa over the last 20 years and are in danger of disappearing from the country altogether, there are only 235 birds left.  The reason these birds are so critically endangered is largely due to the loss of their habitat.  The grasslands of the Karkloof are their ideal breeding grounds and these grasslands are being lost to development and agriculture.

But it’s not all bad news.  As part of their Stewardship programme, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife are working hard to conserve this area and with funding from the Wildlands Conservation Trust recently purchased a portion of land which consolidates a large portion of the area.  The Dartmoor farm consolidates another 1000 ha of land.  “Our intention is ultimately to support the establishment of a consolidated reserve that effectively protects the grasslands and forests associated with the upper Karkloof valley including key species, such as Wattled crane and key water sources, [there are three rivers that arise in the Dartmoor area]”, said Wildlands Conservation Trust CEO, Dr Andrew Venter.

The next step will be to get the land that Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife is currently managing, together with the Dartmoor property and the Karkloof Nature Reserve, formally proclaimed as a nature reserves.  This status would ensure the long-term future protection of the land.   Wildlands will further support  Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife with this process by supporting the proclamation of the reserve and development and implementation of management plans for the reserve.

To aid with raising funds and awareness for the plight of the Karkloof, Wildlands recently held the Three Cranes Challenge, a three-day trail run through the Karkloof valley supported by Bonitas Medical Fund and Sunday Tribune.  “We initiated the Three Cranes Challenge with the intention of establishing an event that will both profile the Karkloof area and raise money, sustainably and for the long term, to continue to help with underwriting its management”, said the CEO.   Wildlands partners with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and the Karkloof Conservancy around the event, both of which will receive 25% of the nett profits from the event.

The funds that accrue to the Karkloof Conservancy from the event will go towards the cost of running the Karkloof Conservation Centre and other projects the conservancy will be rolling out in the valley over time, primarily environmental education projects.   The centre is a vital educational touch point for the region and another initiative supported by Wildlands Conservation Trust.   The 25% that accrues to Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and the remaining 50% nett income generated for the Wildlands Conservation Trust will be used to support the organisation’s respective conservation efforts in the area.

The gruelling event was held for the first time in February this year and the winning male and female runners won something better than prize money.   They were given the honour of naming two rather cute and fluffy, healthy Wattled Crane chicks who have recently joined the ‘Adopt a Crane’ programme which funds the rehabilitation and upkeep of orphaned and injured cranes.  Danni and Bella are being captive bred in an attempt to resuscitate the declining numbers of these majestic birds.  “The real significance of naming the chicks is that it draws attention to the plight of the birds and how seriously threatened they are.  Their single biggest challenge is habitat and nesting sites in particular.  That’s why Dartmoor is important.  Securing it means creating more nesting sites in years to come”, said Dr Venter.

For more information on the Karkloof Conservancy and the Karkloof Conservation Centre call (033) 330 4590 or e-mail karkloofcentre@telkomsa.net.
For more information on the Stewardship Programme visit www.kznwildlife.com (under conservation planning)
For more information on the Three Cranes Challenge visit www.3craneschallenge.co.za
For more information on the Crane Foundation and the Wattled Crane visit: www.kzncrane.co.za

Protecting the Inkosi Yeentaka

The Maluti-Drakensberg Vulture Project is working to prevent the decline of cliff nesting vultures in the Maluti- Drakensberg mountains and surrounds where they are under major threat, largely due to poisoning and collision (and electrocution in the case of capes) with power lines. The Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) is endangered in southern Africa, there are only 50-100 breeding pairs left, and the Cape Vulture (Gyps coprotheres) is vulnerable and is endemic to southern Africa. Sonja Krüger, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife ecologist for the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park World Heritage Site, who has run the Vulture programme since 2000, has been monitoring the movements and nesting sites of these two species in the mountainous regions of the Drakensberg and Lesotho in order to determine their movement patterns and to identify possible threats to them.

Initially monitoring work was achieved through catching and tagging birds in order to identify them when they were sighted at feeding sites or in the air, and then in August 2007 the ability to more accurately track the movements of the birds became possible through the purchase and fitting of satellite transmitters. Devices were fitted on three Bearded Vultures in the Underberg in 2007, and in 2008 a further two were fitted to Bearded Vulture chicks in Lesotho.

In June 2009 one of the chicks was found dead in the Eastern Cape, and forensic tests confirmed poisoning. This can happen accidentally as livestock that are medicated and then die can be poisonous to vultures, or farmers may be trying to kill predators and Bearded Vultures are killed accidentally by eating the bait meant for predators like jackal. Vultures perform a vital function in getting rid of dead livestock, but some carcasses are lethal and it is a huge challenge for the Vulture Project to communicate this. Vultures can also be poisoned by lead from a bullet present in a carcass. Through workshops and distribution of media the project attempts to educate on the dangers of poisons to vultures.

In August 2009 Sonja Krüger and her team were able to fit further satellite transmitters to five Bearded Vultures and one Cape Vulture in the Underberg region. In March 2010 all six birds were active and data was indicating that one bird was moving further afield than others. “One of the male Bearded Vultures is a year older and he is moving in an area of 44 thousand square kms, more than twice that of the younger birds, moving between Lesotho, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape.” Krüger said. Over time they will gather data from these transmitters that will indicate the patterns in their movements and this understanding helps Sonja’s team focus on the areas the birds frequent most and the project can actively make the areas safer and also provide safe food sources.

A competition was run towards the end of 2009 in schools near the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park to “Name the Vultures”, which aimed to find names for the vultures that were fitted with satellite transmitters during 2009.Winning names such as Umcocimathafa, which means “cleans up the environment”, Inkosi Yeentaka which means “king of birds” and Umadlizidumbu, which means “eats carcasses” is a clear indication that the children are learning about vultures and what they are about.

The poisoning of vultures is happening accidentally but it also occurs through environmental crime. Poachers are poisoning vultures with the deadly agricultural chemical Aldicarb amongst other poisons (known by the brand name Temik) in order to use their body parts for muthi (traditional medicine), as it is believed that they possess clairvoyant powers. Steve McKean, Resource Ecologolist for the uKhahlamba Drakensberg region, explains that the use of vulture parts for muti is a serious health risk to the human population. “As little as two grams of Temik can kill an adult human. In whatever form the vulture parts are being used by traditional medicine practitioners, they need to be made aware that they are not only killing red data species but may be poisoning their clients if the muthi is ingested.”

Krüger said that there was concern about an increase in vulture poaching during the 2010 Soccer World Cup as vulture parts were used for predictions in gambling. There were plans in place to increase feeding of vultures within the protected areas to encourage them to remain where they would perhaps be less vulnerable to poaching.

The provision of food at vulture feeding sites is an attempt to provide a constant safe food source to birds within their range. Many farmers are becoming involved in vulture conservation by disposing of carcasses safely on their properties and creating vulture “restaurants”. Safe, known sources of foods for the vultures are being created to minimise the risks to the birds both in protected areas and on privately owned land.

Said Krüger of the progress made possible in the last three years: “We have come a long way and raised awareness hugely. Vultures are now on the agenda. Poison intervention and interactions with power lines remain the biggest threats to the birds and we need to keep the pressure on to help prevent the further decline in the numbers of both the Bearded and the Cape Vulture.”

The Wildlands Conservation Trust supports formal conservation agencies through their Biodiversity Management Support Programme (BMSP). From July 2007 to March 2010 a range of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife projects received funding from Wildlands through their Conservation Capital Fund (CCF) as well as from the Wild Series, a set of multisport challenges held across KwaZulu-Natal. Many of these projects seek to protect rare and endangered species and habitats, some of which are vulnerable to environmental crime such as poaching.

Run for Water raises awareness of water scarcity and JoJo helps “tree-preneurs” access clean water

One in eight people do not have access to safe, clean drinking water. In Africa, many women and children need to walk 6km each day to secure water that is then unsuitable for drinking. The Dow Live Earth 6km Run/Walk for Water event is happening worldwide on 18 April 2010 to highlight this plight and raise awareness around water scarcity, and the South African event takes place at Spier Wine Estate in Stellenbosch. A Parlotones concert will help draw the crowd and a water education village will be set up, with only 2000 tickets available.

Conservation NGO the Wildlands Conservation Trust are the event organizers and beneficiaries of the funds raised. Their Indigenous Trees for Life Programme enables vulnerable adults and children to grow a future for themselves. As “tree-preneurs” they grow indigenous trees from seed, and once they reach a certain height, they trade them back to Wildlands for planting into the community or they are used in reforestation programmes run by Wildlands. The credit notes received for the trees are traded for goods at “tree stores”. Food, clothing, school materials, uniforms and agricultural goods are purchased and even school fees are paid this way. Many tree-preneurs have also bought Jojo tanks for storing rainwater.

Zodwa Gumede, mother of four children, is a tree-preneur in KwaJobe, a poor rural community near Mkhuze Game Reserve in northern KwaZulu Natal. “The Jojos are very helpful because we don’t have water taps here in Jobe” says Zodwa. “So we collect rainwater with the Jojos. We use that water for drinking and for cooking because it is clean. The other water we can get is from the pan but it’s not right because the cows drink there and we have to sterilize it.”

In support of the programme, Jojo Tanks have come up with a scheme to help Wildlands and their tree-preneurs purchase Jojo tanks. For every 2500 litre Jojo tank purchased by Wildlands for tree-preneurs to buy, Jojo will match it with a donated one, up to 200 tanks. This frees up much needed funds for Wildlands to develop the tree growing programme further.

Rod Cairns, managing director of JoJo Tanks explains:  “At JoJo we are passionate about the role we should play in conserving our planet’s limited resources.  Our association with Wildlands gives us an excellent opportunity to make a real difference and to contribute to the global effort to raise awareness of the need to save water.  Saving water should be a way of life and the preservation and utilization of rainwater by installing rainwater tanks could grant relief to millions of disadvantaged South Africans and provide a cost-effective and convenient way for tree-preneurs to care for their trees.”

Zodwa said of her Jojo Tank purchases: “We have to trade with 532 trees worth R 5 each. When the trees are ready you can buy a Jojo tank and have clean water. I will keep planting the trees so I can have more Jojo tanks.”  The Wildlands Conservation Trust will be expanding the Indigenous Trees for Life Programme into three communities in the Western Cape towards the end of 2010.

Photo: Zodwa Gumede’s daughter Fennele, aged seven, is a tree-preneur and grows indigenous trees in their back yard in KwaJobe in Zululand. With the two Jojo tanks her mother  purchased through the Indigenous Trees for Life Programme, their family is able to have access to clean water for drinking and cooking without walking long distances.

Fun and learning as reward for growing trees

Children and adults from the Indigenous Trees for Life programme in South Africa are discovering firsthand what nature has to offer through environmental education trips provided as rewards for growing indigenous trees. The Indigenous Trees for Life Programme run by conservation NGO the Wildlands Conservation Trust is a livelihoods programme for adults and children from vulnerable communities.

Manqoba Sabelo is the Environmental Educator for the Wildlands Conservation Trust and since late 2009 has taken tree-preneurs to Sea World in Durban, False Bay in iSimangaliso Wetland Park, and Twinstreams Environmental Education Centre outside Mtunzini, all in KwaZulu Natal Province. Tree-preneurs are individuals who are shown how to grow indigenous trees from seed, and they then nurture the plants to grow to a certain height, in order to trade them for items such as food and clothes, bicycles, agricultural goods and tools, and even school and university fees.

The environmental education day experiences act as an incentive and are often a first time experience of a nature reserve. Seeing nature up-close also helps the tree-preneurs understand the impact they have by growing trees and the role they play in mitigating climate change. “We teach basic ecology on the trips and create an understanding of conservation as a whole”, said Sabelo. “There is also the possibility of a tree-preneur developing an enthusiasm for an environment related career.”

Cebo Mondlane, eighteen, from the Khula Village project, went to False Bay in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park on an overnight excursion as a reward for his 250 trees grown. Although he grew up near St Lucia which forms part of the Wetland Park, this was his first opportunity to visit a nature reserve. “ I have heard about Isimangaliso Wetland Park but I did not know that it is such a beautiful place. We are going to plant more trees so we can explore more natural things. I have also learned that we are not just planting trees but we are actually removing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.”

The environmental education programme is assisted by support from the Ursula Merz Foundation, facilitated by the International Foundation for Environment and Nature’s Global Nature Fund. Udo Gattenlöhner, Executive Director for the Global Nature Fund, says education is an important factor in conservation efforts, and these trips are very complementary to the Indigenous Trees for Life Programme. “To get acquainted with nature is a pre-requisite of caring for it, and offering these excursions as an incentive to the tree-preneurs helps develop a positive attitude to the environment.”

Photo: Tree-preneur Morin Gumede from Buffelsdraai gets up close and personal with a hammerhead shark during her visit to Sea World in Durban.

Dog’s Running Wild

The African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus) is endangered. There are only 350-400 wild dogs left in South Africa. Wild dogs are vulnerable to other large predators, lions and spotted hyaenas especially, but what has threatened their numbers most of all has been direct persecution by humans and the shrinking of their habitats. The packs need a large area (between 100 and 500 square kilometres) to move around in and sometimes existing protected areas are smaller than their ranges. Small single sex groups escape and roam across farm and community land looking for mates, where they face enormous risks. The project is managed by the Endangered Wildlife Trust and works closely with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, seeking to research the dispersal patterns and facilitate the expansion of the range for wild dogs in order to protect them as they move across KwaZulu-Natal.

People respond to wild dogs with fear and this leads to their persecution. There are a lot of people surrounding the reserves in KwaZulu-Natal with very little land that is undeveloped or unmodified in some way. This means there is limited space for the dogs to move in and tolerance and understanding is needed for their movement without interference.  The Wild Dog Project has worked hard at reaching out to communities and farmers in the areas surrounding protected areas such as Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in order to make them aware of the possibilities of wild dogs passing through their areas and the need to report sightings. Brendan Whittington-Jones is the manager of the KwaZulu-Natal Wild Dog Project and explains that there has been significant progress in this regard.

“In early September 2009 eight male wild dogs broke out of Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park and headed via Ulundi to Vryheid and then  towards the Mkhuze area. We had good support from communities, and some quite outstanding support from commercial farmers, some interested members of the public and land owners. We had game reserve staff helping us through nights, and a helicopter donated for an hour. It turned out to be a group effort. It was hugely encouraging how little resistance we met from people along the way and I think a large part of that is through the relationships developed, not just by us but by our predecessors and conservationists in places like Mkhuze.”

Two of the escaped dogs were collared, so Brendan and his colleague were at times able to track the pack.  Over several weeks, two of the dogs died, and six were captured and put in a boma at Tembe Elephant Park with the intention of starting a new pack at this reserve. At Mkhuze Game Reserve there were four captive reared male wild dog in a boma, and it was decided to move those to the boma at Tembe Elephant, and relocate the six from the Tembe boma to Mkhuze. The swop was due to the logistics of females available and the new pack size needed in each reserve.

At the Tembe boma three females were introduced, translocated from Hluhluwe Imfolozi Park, and in March 2010 the dogs were all darted and collared with “good behaviour collars”. It was anticipated that these pheromone collars would reduce negative and aggressive interactions between the wild dogs when the partition between the boma compartments were opened. It is planned to release the new pack into Tembe Elephant Park in the course of 2010, which is a significant addition to the regional metapopulation as Tembe does not currently have wild dog in the reserve. This means there is one more reserve from which genetics could be moved into or swapped out of, increasing the resilience of the metapopulation.

In 2009 the project also translocated a male wild dog to Hlambanyathi, a private game reserve near Mkhuze town in KwaZulu-Natal, to be bonded with a pair already in a boma there. Thanda Private Game Reserve was the first private reserve in KwaZulu-Natal to introduce Wild Dog where there are seven dogs.

Said Whittington-Jones: “Funding and logistical support to continue these projects is critical. Cooperation between NGOs and provincial and national conservation agencies is key, with conservation of the habitats and species being the priority. The KZN Wild Dog Management Group is a good example of that co-operation. Private reserves, landowners, conservationists and NGOs are working together to make a success of the species restoration and to manage Wild Dogs in the province.”

The Wildlands Conservation Trust supports formal conservation agencies through their Biodiversity Management Support Programme (BMSP). From July 2007 to March 2010 a range of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife projects received funding from Wildlands through their Conservation Capital Fund (CCF) as well as from the Wild Series, a set of multisport challenges held across KwaZulu-Natal. Many of these projects seek to protect rare and endangered species and habitats, some of which are vulnerable to environmental crime such as poaching.

Corporate Volunteers team up with NGO youth for weekend of learning and sharing

Indigenous Trees for Life “tree-preneurs” spent a weekend in the Drakensberg with Unilever staff volunteers and learnt about nature, each other, and life, and had some fun in the process. Unilever South Africa has for over ten years been a funding partner with conservation NGO the  Wildlands Conservation Trust, and since those early years regular Volunteer weekends have taken place with Unilever staff members spending time with Wildlands staff and the communities involved in their programmes.

To help celebrate National Water Week from the 15-19th March, it seemed fitting to hold a Volunteer Weekend in the Drakensberg, a vital water catchment area in South Africa. This Volunteer weekend was also different in that tree-preneurs from WIldlands’ Indigenous Trees for Life programme took part. Tree-preneurs are adults or children from township and rural communities in need, who are taught to grow indigenous trees from seed and care for them until they grow to a certain height. The trees are then traded back to Wildlands for goods such as food, clothes, school and university fees and the trees are then planted back into the community or planted out into forest restoration projects.

The group of nearly thirty stayed overnight at Entabeni education centre near Rosetta, and the next morning worked in groups clearing alien invasive plants together. Nick Shaw, the Director at Entabeni then led an interpretive crane tour, explaining the importance of conserving the Wattled, Blue and Crowned Cranes. The group went on to Royal Natal National Park where they hiked and camped, spending time in nature and learning about leadership, life-skills and issues affecting the environment.

By combining the two groups, Unilever Volunteers had the opportunity to act as mentors and share life skills and motivate the tree-preneurs who were all young women between the ages of 13 and 18. “I enjoyed being with the tree-preneurs, it felt amazing to share knowledge and motivate young girls, letting them know that we identify with them. The weekend gave Unilever staff the platform to motivate, inspire and be role models to the learners,” said Nokuthula Zungu, a Food Solutions Planner at Unilever in Pietermaritzburg who attended the weekend as a volunteer.

“Camping and backpacking gave us an opportunity to interact not only with each other, but also with nature, which reinforced the importance and significance of us working together with the Wildlands team,” she said. This sentiment was reiterated by Sinenhlanhla Mthembu, a grade 12 learner and tree-preneur from Buffelsdraai near Durban. “I enjoyed the hiking; it improved my knowledge regarding nature. The older folks were so caring and inspiring and by this trip I managed to deal with stress,” she said.

 

Photo: Unilever Volunteers and tree-preneurs from the Indigenous trees for Life Programme hear about cranes from Nick Shaw at the Entabeni Educational centre near Rosetta.