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.”
WILDTRUST (registered as the Wildlands Conservation Trust - IT No: 4329/1991/PMB)