AfriCat Environmental Education Centre September 2008 saw the reopening of the Education Centre at the AfriCat Foundation at Okonjima. Jo van Dyk, the Manager and Environmental Educator of the Education Centre, explains as follows, “The aim of the programme is to inform and empower Namibia’s youth about large carnivores, conservation and the environment. It focuses on predator and environmental awareness while endeavouring to give young learners a new sense of understanding of the natural world and the importance of conservation. The desired aim of these activities is to bring about a change in attitude towards large carnivores and the conservation of Namibia’s natural resources.”
Activities at the Education Centre include watching slide shows and other presentations on leopards and cheetahs, observing these big cats in their natural habitat and fun games that promise to teach learners more about the mannerisms of big cats. Learners work together in groups and have to present posters that reflect what they’ve learnt. With each group, the programme is adapted to suit the level of the learners, or teachers, who visit the centre. Amongst other things, participants learn about the predator’s place in the ecosystem and how plants and animals are linked within a food chain. The effect of humans on the environment and how we can co-exist in peace are also part of the programme.
The AfriCat Foundation is a Namibian non-governmental organisation, started in 1993. The objective is to protect large carnivores on farmland and in conservation areas in Namibia. In its 16-year existence, the Foundation has rescued 1 000 cats (650 cheetahs and 350 leopards), and lays claim to being the world’s largest cheetah and leopard rescue and release programme. Of these, 516 cheetahs and 327 leopards have been successfully released back into the wild. Future plans include a School Outreach Programme. (MvR)
www.africat.org/education.htm
Nedbank's Go Green gave millions Since its inception in 2001, Nedbank Namibia’s Go Green fund has made grants totalling N$2.3 million to 30 conservation projects.
These projects have ranged from research on species such as the lions of the Kunene Region, the black rhino, the African wild dog and the brown hyaena. Projects on smaller mammals such as the endemic black mongoose and the Cape ground squirrel have also been funded, as well as research on the Herero chat and the protection of the breeding ground of the Damara tern. The Namibian Raptor Rehabilitation Centre (NARREC) has also received grants from the Go Green Fund.
Financial support was furthermore aimed at the rehabilitation and protection of specific environments, such as Avis Dam, and the sensitive lichen fields along the coast. Other projects and programmes supported by the fund include environmental award projects and environmental education projects, such as the ‘Supporting Environmental Education for Underprivileged Project’, as well as the Sea Atlas and Monitoring Programme, the Namibian Environmental Directory and the Namibia Bio-diversity Database.
The Go Green Fund is a non-profit grant-making fund, established by Nedbank Namibia to enhance conservation and the protection of important habitats and natural resources in Namibia. It is aimed at supporting individuals and organisations in Namibia that are working towards a more sustainable future. (MvR)
eco awards Namibia The new eco awards website is up and running and full of new and updated information. It is now possible to initiate an eco awards Namibia assessment on-line, and soon it will also be possible to download the brand-new set of assessment criteria from the web.
eco awards Namibia is a mark of distinction for accommodation establishments that are planned and managed according to eco-friendly principles. The programme promotes the selective and careful use of resources, and advances reducing, recycling and reusing. In the process an establishment can improve its profitability, often with very little additional expenditure. The desert flower symbol (ranging between one and five flowers) of the eco awards Namibia programme acts as proof that the establishment is doing something for the future of tourism, the future of the community and their own future. (MvR)
www.ecoawards-namibia.org
CCF Gala Dinner – A celebration of the cheetah Roaming Wild was this year’s theme for the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) Annual Fundraising Gala Dinner held in July at the Windhoek Country Club Resort and Casino. It highlighted the long-term efforts of the CCF to ensure the survival of the wild cheetah and its ecosystems.
Welcoming remarks by Dr Laurie Marker, Founder and Executive Director of CCF, highlighted the key aspects of the evening and what the CCF stood for. “We are here to celebrate the Essence of the Cheetah; Roaming Wild and Free… Speed and Elegance… We can add nothing to its speed and elegance…but we can help it roam wild and free.”
The evening’s keynote speaker representing President Hifikepunye Pohamba – Minister of Environment and Tou-rism, Netumbo Nandi-Ndait-wah – talked about the inter-relationship of cheetah and conservation as an important balance of the country’s ecosystem and how the two are linked to the economy through ecotourism. In addition the Minister highlighted the various awards received by CCF over the past year in recognition of its dedication to helping restore habitat through its BushBlok initiative. This initiative to combat bush encroachment won the 2008 Intel Environmental Prize at the prestigious Tech Awards and was recognised as runner-up of the St Andrew’s Prize for the Environment.
Special guest speaker, Dr Eduardo Eizirik, from the Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, spoke of carnivore evolutionary genetics, molecular ecology, and current research on the molecular characterisation of carnivore communities in Latin American and African ecosystems. These all provide innovative tools for evolutionary research and conservation planning on behalf of the carnivorous species.
Dr Laurie Marker’s concluding remarks should move us all to help protect the environment we live in: “Working together we can indeed achieve our vision for the cheetah: we can live together. Conservation of wildlife and the environment involves us all. It is not just a job for NGOs and conservancies. Conservation needs to be intertwined into our daily lives, so that we live in unity with the wildlife and environment that surround us.”
Three conservation awards were handed out at the gala dinner. The 2009 Cheetah Conservationist of the Year award was presented to Albi Brückner, founder of the internationally recognised NamibRand Nature Reserve. The 2009 Farmer of the Year Awards was presented to Adolf Okamaru, a farmer who practices predator-friendly livestock and game management practices. Finally, the 2009 Conservation Education Award was presented to Günther Roeber for his years at CCF as a teacher and mentor to over 15 000 communal, resettled and emerging farmers and farm workers who participated in CCF’s Future Farmers of Africa training courses at CCF.
Around 300 individuals from all sections of the tourism sector attended the event, including members from the business, agricultural and government sectors in Namibia and internationally. The lively evening included a music performance by ‘Relevant’ from Otjiwarongo, a silent auction, candlelight dinner, the Conservation Awards Ceremony, and conservation speeches.
The Cheetah Conservation Fund is a Namibian non-profit trust dedicated to the long-term survival of the cheetah and its ecosystems. (NvS)
www.cheetah.org
AfriCat spotted hyaena rehabilitation A year ago three previously captive spotted hyaenas were radio-collared and released into the 10 000-acre Okonjima/AfriCat rehabilitation area. Their introduction into the wild has been incredibly successful and their hunting capabilities have exceeded all expectations, says Carla Conradie and Dave Houghton from the AfriCat Foundation. The male trio were self-sustainable from the outset with adult kudu, gemsbok and hartebeest as their predominant choice of prey and on occasion stealing kills from the leopards resident in the area.
No matter which method is used to gain their food, they are often seen sharing their catch and their nocturnal calls to alert one another to a feast are frequently heard. Overnight guests at Okonjima have the opportunity to track the spotted hyaenas on foot and observe these amazing animals in their natural environment.
www.africat.org
Green Paper launched A mere 18 months after the first steps were taken to bring Namibia closer to having its own coastal policy, the Green Paper document was launched at a media conference and information session during July.
The Green Paper provides an outline of the key findings, the need for a Coastal Policy, a vision for the coast, and principles, goals and objectives for coastal management. When finalised, the Coastal Policy will act as a framework of joint decisions by Government and the public of how the coastal area should be managed to ensure that its biodiversity is preserved and that sustainable development takes place in harmony with the natural resources. The entire Namibian coastline will then be declared a conservation area, which will make it the longest conservation area in the world.
Copies of the Green Paper document are available from the coastal offices of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, the Directorate of Environmental Affairs in Windhoek, the municipalities of Walvis Bay, Swakopmund and Lüderitz, as well as the NACOMA Project in Swakopmund. An electronic version is available on the website. (MvR) www.nacoma.org.na
