New Resource on Marine Protected Areas
Most often when we discuss “wilderness areas” the first image that comes into mind is a big, wild area of land. For me, I think of mountains — mostly because mountain areas here in Colorado are very wild. Admittedly, I also love mountains and have...
The State of the Elephant
Last week the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), the international body created to protect wildlife from over-exploitation, met to discuss – among other items – the current state of illegal elephant ivory trade and poaching. Leading up to...
KAZA – A Major Step for Transboundary Conservation in Africa
A major step for wild nature and people in Southern Africa occurred on 18 August 2011 at the summit of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). At the closing session, the presidents of Angola, Zambia, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Botswana signed the treaty that...Scholarship for Environmental Leaders—Growing Natural Leaders
WILD and its sister organizations in Africa and the UK are primarily known as wilderness-focused conservation organizations, but we have a unique aspect when compared to our conservation peers. Our work integrates the mutually important bond between humans and wild...“I Imagined” – Poem from Recent Umzi Wethu Graduate
Below is a poem by recent Umzi Wethu graduate Geovalda Cupido, who was part of the Umzi 8 Conservation Academy. Umzi Wethu, a program run by the Wilderness Foundation (Africa) is a cutting edge program for AIDS orphans and disadvantaged youth that uses the power of...
Exploring Wilderness, Reflections on Body Painting
The landscape of the human body is a “wilderness” in its own right. For longer than anything else created by wild nature, the bodyscape has been a place of exploration and a source of continuous experiential revelation, as well as an object of adornment, abuse, and...
In Celebration of Nelson Mandela’s 93rd Birthday
Today, we celebrate Nelson Mandela’s 93rd birthday. It is truly a day of celebration and one that is especially important here at WILD because of our strong roots and continued work in South Africa. Mandela’s introduction to Dr. Ian Player’s Zulu...
Volkswagen Amarok drives the Rhino Protection Initiative
Exciting news from our sister organization, The Wilderness Foundation (in South Africa)…. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles today announced the sponsorship of six Volkswagen Amarok bakkies to the Rhino Protection Initiative at a media conference held at the...Ian Player Perspectives – Wilderness, Dreams and the Bible
Text from Ian’s February 2011 address to the Game Rangers Association of Africa. Please let me begin by thanking everyone for coming this evening. I am grateful to Harold Thornhill and Drummond Densham and other members of the Committee who have done the...
EcoSchools at Isandlwana
On of the ongoing programs in the Isandlwana Village (KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) is Eco-Schools. This program brings environmental learning and action into the classrooms in a constructive and participatory way. The Isandlwana primary school is one of the local...
Report from the WILD9 Strategy Forum: Transboundary Environments and Adaptation to Climate Change
Wherever political boundaries traverse ecosystems, the conservation of biodiversity and management of ecosystems is more complex and difficult. In areas with such borders, the flow of information tends to be slower, administrative regimes are more fractured, decisions...
The Inner Journey
Part 5 of our wilderness journey Simplicity in all things is the secret of the wilderness and one of its most valuable lessons. It is what we leave behind that is important. I think the matter of simplicity goes further than just food, equipment, and unnecessary...
The Food
Part 4 of our wilderness journey Simphiwe told us to catch some grasshoppers for dinner, but not the colorful ones because they were noxious tasting and poisonous. He explained that he ate the insects since he was a child…very tasty, raw or grilled. Try it, you’ll...
The Camp
Part 3 of our wilderness journey I have to admit that I was a little nervous about 5 days of backpacking with no tent. Somehow, a tent give me a (perhaps false) sense of safety in the middle of the wilderness. But, I accepted that my trip to Africa was going to push...
The Wildlife
Part 2 of our wilderness journey I had just drifted into sleep, breathing the incense smell of iNthomboti smoke from the fire, when I was suddenly awoken by Simphiwe, our “trail officer” — “The elephants are coming…we need to move quickly, now. NOW” As the...
The Trail
Part 1 of our wilderness journey The pin head-sized pepper ticks are a REAL nuisance…..you need to pick them out with a pin and tweezers, grooming yourself and your friends on the trail much like the baboons we see daily groom each other. Welcome to your ancestry! You...
Protected: Action at Lake Banzena, the lynch-pin of the elephants’ migration
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My Journey “In the Tracks of Giants” – Art & Conservation
“Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as human nature. There is only Nature and the very human expression of it. To understand this is to understand the significance of what we need to do if we are to restore the lost balance. Our task is not to go back...
My Journey “In the Tracks of Giants” – Transboundary Conservation
Animals, seeds, air and water move freely across landscapes — only humans feel the need to define our landscapes with political boundaries. Transboundary conservation areas, or conservation areas that span these defined political boundaries, are vitally...