Our Work
This is what it all comes down to: the work we do to create a sustainable future for you (and us).
We’re growing, changing and innovating all the time, trying to keep up with the ever-transforming environment and the human discoveries about how to care for it.
Why
There is growing global awareness around the fragile state of our planet. The ever present threat of significant Climate Change is testament to this fragile state. Years of exploitation, pollution and willful destruction have degraded our planets life support systems – its “ecosystems.” These ecosystems – oceans, rivers, wetlands, forests, grasslands, etc. – have been seriously damaged, and the unsustainable lifestyles of the growing global population are putting further pressure on these systems.
There is little doubt that we are at an environmental tipping point. However, contrary to the message conveyed in the popular media, this is not about the extinction of the Polar Bears or Snow Leopards. It is about the very real threat to human kind’s survival – as we know it!
Within this context South Africa is interestingly placed. It is a land of contrasts. Renowned internationally for its spectacular natural beauty and biodiversity, it is also renowned for having one of the highest number of citizens affected by HIV / AIDS, high levels of poverty, poor education standards and a disproportionally high per capita carbon footprint. The starkest contrast is represented by the significant difference in quality of life and basic services that characterize South Africa’s middle and upper class communities, versus those that characterize South Africa’s peri-urban, squatter and rural communities. On the positive side, South Africa is blessed with relatively intact ecosystems. Government, Corporate and Civil Society leadership have also recognized and acknowledged the looming threat of Climate Change and the importance of nurturing and restoring the health of our ecosystems, as a buffer to possible changes. They have also recognized the unique opportunity that this presents in the form of the ’Green Economy,’ and the associated ‘Green Jobs’ that can be stimulated through the process of harnessing the Green Economy opportunity.
As one of South Africa’s leading environmental organizations, the Wildlands Conservation Trust are committed to supporting the building of a Green Economy.
What
Wildlands’ work is structured around a set of activities that combine to form a holistic approach to creating sustainable communities that will underwrite the sustainable future that we believe is possible.
Green-preneurship
These activities aim to unlock the ‘green-preneurship’ potential of the impoverished and unemployed by:
- Nurturing the development of waste-preneurs, tree-preneurs and food-preneurs that collect recycling, grow trees and organic food, and then barter what they have grown and collected for food, clothes, education support, building material, water tanks, solar water heaters, solar powered lighting and bicycles;
- Nurturing the growth of these individuals into green-preneurs – bike-preneurs, cell-preneurs, water-preneurs, fruit-preneurs, etc… who harness the opportunities to become viable small businesses in their own right.
Restoration
Our restoration work supports the cleaning of our partner communities and the restoration of their ecosystems by:
- Establishing partnerships that enable effective waste recycling, servicing businesses, academic learning, residential, charitable and government communities.
- Helping communities restore the ecosystems that provide life support; their forests, rivers, wetlands and grasslands.
Stewardship
Wildlands’ Stewardship activities support the formal conservation and protection of the priority biodiversity associated with our initiative regions by:
- Supporting the expansion of the “conservation footprint”; protecting areas that underwrite ecosystem function and supporting the establishment of Climate Change Adaptation corridors.
- Securing the conservation of rare and threatened species.
- Facilitating the development of responsible eco-tourism related opportunities, including guiding, lodges, campsites, sustainable natural resource harvesting and game farming.
Green Leadership
These activities aim to nurture the green leadership potential of our partners and include:
- Our green-preneur Rewards, through which green-preneurs, who meet tree propagation and waste collection targets, are taken on environmental experiences.
- Our Jabulani and Friends cartoon series which profiles key environmental messages in a fun and fresh way.
- Our Women in Conservation experiences, through which we encourage dialogue between women who are leading the environmental revolution.
- Our Business Seminars and Dialogues, through which we work with our business partners to develop their understanding of the challenges and opportunities presented by Climate Change.
Where
Wildlands is currently supporting the establishment of 10 initiatives, 7 in KwaZulu-Natal (the uMgungundlovu, Sisonke, uThukela, eThekwini, uThungulu, uMkhanyakude and Zululand initiatives) and pilot initiatives in Mpumalanga (eHlanzeni), Gauteng (eKhuruleni) and Western Cape (Winelands). Planning is currently underway with regards to the establishment of new initiatives in the Eastern Cape (Port St Johns), KwaZulu-Natal (iLembe), Limpopo (Kruger2Canon) and the North West (Royal Bafokeng) Provinces.
The implementation of these INITIATIVES is structured around the following activities:
Activities aimed at unlocking the ‘green-preneurship’ potential of the impoverished and unemployed by:
- Nurturing the development of waste-preneurs, tree-preneurs and food-preneurs (collectively referred to as ‘green-preneurs’) that collect recycling, grow trees and vegetables, and then barter what they have grown and collected for food, clothes, education support, building material, water tanks, solar water heaters, solar powered lighting and bicycles
- Nurturing the growth of these individuals into fully-fledged entrepreneurs – bike-preneurs, cell-preneurs, water-preneurs, fruit-preneurs, etc… who harness the opportunities to become viable small businesses in their own right.
- Activities that support the cleaning of our partner communities and restoration of their ecosystems by:
- Establishing partnerships that enable effective waste recycling, servicing businesses, academic learning, residential, charitable and government communities
- Helping communities restore the ecosystems that provide life support; their forests, rivers, wetlands and grasslands.
Activities that support the formal conservation and protection of the priority biodiversity associated with these initiatives by:
- Supporting the expansion of the ‘conservation footprint;’ protecting areas that underwrite ecosystem function and supporting the establishment of Climate Change Adaptation corridors
- Securing the conservation of rare and threatened species
- Facilitating the development of responsible eco-tourism related opportunities, including guiding, lodges, campsites, sustainable natural resource harvesting and game farming.
Activities that nurture the green leadership potential of our partners, including:
- Equipping green-preneurs, facilitators and Wildlands staff with life skills and technical knowledge through a variety of training & capacity building interventions
- Our green-preneur Rewards, through which green-preneurs, who meet tree propagation and waste collection targets, are taken on environmental experiences
- Our Jabulani and Friends cartoon series which profiles key environmental messages in a fun and fresh way
- Our Women in Conservation experiences, through which we encourage dialogue between women who are leading the environmental revolution
- Our Business Seminars and Dialogues, through which we work with our business partners to develop their understanding of the challenges and opportunities presented by Climate Change.
WILDLANDS INITIATIVES are holistic, seeking to integrate as many of our existing (and future) activities into cohesive, regionally focused interventions, underwriting a journey to a ‘Sustainable Future for All.’
Our initiatives are supported by a significant network of Businesses, Donor Agencies, Government Departments, Civil Society Organisations and private citizens, who wish to see the Wildlands Vision realised. To date, this support has been channeled through the Wildlands Conservation Trust, which is a registered Non-Profit, Public Benefit and Public Welfare Organisation.
Over the past financial year (30th June 2011), the Trust raised over R48 000 000 in support of its activities,marking it as one of South Africa’s most significant environmentally-focused non-government organisations. There is little doubt that this impact will grow as the Wildlands activities are progressively expanded throughout South Africa, and ultimately, southern Africa.
In response to the ever-increasing interest in the Enterprise Development potential of the Wildlands’ initiatives, a sister entity is currently being established, namely Wildlands Green-preneurs. This is a (Pty) Ltd Social Enterprise that is compliant in terms of the BBBEE Enterprise Development (ED) conditions of support.
UNILEVER, BHP Billiton, ENGEN, Canon, Discovery and MTN are a few of the businesses that have expressed interest in using Wildlands as an ED delivery partner.
