Great Plains Conservation Foundation

TO CONSERVE AND EXPAND NATURAL HABITATS IN AFRICA THROUGH INNOVATIVE CONSERVATION INITIATIVES WITH A LONG-TERM COMMITMENT TO THE ENVIRONMENT, WILDLIFE, AND LOCAL COMMUNITIES.

PROJECT REWILD IS FOCUSED ON THE TRANSLOCATION OF WILDLIFE INTO THE LOWER ZAMBEZI VALLEY, WHERE DUE TO HISTORIC POACHING, WILDLIFE NUMBERS DECLINED SIGNIFICANTLY. IN 2022 WE LAUNCHED OUR FIRST EFFORT TO TRANSLOCATE ELEPHANTS ON A LARGE SCALE, WITH 101 ELEPHANTS ARE NOW FREE IN THE SAPI RESERVE. WITHIN EACH GROUP WE COLLARED EACH HERD MATRIARCH, NOT ONLY TO PROTECT INDIVIDUAL ANIMALS BUT ALSO TO RESEARCH, LEARN AND CONTRIBUTE TO THE BODY OF KNOWLEDGE AROUND SUCCESSFUL ELEPHANT TRANSLOCATIONS. WE ARE DEVELOPING MAPPING OF ELEPHANT RANGES NOW TO UNDERSTAND WHERE WE CAN ACCOMMODATE ELEPHANTS IN A REWILDING PROGRAM ON A VERY LARGE SCALE. THIS PROGRAM INCLUDES THE CONSTRUCTION OF A RESEARCH CAMP AND SECURITY AND MONITORING CAMP WITHIN THE 132,000 HECTARE AREA.

GREAT PLAINS' ON-GOING AND HISTORICAL WORK ON ELEPHANTS HAS EMPHASIZED PRESERVING LAND AND MIGRATORY CORRIDORS. THIS HAS INCLUDED AREAS LIEK THE MBIRIKANI GROUP RANCH, HOME TO GREAT PLAINS' OL DONYO LODGE AND SOME OF KENYA'S LAST SUPER TUSKERS AS WELL AS THE SELINDA RESERVE IN BOTSWANA WHERE GREAT PLAINS ENDED HUNTING NEARLY 15 YEARS AGO. OUR PROJECT RANGER GRANTEES ARE WORKING TIRELESSLY TO PROTECT ELEPHANTS ACROSS THE CONTINENT AND IT IS TIME FOR US TO DO WHAT WE CAN FOR ELEPHANTS IN OTEHR REGIONS AS WELL. IN 2022, WE LAUNCHED OUR FIRST EFFORT TO TRANSLOCATE ELEPHANTS ONA LARGE SCALE, STARTING IN ZIMBABWE. 101 ELEPHANTS ARE NOW FREE IN THE SAPI RESERVE, WITH A COLLAR ON EACH HERD MATRIARCH, GIVING US AN UPRECEDENTED OPPORTUNITY NOT ONLY TO PROTECT INDIVIDUAL ANIMALS BUT ALSO TO RESEARCH, LEARN AND CONTRIBUTE TO THE BODY OF KNOWLEDGE AROUND SUCCESSFUL ELEPHANT TRANSLOCATIONS. WE ARE DEVELOPING MAPPING OF ELEPHANT RANGES NOW TO UNDERSTAND WHERE WE CAN ACCOMODATE ELEPHANTS IN A REWILDING PROGRAM ON A VERY LARGE SCALE.PROJECT RANGER BEGAN IN 2020 AS A RESPONE TO THE GLOBAL COVID-19 PANDEMIC. PROJECT RANGER PROVIDED EMERGENCY POACHING PREVENTION INITIATIVES, AS TRAVEL AND TOURISM TO WILDERNESS AREAS WAS BROUGHT TO A STANDSTILL. GUIDES AND RANGERS IN PARKS AND PROTECTED AREAS ARE LEFT WITHOUT PERSONAL INCOME. THIS LEAVES ENDANGERED ANIMALS VULNERABLE TO POACHERS - AND POACHING HAS INCREASED DRAMATICALLY. PROJECT RANGER PROVIDES EMERGENCY FUNDING FOR OPERATIONAL EXPENSES OF RANGERS AND ANTI-POACHING PERSONNELL TO SUPPOR THOSE ON THE FRONT LINES OF CONSERVATION.BIG CATS: THE FOUNDATION FUNDS MULTIPLE PROJECTS AIMED AT PRESERVING LAND FOR BIG CATS AND REDUCING HUMAN-WILDLIFE CONFLICT. WORKING WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES AND WILDLIFE EXPERTS, THESE PROGRAMS SUPPORT STRATEGIES FOR HUMANS AND WILDLIFE TO COEXIST. THE GREAT PLAINS BIG CATS INITIATIVE (BCI) SUPPORTS PROJECTS AIMED AT PREVENTING AND REVERSING THE DECLINE OF BIG CATS. WE ARE LOOKING FOR GOOD IDEAS THAT WE CAN HELP SCALE. PAST GRANTEES OF BCI HAVE INCLUDED INITIATIVES LIKE THE MAASAI OLYMPICS AND COMMUNAL CATTLE HERDING WORKSHOPS WHICH TACKLE HUMAN-LION CONFLICT AND BUILD BRIDGES BETWEEN COMMUNITIES AND WILDLIFE. PROJECTS CAN BE IN ANY BIG CAT POPULATION RANGE LAND - INSIDE PROTECTED AREAS OR OUTSIDE. THE OBJECTIVE IS CLEAR - REVERSE THE DOWNARD TREND OF BIG CATS.

RHINOS WITHOUT BORDERS HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN THE RELOCATION OF 87 RHINOS FROM SOUTH AFRICA INTO THE BOTSWANA WILDERNESS. THERE ARE 3 CORE BREEDING HERDS AND OVER THE PAST 6 YEARS 68 NEW CALVES HAVE BEEN BORN. THE PROGRAM COVERS THE FULL COST OF PRETRANSLOCATION QUARANTINE COSTS AND ALL LICENSING COSTS, TRANSPORTATION COSTS, RELEASE COSTS, AND POST-RELEASE SECURITY AND MONITORING. THE FOUNDATION COVERS THEC OSTS OF TWO MONITORING TEAMS WHO ARE BASED CLSOE TO THE BREEDING HERDS, THE COSTS OFA CENTRAL MONITORING STATION, TELEMETRY EQUIPMENT, AND SATELITE TRACKING OF THE RHINOS. THIS HAS ENSURED THAT THE HERDS ARE MANAGED AND RELOCATED AWAY FROM HIGH-RISK AREAS. POACHING RISK HAS RISEN IN THE LAST YEAR IN BOTSWANA AND THE CONSTANT ON THE GROUND MONITORING COMBINED WITH AERIAL OBSERVATION AND SATELITE TRACKING HAS SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED THE THREAT. MONITORING TEAMS CONSISTENTLY ENGAGE WITH THE COMMUNITY TO EDUCATE ON THE BENEFITS OF A DIVERSE WILDLIFE POPULATION AND THE COMMERICIAL BENEFITS WHICH FLOW FROM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN THE TOURISM SECTOR.

AS OUR WORK WITH PROJECT RANGER HAS MADE ABUNDANTLY CLEAR, CONSERVATION AREAS NEED BOOTS (AND EYES AND EARS) ON THE GROUND. AT THE SAME TIME, A CENTRAL MISSION WITHIN THE FOUNDATION IS EMPOWERING WOMEN. THESE WERE THE INSPIRATIONS BEHIND THE FOUNDATION'S FEMALE RANGER UNITS. THESE ALL-FEMALE UNITS WILL ACT AS NATURAL RESOURCE MONITORS, GATHERING ESSENTIAL DATA ABOUT THE AREAS THEY PATROL AND WILL ACT AS EARLY DETECTION FORCES AGAINST ILLEGAL WILDLIFE CRIME. HIRING FEMALE WILDLIFE AND NATURAL RESOURCE MONITORS BUILDS THEIR CAPACITY AS INDIVIDUALS AND EMPOWERS THE COMMUNITIES THEY REPRESENT. THE FOUNDATION'S FEMALE RANGER UNITS ALSO OFFER OPPORTUNITIES TO SHIFT GENDER STEREOTYPES, EMPOWER VULNERABLE WOMEN, AND ESTABLISH STRONG FEMALE ROLE MODELS FOR YOUNG GIRLS. THE LONGTERM CONSERVATION IMPACT OF THIS PROJECT IS EQUALLY POWERFUL; FEMALE RANGERS WILL HELP FOSTER THE COMMUNITY BUY-IN NECESSARY TO PRESERVE AFRICA'S MOST PRECIOUS BIODIVERSITY. WE EMPLOY A TEAM OF 20 FEMALE RANGERS/BIODIVERSITY MONITORS ACROSS BOTSWANA AND ZIMBABWE AND THE TEAM CONTINUES TO GROW.