On Saturday 17th September Wildlife ACT joined 94 teams across 21 African countries in participating in the Wildlife Ranger Challenge 2022.
It was a privilege to participate in such an amazing event which brings much needed attention to and highlights the hard work and commitment of Wildlife Rangers in protecting Africa’s wildlife and the habitats on which they depend.
“Having lived and worked in a number of the Reserves across Zululand for the past 5 years, I have been fortunate to meet and interact with many hard working and dedicated rangers. It was a humbling experience for me to participate in this year’s event and be able to honour their work.” – Wildlife ACT’s Wild Dog Programme Manager, Mike Staegemann.
This year’s 19 km Wildlife Ranger Challenge route took our team through the mFulaWozi Wilderness and into the far western section of the breath-taking iMfolozi Game Reserve within the Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife managed Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park. Although it was at times extremely gruelling with the 22 kg backpacks and 32 ᵒC weather conditions, the team completed the route in just over 4 hours.
Congratulations to all the teams that participated on the day and made the event a huge success. A big thank you to the mFulaWozi Wilderness for allowing us to walk with your team on the day.
Our Wildlife Ranger Challenge 2022 Team:
Mike Staegemann (Wild Dog Programme Manager)
Alex Neiman (uMkhuze Priority Species Monitor)
Chris Farren (Tembe Priority Species Monitor)
Gareth Robinson (iMfolozi Priority Species Monitor)
Support the Wildlife ACT Ranger team by donating here: https://wildlife.rangerchallenge.org/campaigns/wildlife-act
More info at www.wildliferangerchallenge.org #ForWildlifeRangers
ABOUT TUSK
Tusk’s mission is to amplify the impact of progressive conservation initiatives across Africa. The charity has earned a reputation for providing a highly efficient solution for funding wildlife conservation programmes. Tusk partners with the most effective local organisations, investing in their in-depth knowledge and expertise. By supporting and nurturing their conservation programmes, it helps accelerate growth from an innovative idea to a scalable solution. For more than 30 years, Tusk has helped pioneer an impressive range of successful conservation initiatives across more than 20 countries, increasing vital protection for over 70 million hectares of land and more than 40 different threatened species. But the threat to Africa’s unique natural heritage remains real and more urgent than ever.