Passion for mother nature, the importance of conservation

If you had asked me a couple of months ago about nature conservation, l would have rolled my eyes, pouted my lips, and just sulked at whatever was being said.

I have never been a lover of nature. Even in school, joining the nature conservation club was just too corny, but my recent and first trip to the Kruger National Park opened me to a world I never knew existed. I know it sounds cliched.

But believe me, my first trip, which was filled with so many firsts, really allowed me to understand why we need to conserve nature and wildlife, especially because they play a crucial role in our ecosystem.

As a first-time Kruger visitor, I had no idea what to expect and how I would be fascinated by every single thing: all the animals, the trees, streams, and the slow-flowing rivers, the sweetish and dirty smell of the bush.

One piece of advice from our ranger Job Shabangu was to go in the bush with an open mind, and “allow mother nature to reveal herself to you”.

I know, it sounds cliched again, right? Well, I low-key rolled my eyes and sat behind him. The first sight of the animals was of impalas, which everyone called “McDonalds” and I didn’t know why until I realised that they were everywhere.

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This made these animals an easy target for carnivores, so it made sense. But it was not just nature which totally amazed me.

As a young black woman, seeing fellow black people so passionate about what they were doing – and playing their part to conserve nature and the animals – I soaked up each and every aspect of that first trip and learned so much more than I thought I would, especially from the bush drives. From spotting the baboons, crocodiles hyenas and leopards, elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, zebras, wildebeest and hippos, everything just seemed so surreal.

A couple of months ago I couldn’t cared less about what would happen to wildlife. I didn’t even know why there was such a fuss around rhinos but as human populations and consumption rates grow, so do the pressures in and around protected areas like the Kruger Park and from what I have learned, there is an urgent need for biodiversity change and conservation effectiveness.

I have met so many young people who inspired me to do my part, especially as a journalist. I had the chance to speak to a young female veterinary technologist, Tebogo Manamela, and a male vet, Lufuno Netshitavhadulu, who to many might be just another vet, but to a black child like me is a form of representation.

Netshitavhadulu taught me so much about what he does and why it is so important to have people who cared about wildlife; who wanted to preserve it and needed our help to do it.

And while we advocate for wildlife, it is not only about the animals, but the local village boys and girls who want to make a difference, and are passionate about nature, or those who never knew career paths such as veterinarians, biotechnicians, guides, game rangers and so many others existed.

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We may think that the future of wildlife lies in the hands of those who live alongside it, the reality is we are all responsible for the future we want to live in.

Wildlife is an essential part of tourism in South Africa, which has created opportunities for local communities, as well as the broader economy.

So as we push to return SA to what it was in terms of tourism, remember that wildlife is crucial to nature’s web of life. After all, it is called the circle of life.