The WSPA - AfriCat Environmental Education Centre
In the end, we conserve only what we love.
We will love only what we understand.
We will understand only what we are taught.
AfriCat provides environmental education programmes for the youth of Namibia by guiding them towards a greater understanding of the natural world and the importance of wildlife conservation.
The programme has already reached over 20 000 children and young adults at the two education centres and through the Out-reach Programmes. (AfriCat on Okonjima & AfriCat north, on Kavita).
The WSPA/AfriCat Environmental Education Centre on Okonjima farm, opened in April 1998 with the objective of promoting predator and environmental awareness among Namibian youth.
After many years of working with the farming community it became clear that youth education was vital to the long-term conservation of large carnivores.
The AfriCat Environmental Education Programme aims to inform and empower Namibia's youth about large carnivores, conservation and the Namibian environment
The objectives of the Environmental Education Programme, based on the 1997 UNESCO-UNEP Environmental Education objectives, are as follows:
- Awareness: an appreciation of and sensitivity towards large carnivores, allØ living things, the environment and their associated problems
- Knowledge: to include knowledge of large carnivores, environment and basic ecology. To include knowledge of social, economic and political natures related to environmental problems and alternative solutions.
- Attitudes: To raise concern aboutØ problems, values, personal responsibility and willingness to participate/act.
- Skills: To include critical thinking skills and problem solving skills.
- Participation: To include personal and school based involvement in environmental issues.
The Education Programme attempts to fulfill these objectives through its various projects, which include the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA)/ AfriCat Environmental Education Centre, School Outreach, development of educational resource materials and school contests. These projects inform and empower youth using a variety of educational approaches about large carnivore issues, conservation and the Namibian environment.
By visiting the centre and participating in the AfriCat education programme, it is our hope that the children and young adults of Namibia gain a new sense of understanding for the natural world and the importance of wildlife conservation. Schools and learners from all over Namibia are invited to participate in a three-day/two-night environmental education programme.
The programme is adapted to the various ages of the different groups, but includes activities that are focused on predator conservation and general environmental awareness, i.e. nature walks, outdoor games, and cheetah viewing and tracking etc.
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March 2011:
Grade 5 learners embark on a tour of a lifetime
Fourteen Grade 5 learners selected from five different primary schools in Swakopmund, embarked on the tour of a lifetime last week. This group of young learners, accompanied by three teachers from Mondesa Youth Opportunities (MYO) travelled from the coast to visit Okonjima Lodge and the Africat Foundation, some 50 kilometres south of Otjiwarongo.
For most of the learners, this was their first trip away from home and the experiences they had over this past weekend will last a lifetime. Some expressed surprise at the fierceness of an upcountry thunderstorm and for others, the fact that the bush is so alive with all manner of creatures and plants, was enthralling and amazing all at the same time.
The annual camping weekend for young people is a joint initiative of MYO, Okonjima and the AfriCat Foundation as part of their respective environmental education programmes. Sue Wagner, one of the teachers from MYO explained that the offer of these trips are also a motivational tool amongst learners, as only those individuals who do well at school and who have excellent behaviour and attendance records are eligible for a place on the tour. Competition between learners is strong to earn one of the coveted spots.
Despite the intermittent rain and misty conditions, the group enjoyed every minute of their tour, evident in their appreciative singing and dancing for their guides at the campsite. Besides their extensive bush trips to see animals in the wild, including giraffes, leopard and cheetah, the learners were treated to extensive explanation of the work of the AfriCat Foundation in creating awareness of and tolerance for large carnivores on Namibian farmland and also games involving radio-tracking and cheetah masks. The Okonjima tour guides questioned the children continually, testing their newly-gained knowledge of tree names and animal species, an activity they particularly loved. On the last day of the trip, Okonjima also sponsored a visit to the nearby REST (Rare and Endangered Species Trust) facility where they saw a lappet-faced vulture, Cape Griffon Vultures, a white faced owl and a Bateleur eagle.
MYO is a non-profit after-school enrichment programme for 120 learners from the Mondesa and DRC areas of Swakopmund. "We cultivate positive thinking and high self-esteem in our learners. We are planting the seeds for a future generation of emotionally healthy, driven, and forward-thinking leaders. Our larger aim is for these future leaders to help break the cycle of poverty and help build a stronger Namibia," stated Sue Wagner.
When asked what they'd enjoyed most, the answer from the group was a unanimous: "No Miss, we can't choose a best - we loved EVERYTHING," before breaking out into another lively local rendition of the classic ballad Guantanamera.
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