T
he government and private firms spend billions protecting nature, but the environment could be better managed if people learned at a young age the importance of conservation.
Targeting children creates a lasting sense of ownership in communities surrounding endangered endowments.
Lessons in Conservation, a youth-led organisation founded in 2018 by South African Dean Carlisle, engages young people to love, value and protect natural resources.
The organisation connects young people in Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, Eswatini and Rwanda to wildlife sanctuaries to create a generation that cherishes nature.
It funds training opportunities for exceptional students in conservation programmes.
Its founder spent the first few years at Phinda Private Game Reserve with his father, a prominent conservationist in South Africa.
Experiencing the wild wonders most children only read about in books enmeshed Carlisle’s dreams with wildlife protection. While studying zoology, he discovered a passion for wildlife that was triggered by first-hand experiences.
“Lessons in Conservation was created to share that knowledge, create awareness and facilitate exposure to children from underprivileged communities in the hope that the fire which burns so bright for conservation in us may be sparked in them too,” he says.
The organisation came to Malawi in September 2020, with Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (Luanar) and University of Malawi (Unima) students joining the movement.
“I was motivated by what I saw in my village in Chitipa where the natural beauty of Misuku Hills has disappeared in a blink of an eye,” says Central Region manager Selah Malanga, a veterinary medicine graduate from Luanar.
The postcard hills once dominated by pine forests and chilly weather have been raided by illegal loggers for timber.
“At the current pace, Misuku’s natural forests will be history soon,” says Malanga. “By teaching children about the importance of conservation, we can save the remaining beauty of Malawi.”
Lessons in Conservation promotes stewardship for the good of the planet and all living things. It collaborates with schools nationwide to save the environment.
“We find the programmes to be entertaining, educational and inspiring for career paths in conservation,” says Vincent Sani, a teacher at Cape Maclear Primary School.
During school recess, the organisation takes children to Liwonde National Park as well as Nkhotakota and Majete Wildlife Reserves, which are managed by African Parks. The young people get to see wildlife up close, creating lasting impressions for their work.
“The trip allowed me to see buffaloes, elephants and cheetahs for the first time. I learned that trees are animal homes and we need to protect them,” recalls Philemon Chisomo, a Standard Eight learner at Cape Maclear Primary School in Mangochi.
Lesson in Conservation has partnered with African Parks and Central African Wilderness Safari to promote educational visits.
“The conservation organisation is doing a remarkable job when it comes to teaching children about wildlife conservation,” says Liwonde National Park environmental education officer Susan Chimbaza.
The initiative promotes the sharing of knowledge and building future conservation leaders.
University students volunteer to teach conservation issues in various primary schools during weekends.
“Volunteering has turned my love for conservation into a deep commitment. Teaching children has been the most fulfilling part of this journey,” says Ruvarashe Munzeiwa, a third-year Unima student.
Comfort Jiya, from Luanar, says volunteering allowed her to “directly impact communities around the university” and a first-hand experience to perfect and showcase her teaching skills.
Malanga has worked with two cohorts of volunteers so far and many found something to do just after school because of the job experience and exposure from volunteering.
Environmental conservation and sustainability are central to the Malawi 2063 vision for the country to become “an inclusively wealthy and self-reliant industrialised upper-middle-income country” by the centenary of its self-rule.
“For us, conservation means caring for the planet so we and future generations can enjoy it too. We’re building a culture that we hope to last beyond our lifetime,” says Lessons in Conservation regional manager Charles Kamwana.
