Education non-profit, Good Work Foundation (GWF), through its Travel & Tourism Academy, has recently seen at least 95% of its graduates employed in lodges, private game reserves, hotels and other establishments, mainly in and around the Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve and the Greater Kruger National Park.

GWF aims to contribute to sustainable development and tap into the tourism sector’s rich potential for employment. The academy offers career training in conservation and hospitality to young rural Mpumalanga residents.

“Game lodges would like to ‘employ local’,” explained Kathleen Hay, GWF’s Travel & Tourism Academy Programme Manager. She said having access to area-specific vocational training meant that young rural people could study and ultimately work close to where they live. “You could say we’re growing our own timber.”

Conservation Academy co-ordinator, Sibusiso Mnisi, said: “I’ve seen a great transformation in our students as they come to understand what it truly means to conserve the natural environment. Their eyes are opened to the impact of the crisis of rhino poaching, how trees can be used sustainably, and what careers they can pursue. It’s a great life-changing experience for young people.”

A case in point is Conservation Academy graduate Amend Mhlanga, who, following his foundation year at GWF, was accepted to further his conservation education journey at the prestigious More Field Guide College.

While out with guests on a game drive, he crafted a whistle flute (called xiwhewhe in Xitsonga) from the dried shell of the fruit from a black monkey orange tree – demonstrating a deep connection with the land and its natural treasures. 

Mhlanga, who grew up in the village of Newington near the Kruger National Park, said: “What inspired me to become a field guide was being out with my dad in the bush. He was a field guide and used to take me out with him. He taught me about interactions between animals as well as between people and wildlife, and about respecting our natural environment.”

Regarding his training at GWF, he added: “I have learnt the power of taking small steps and that change is good.”

Furthermore, female Conservation Academy graduates – such as Joyce Maile, an apprentice field guide at the Lion Sands Game Reserve – are breaking the stereotype that wildlife conservation is a man’s job.

She said the conservation programme “encouraged me to see the environment in a different way”. “Nature guiding was always seen as a man’s job, but I have always loved being in nature and believed I could become a field guide. I am strong and fearless.”

Mnisi concluded: “If we can foster a holistic understanding of how everything is interconnected among young people, then we’ve done our job.”