Malawi conservation research experience

Planet

Malawi is known as ‘the warm heart of Africa’, both for its stunning beauty and friendly people. It’s also one of the most densely populated countries in Africa and one of the poorest countries in the world, which puts enormous pressures on its natural resources. As a result, the illegal trade of wild animals and their slaughter for bush meat is still a big problem in Malawi, at a time when conservation of both the environment and wildlife is more critical than ever.

We work to protect Malawi’s wildlife & habitats. Since our inception in 2007, we have rehabilited over 800 animals, with more than half released back into the wild. Our programmes have evolved in response to local needs, working with wildlife as well as people and approaching the issues from all angles. Our is the only sanctuary in the world to have obtained all three accreditations from PASA, GFAS and the Born Free Foundation's PAW scheme and are Malawi's only member of the Species Survival Network.

We rescue and rehabilitate wildlife in distress and conduct scientific research to better inform both our welfare and conservation projects. We’re working with the highest levels of Government to tackle wildlife crime through advocacy and enforcement initiatives, tens of thousands of school children are engaged in our environmental education programmes across the country and our community conservation projects are helping people to live more sustainably.

We owe a great deal to those partners, volunteers and generous donors who have helped make our work possible.

People

We employ over 60 members of the local community under the charity, and also build capacity through universities through training programmes similar to this one.

One of our goals as mentioned above is to inspire people to protect their natural heritage for the benefit of both people and wildlife. Education on wildlife welfare and conservation, wildlife crime, human-wildlife conflict, biodiversity and deforestation is delivered by our team at our wildlife sanctuary, in city schools and also in communities around protected areas across the country. We also produce TV and radio programming and run a number of national youth events.

Our small scale community conservation projects have been introduced in response to the needs of individual communities we work with and include beekeeping, green fuels, afforestation and adult literacy. These programmes not only contribute to conservation efforts but also help to promote sustainable livelihoods so that communities are living in harmony with their environment.