To ensure the long-term survival of the lion (Panthera leo), the Namibian Lion Trust (Reg#:T298/2019) has developed three interdependant programmes to support the recovery, survival and range-wide expansion of this Big Cat species, namely For Lions – For Life – For Our Future.
‘In the end, we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught’.
These words by Baba Douim, a Senegalese Environmentalist, are quoted from his speech given to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in New Delhi, India, 1968.
His sentiments, as one of the IUCN founding members, resonate with the The Nambian Lion Trust ‘For Our Future’ quest: To the Youth, to Educators, farmers, community leaders, to all who care about a future on our Planet Earth.; our programmes encourage a deep-seated awareness and understanding of the complexities of environmental issues, emphasising the value of the wilderness and the wildlife within it, especially the importance of co-existence. Namibian Lion Trust strives to enable communities to support themselves without endangering the carnivore population.
The Namibian Lion Trust works on both sides of the Farmer-Lion conflict: on the one side, we try to protect the lion from being trapped & killed by angry farmers; on the other, we encourage farming communities to protect their cattle from the hungry lions. Thanks to the efforts by our Lion Guards, the efforts by the communities and the adapted farm management techniques, the situation is improving and the number of losses to both livestock and Lion are decreasing. In order to make this change last and be sustainable, we need to add one more component to the equation, namely the CHILDREN.
Children are our future and when we teach them the importance of conservation and sustainability, they will carry this with them for life and act accordingly when they grow up. For this reason, the third pillar of the Namibian Lion Trust concentrates on the Conservation Education of the Namibian Youth. This guidance does not only result in a more positive attitude towards the lion species, but it also creates opportunities and the potential for additional income and improved livelihoods, especially through Wildlife Tourism.
The Namibian Lion Trust supports OUR FUTURE through Conservation Education: Onguta Lower Primary Community School and various Wildlife Clubs, also encouraging community upliftment through Conservation Agriculture and Photographic Tourism
