The BushLife Foundation

WHY NAMIBIA?

Namibia is one of the least populated countries in the world with one of the largest federally protected ecosystems.

Namibia’s vast stretches of unspoiled wilderness is home to more than 150 animal species, fourteen of which are endemic to the country. Namibia is also home to threatened and vulnerable species including the White and Black Rhino, Oribi, White-backed Vulture, Black Faced Impala, Pangolin, and Wild Dogs. Preservation of these fragile resources is of paramount importance to the country, its inhabitants, and their future.

THE BUSH CULTURE

Home to more than 227,000 people living in close proximity to wildlife

Accordingly, Namibia’s Conservancies and the BushLife culture are inextricably linked to its wildlife. Communities are dependent on their wildlife resources to generate jobs and revenues derived from tourism development and sustainable hunting operations.

The greatest threats to the Bush Culture are wildlife and habitat loss due to encroachment, drought, and poaching. Accordingly, preserving Namibia’s wildlife and wilderness areas is an integral part of preserving Namibia’s rural BushLife Culture. The loss of one will impact the other. Without wildlife, rural communities will diminish. Without rural communities, Namibia’s wildlife will be exposed to encroachment and indiscriminate poaching.

THE CONSERVATION CHALLENGE

Due to the vastness of Namibia’s bushveld, conserving and protecting wildlife habitat is a massive undertaking.

The government can only do so much. In recent years, communal Conservancies, along with the assistance of private organizations and funding resources such as the BushLife Foundation, are initiating and managing community-based conservation programs. This Community Conservation Initiative is breathing new life into Namibia’s BushLife Culture through job creation and greater wildlife protection.

The BushLife Foundation provides funding support for NGOs and conservation organizations that are dedicated to protecting Namibia’s Conservancies, bushveld, and wildlife. Protecting wildlife today protects the future generations that will perpetuate the BushLife for Namibia’s communal communities.

CONSERVANCIES - THE NEXT GENERATION

The future of Namibia’s Conservancies is being threatened.

Rural communities are shrinking as the younger generation moves to urban centers seeking job opportunities. Without local development and job creation, the next generation will have no choice but to abandon their ancestral homelands. A shrinking community only complicates the conservation mission as it exposes wildlife and habitat to encroachment and mismanagement. Effective habitat and wildlife protection depends on a viable and actively engaged community — the two are fundamentally bound. The BushLife Foundation supports conservation and development efforts that embrace and sustain the BushLife culture in Namibia. Through the creation of sustainable jobs and the protection of vital habitat, both Namibia’s wildlife and BushLife culture will be preserved for generations to come.

The BushLife Foundation is a non-profit organization that supports and preserves rural communities in the African Nation of Namibia through wildlife conservation and economic development initiatives.