01
FENCED OFF
Despite living within a few kilometres of Protected Areas, the vast majority of these young people have never visited a wilderness area before or seen wildlife first-hand.
02
ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES
Regions containing Protected Areas are at the heart of numerous environmental challenges, especially the loss of biodiversity through poaching, snaring and poisoning.
03
YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT
Youth unemployment stands at over 65% in the rural communities within the Greater Kruger Area in South Africa. Young people from these local communities face many obstacles preventing their upliftment out of poverty.
THE ISSUES
WHAT WE DO
Wild Shots Outreach uses photography to engage young Africans from disadvantaged communities in accessing their wildlife heritage and developing employment skills in conservation & tourism.
Each Wild Shots Outreach course comprises five photographic workshops as well as conservation, story-telling and wildlife tourism themes. The workshops are followed by a game drive and culminate with an awards ceremony with certificates and printed photos. Camera equipment is donated by sponsors and the game drives are provided by partner safari lodges and game reserves.
We prioritise unemployed youth and government high school students living adjacent to Africa’s National Parks & Protected Areas. Our core focus of work is the Greater Kruger Area, South Africa, but we also run annual programmes in Botswana, Namibia and Kenya.
Workshop Programme
Wild Shots Outreach also provides support, mentoring and employment opportunities to some of its most talented and committed students through its Bursary Programme. The bespoke support on offer ranges from funding for driving lessons, to training to qualify as Field Guide Association of South Africa safari guides, through to full three-year support at University.
Thanks to WSO support, former students, all previously unemployed, are now working as antipoaching rangers, safari lodge staff, wildlife guides, and running film making and photography studios.
90% of bursary students that WSO has invested in are now in employment or running self-sustaining businesses.
Bursary Programme
HOW WE WORK
01
To create respect, care and reverence for nature.
02
To use the universal appeal of photography to engage and educate young Africans from disadvantaged communities in conservation and wildlife.
03
To offer bespoke support for young people, removing barriers to accessing further education, training, and employment.
04
To build self-esteem, confidence and transferable skills, as well as inspire and raise the aspirations of the conservationists of tomorrow.
05
To ensure the cross-cutting themes of female empowerment, diversity and inclusion, secure livelihoods and wildlife conservation are at the heart of Wild Shots Outreach and its programmes.
OUR GOALS
Reconnecting local communities with their natural heritage, provides us with an opportunity to educate and uplift young people at the same time as paving the way for a new mindset that will help to save Africa’s wildlife and wild places.
