The Outreach Education Programme has been doing education visits in the Gauteng, North West and Limpopo Provinces.

A wide range of institutions have been visited, from schools to old age homes and farmer days to corporate functions. Positive feedback has been received in all instances and letters received from children depict the success of the programme.

Teachers Workshops
Two very successful teacher workshops were held, one in Limpopo Province at Lapalala Wilderness Reserve and the other at the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust. Methods of implementing the programme into the curriculum were explained to teachers and this received a positive response.

Farmers Workshops
The programme is represented at farmer workshops in conjunction with the De Wildt Wild Cheetah Management Project and a visit to the Atherstone Nature Reserve (Limpopo) which hosted a farmers day with a turnout of over 80 farmers, proved to be very successful. Children of the farm workers who work at the reserve were also given the opportunity to experience the outreach programme. Presentations were also given at the Thabazimbi District Boerevereeniging meeting (Limpopo) as well as the Thabazimbi Wildsfees (Limpopo), Bela Bela Festival (Limpopo) and the Brits Community Luncheon (North West).

School Educationals
Presentations at schools have a very specific format and children are shown an interactive slide presentation which explains various aspects of species, habitat, geographical status etc., they are also challenged to implement some form of eco friendly project in their school or area. The ambassador cheetah is brought into the classroom and anatomy and habits are discussed. The lesson ends with a question and answer segment and the children to date have been very interactive with some extremely good questions being asked.

Schools visited in these provinces include:

Makoppa Primary School (Limpopo) 60 children
Dwaalboom Primary School (Limpopo) 75 children
Laerskool Uitsig (Gauteng) 103 children
Laerskool Eenheid (Limpopo) 280 children
Laerskool Tuinplaas (Limpopo) 56 children
Pretoria Preparatory School (Gauteng) 40 children
Pretoria Chinese School (Gauteng) 190 children
St Pauls Methodist School (Gauteng) 20 children
Kgaugelo Middle School (North West) 60 children
Pretoria Boys High School (Gauteng) 1400 children
All Days Primary School (Limpopo) 50 children
Kgaugelo Middle School/ National Lottery 20 children
AISchool Jhb 50 children

Corporate Functions
In order to create environmental awareness, educational presentations are given in different areas of the community and these include:

Sanparks Honorary Rangers Pretoria (Gauteng) 150 guests
Pretoria Rotary Club (Gauteng) 120 guests
4 Wheel drive Club of SA (Gauteng) 360 guests
The launch of the Red Data Mammal Book (Gauteng) 100 guests
People for wildlife 150 guests
Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa 120 guests
Seremed 20 guests

The programme also reaches out to underprivileged and disabled people and presentations were given at:

Nazareth House for the aged and children with HIV (Gauteng) 60 people
Camp Quality – Children terminally ill with cancer (North West) 60 children
Eco Access – making nature accessible for blind and disabled people. (Gauteng) 75 children
Youth with a vision (HIV children / adults) 40 people
Hans Merensky Orphanage 80 children
Brits retirement Centre 60 people
Eco Access - disabled 100 children

Everyone in the global conservation community acknowledges the importance of education. So too De Wildt has developed a relevant community based outreach education project.

Our Education Outreach Programme was launched in June 2004 at the Kguagelo Middle school in a nearby township. Together with sister facility Cheetah Outreach we initiated our environmental education project complete with lesson plans and posters to assist teachers. Ambassador cheetahs proudly driven by Ssangyong visit schools and capture the hearts and minds of the young learners. Children are taught about all aspects of environmental protection, including the conservation of water, the importance of recycling, the planting of indigenous trees and not to litter. You just know you are making an impact when you are stopped at toll roads when driving a DW vehicle and you are asked where ambassador cheetah Byron is or when you are standing browsing in a bookshop and you hear a little boy telling his mother that the cheetah on the cover of a magazine is Byron.

The Education team participated in a teacher workshop with Birdlife SA where Modjaji – our ambassador king made her maiden appearance. We also conducted our own workshop with 15 teachers from a neighbouring community. Teachers were challenged to include cheetah and vulture conservation in their lesson planning.

Many remote schools have been visited with our ambassadors. Old age homes, orphanages and homes for terminally ill children have also been part of the programme. We need to make as many people as possible aware that we run the risk of losing many valuable species if we don’t begin to protect our environment.

The Education Project acknowledges the support of the National Lottery, Sanyong, Wondercoat, and the Prince Bernhard Fund for Nature, the Miami Metro Zoo and Sanyo.