About the Wildlife Ranger Challenge: 

COVID-19 has brought tourism revenue to a halt across Africa, threatening the important work and livelihoods of the rangers who protect iconic African wildlife such as elephants, pangolins, rhinos, lions, and more. Ranger teams are now uniting around the Wildlife Ranger Challenge, a running race with one goal: to raise money to support thousands of their fellow rangers. Now is the time to go the extra mile—it’s time to race to support our rangers. Every dollar donated will be matched by the Scheinberg Relief Fund, doubling your generous contribution.

Your contribution will help support 32 rangers and an estimated 192 livelihoods in and around the Somkhanda Game Reserve in South Africa.

The role of rangers:

Rangers play a critical role in protecting the Somkhanda Game Reserve white and black rhino population. Ranger activities include daily patrols, anti-poaching drills, and the monitoring of endangered species and habitats. The rangers also serve as a communication link with the local community, assisting with conservation education and support.

Rangers are critical for security, but also for the ability of the reserve to serve as an engine for growth and development in the local community who have placed their land under conservation. Without the rangers, the reserve would not be able to serve as a black rhino range expansion site and all rhino would have to be translocated, depriving the community of tourism income and livelihood support. 

How your donation will help:

Funding is urgently required to keep the full quota of rangers on station. It is feared that retrenchments will lead to a sharp increase in wildlife crime as desperate and unemployed individuals will be lured by crime syndicates to provide the security information they have to assist in poaching. The rangers also support families directly so it is critical to keep employment up as the effects of the pandemic increase. 

Effects of the pandemic:

All areas managed by the organisation are community-owned and managed via partnerships with local communities. The areas are all directly reliant on national and international donor support and income from tourism and hunting. As a result of the pandemic, almost all donor support has come to a halt and tourism and hunting income has completely dried up, leaving severe budgetary constraints on community reserves. Government projects to support the communal areas have also not materialised as funding has been moved to health and other sectors leaving the tourism and conservation sector extremely vulnerable.

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Tusk is registered with JustGiving in the UK (or GoFundMe.com in the USA). Our online fundraising sites allow you to create a sponsorship form with easy access for your supporters, knowing their money is going directly to Tusk. UK tax-paying donors can enhance their contribution by agreeing to Gift Aid their sponsorship (for every £10 you raise, Tusk will receive another £2.50 from the Government provided you are a UK taxpayer). US supporters wishing to make a tax deductible donation can do so via GoFundMe.com.