VA32 launch Rhino Ambassador Stewardship Project (RASP)

The latest addition to the Volunteer Africa project base addresses a very real threat to South Africa’s conservation efforts and the world’s population of rhino. In the two articles which preceded this one I explained how the rhino is facing extinction in South Africa due to poachers and what you can do to help fight this problem.

In this final article VA32 offers an opportunity to be physically involved in conservation work which supports the efforts of anti-poaching organisations in South Africa. This opportunity is a break-away from what has become the norm in volunteer programs and puts the onus on the volunteer to continue their work and raise awareness of the plight of the rhino after leaving the physical aspect of the project in South Africa.

Save the Rhino: what can be done and how you can do your bit...

Last week we published an article The Iconic Rhino Faces Extinction in South Africa, about the plight of the rhino and the dangers facing this beautiful creature which is such an icon of Africa. This week I wanted to share with you what is being done in this country to tackle the situation and what you can do to do your bit.

Anti-Poaching Agencies and Organisaitons are attempting to:

• Protect existing key rhino populations through trained conservationists and awareness in nearby communities.
• Break the trade chains and increase law enforcement around rhino poaching.
• Improve communications between South Africa and the horn consumer countries in the East. On 10th December a deal was signed between South Africa and Vietnam in an attempt to slow the demand for the rhino horn and crack down on poachers and the organised crime around this issue. 
• Experts are trying to understanding the rhino horn trade and influence the buyers as to the effects of the poaching on the rhino population.

The Iconic Rhino Faces Extinction in South Africa

The South African plight of the rhino, a member of the infamous Big 5, is finally hitting the news shelves internationally. When VA32 director Mike took part in a networking conference earlier this year he presented our latest volunteer project - the Rhino Ambassador Stewardship Project (RASP) – which puts the onus and responsibility solidly onto the volunteer, to carry their practical experience and knowledge of the rhino, its environment and the dangers that it faces after leaving South Africa, and to engage in the sharing of information on how we can stop the eradication of the rhino species in Africa. Unfortunately at the time we presented the project Mike was told that the world wasn't aware of the plight of the rhino. It wouldn't sell. So this project has been quietly sitting on our website for months as the state of the rhino population in South Africa has been forced down by more and more poachers. This year alone 618 rhinos have died at the hands of poachers – as I worked on this article over the past week that number has risen at least twice. Now I think it’s time to educate, to push this cause and to call for action from our international community of volunteers, followers and subscribers. Something needs to be done to stop this and we need your help.