SustainZim - Issue 09 by SustainZim

NO T

SA L

QUARTER 01 ISSUE 09 / 18

CONSERVATION

Green 05 Zimbo January clean up

Killing for Conservation

CONSERVATION

RECYCLING

a bag is made from 12 How pellets to bags

Facing Extinction

F E AT U R E

Mountain Guides Boost Zimbabwe Tourism Page 8

PHOTOGRAPHY: BAD RABBIT STUDIO

CLEAN UP

SUSTAINZIM - THINK LIVE STAY GREEN!

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L A N D US E

NO T

QUARTER 01 ISSUE 09 / 18

CLEAN UP

CONSERVATION

Zimbo Green 05 January clean up

Killing for Conservation

CONSERVATION

RECYCLING

How a bag is made from 12 pellets to bags

Facing Extinction

Fertilizers, Pesticides, Residential Areas And Water Wells By Tanaka Tsikira, Sustainability Consultant

F E AT U R E

Mountain Guides Boost Zimbabwe Tourism Page 8

PHOTOGRAPHY: BAD RABBIT STUDIO

SustainZim is a publication that promotes a green culture within Zimbabwean homes, schools, work places and everyday lives. It aims to step up the fight against Global Warming and Climate Change by raising awareness about the need to reduce our carbon footprint and a push towards sustainable development. It will showcase green initiatives already being done by government, civil society groups, companies and individuals.

Best Upcoming Community Newspaper YETT 2017 Youth Voice Journalist Honours awards

PARTNERING We are available to work as implementing partners for projects in Zimbabwe. Get in touch if you would like to partner with us sustainzim@povoafrika.org PUBLISHERS POVOAfrika Trust (MA0001023/2015) ZIM - Harare +263 77 228 3186 / +263 77 291 8810, 1 Verona Gardens, 70 Livingstone Ave RSA - Johannesburg +27 72 600 5283 / +27 760999770 210 Klein Drakenstein, 31 Snipe Street, Horizon, 1724, Roodepoort CONTRIBUTE contribute@sustainzim.org ADVERTISING A rate sheet is available on request ZIM +263 77 291 8810 / +263 77 228 3186 RSA +27 72 600 5283 / +27 760999770 Email: advertise@sustainzim.org Limited Space Available! KEY PERSONNEL EDITOR Archibald Mathibela PROJECT COORDINATOR Raymond Muwaniri DESIGN AND LAYOUT Baynham Goredema FINANCE DIRECTOR Rodrick Longwe CARTOONIST Tafadzwa Tarumbwa

Farming has long since been in the nature of the Zimbabwean people. It is the backbone upon which our society has built and maintained great civilizations from the Munhumutapa era, to the current one we live in. In that time span, the way we farm has radically changed. Whether is changed for the better or not depends on the lens through which you look at it.

efinitely greater yields are attainable now than ever before in history. However, serious consideration must be taken with regards to the potentially harmful side effects of the chemicals and technologies that have enabled us to attain such abundance. The natural ability and desire for farming amongst Zimbabweans manifests itself in this era in the form of residential farming. Residential farming is partly a result of how the colonial era radically restructured the type and distribution of human settlement in Zimbabwe. This has left a large portion of Zimbabwean living in urban areas with very limited access to adequate farming land. This has however not deterred those living in these areas from fully utilizing every vacant area available for farming. This is generally a laudable action as it increases the overall food output and surplus of the nation. However a combination of urban settlement challenges and risky modern day farming techniques create a possible recipe for a health and environmental disaster in our urban areas. One of the main challenges of living in residential areas in present day Zimbabwe, is access to clean drinking water. Residents generally consider municipal water unfit for drinking. Residents have thus opted for using groundwater accessed through either boreholes or wells. Accessing water through these ground water sources creates a serious health risk when

coupled with residential agriculture that makes use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Due to the lack of adequate space, boreholes and wells end up being in close proximity these pseudo farming areas. This creates an environment that fosters the potential nitrification of groundwater. Nitrification being the process by which chemical fertilizers which are generally high in nitrogen leach into the ground and deposit nitrates into the groundwater. Residents thus unknowingly consume this highly nitrated water. Diseases associated with water high in nitrates include methemoglobinemia (blue baby syndrome) in infants and nitrate poisoning in adults. If this situation continues it may result in residents slowly poisoning themselves over the long term and the health impacts being felt years later. It also creates an environmental risk as ground water sources that are polluted by nitrates can be unsafe to drink for hundreds of years. To avert a potential health and environmental disaster the following aspects must be addressed. REGULATION

There is need for establishment of a regulatory framework that governs farming in residential areas. In establishing regulation, one of the fundamental questions to answer would be whether residential farming should be allowed. If it is to be allowed,

strict regulations on agrochemical use in residential areas are necessary. WATER QUALITY ANALYSIS

With the wide spread use of groundwater in most residential areas, there is urgent need to assess the quality and safety of this drinking water with regards to nitrification. Relevant government and nongovernmental organization must be proactive in conduction such analysis to ensure the health of citizens. AWARENESS CAMPAIGN

It is also necessary to quickly raise public awareness about the health risks associated with using fertilizers in areas that utilize a lot of groundwater. This can be done through broad base platforms such as radio and television or simpler ones such as social media. Social media campaigns through platforms like Whatsapp and Facebook have proven to be a cheap and effective methods for sharing important information In all that we do, we must act in the knowledge that we are simply but transitory custodians of this country and we have before us one simple task. To conduct ourselves in a manner that does not deprive future generations of their right to live in healthy and thriving environment. Email - tsikiratanaka@yahoo.com

DISCLAIMER SustainZim is published by POVOAfrika Trust. The information, opinions and views set out in this journal are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of POVOAfrika Trust nor any of their partners. Neither POVOAfrika Trust nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein. Neither are they responsible for siting references within articles, stated facts or credits to photos supplied, this is the responsibility of the contributor. Rights to the photographs and articles remain with the photographers and with the authors respectively. Contact them respectively for reproduction. While all care has been taken during proofing, errors and omissions may slip through and we sincerely apologise for these.

KB Mpofu FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER

+263 9 883 696 +263 71 660 5615 Kb@kbmpofu.com www.kbmpofu.com

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E D I TOR I A L

Stepping up efforts for Sustainable Development in Zimbabwe By Raymond Muwaniri, POVOAfrika Trust

With time passing and more effects of climate change being felt in Zimbabwe this is a call to step up our efforts. SustainZim is an outlet to educate Zimbabweans on the harm we are bringing to our own environment and eventual wellbeing.

ith time passing and more effects of climate change being felt in Zimbabwe this is a call to step up our efforts. SustainZim is an outlet to educate Zimbabweans on the harm we are bringing to our own environment and eventual wellbeing. In this first quarter edition we have very interesting articles which are worth a read and may change your opinion on certain topics. With that said, contained is a very interesting article on ‘hunting as a form of conservation’ by Johnny Whitfield. In his article Johnny talks about the benefits of hunting compared to poaching. He mentions the recent extinction of the northern white rhino due to poaching and how their southern cousins still have healthy numbers due to conservation from hunting proceeds. He further explains how keeping hunting alive pays for the protection of animals in the national parks. Johnny goes on to remind us that killing of animals is part of human nature, commercial faming kills millions of animals but we do not see the pictures of dead animals (as illustrated in the inserts) but rather trays of meat on our shelves. I do encourage our readers to view this article with an open mind and make an educated conclusion because Johnny has given us the other spectrum of hunting. On the upside, China banned all ivory trade starting January 2018, this should result in less poaching allowing animal numbers, especially rhinos to increase. Unfortunately, this ban came too late for the northern white rhino, Prisca Daka from Speak Out For Animals talks about the death of Sudan the last remaining male northern white rhino. Sudan and 2 females had been moved from a zoo in Czech Republic to Kenya

for breeding purposes. The species is extinct in the wild and these were the last 3 known rhinos. Due to old age Sudan was unable to mount the 2 females and IVF treatment was unsuccessful. It also didn’t help that the 2 females were related to Sudan, his daughter and granddaughter. It was a sad day in March 2018, death of another species on our watch. In other articles, Tanaka Tsikira a sustainability consultant talks about serious consideration with regards to the potential harmful side effects of chemicals and technologies used in farming. He talks about residential farming, which is farming in urban areas and how urban challenges and modern-day farming techniques create a possible recipe for health and environmental disasters. Tanaka explains how chemicals and fertilisers deposit nitrates into our groundwater, he lists the health risk associated and suggests solutions. With the public losing confidence in Harare city water, low annual rainfalls and rations, groundwater has become an essential resource especially in the capital, so it is important it stays uncontaminated. Elaine Sarudzai’s article explains how people have neglected their impact on nature, a fundamental resource linked to our existence and how acceleration of climate change is threatening the livelihood of millions. Elaine mentions the fact that Africa is the least contributor towards climate change but suffers the most effects. She explains how Africa must educate its citizens that climate change is not a natural coarse but man made. Staying with climate change and its link to African development, Oswald Chisanga talks about redefining development in the age of climate change. He suggests the introduction of effective policies and strategies as

climate change threatens to reverse or halt human development. Just like Elaine, Oswald explains how developing counties are more affected because they depend directly on climate sensitive natural resources and their incapacity to finance effective mitigation and adoption strategies. He points out that climate change is not a priority for African counties as compared to poverty and underdevelopment. In my view we cannot begin to talk about climate change with Africans without solving their livelihood issues. Michael Zvakanaka wrote an article on the ‘Zimbo Green January Clean Up’ in Harare. According to Michael there was a big turnout with City of Harare cleaners made available. He touches on the fact that vendors are the biggest litterers in the CBD and their view is it is the job of the cleaners to remove their litter, ‘otherwise they would have no work to do’. This thinking must be changed as one should be responsible for their own litter, bins must be made plentiful because that has been another complaint from the public that there are not enough bins in our cities. Michael interview some members of the public and 1 mentioned the fact that “people need jobs more than they need clean air to breath,” this compliments my earlier point that we cannot begin to mention climate change without tackling livelihood issues. Our feature article in this edition is on ‘Mountain Guides Boost Zimbabwe Tourism’. Jane High answers questions on the course available and encourages young and older Zimbabweans who are in love with nature to consider a career in mountain guiding. Worldwide there has been an increase in tourists who are fascinated with the outdoors, hill walkers, hikers, bird watchers and others, so there is a demand for

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Articles to be between 350 - 750 words maximum. Content must be original work, and must not have been published/ accepted for publication elsewhere. In the event that there is a request to republish the work elsewhere, POVOAfrika will link the creator directly and will not act as a middle man. It is the responsibility of authors to ensure that all copyright issues have been addressed prior to submission. Any consequences for copyright law of infringement will be duly borne by the defaulting author. You the creator will retain all rights to your work. All articles will also be published online on www.sustainzim.org After article has been published on the website the author may publish on their own platforms.

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mountain guides. Archie Mathibhela (SustainZim staff ), talks about the ‘Zimbabwe open for business policy’ versus a ‘Sustainable National Economic Vision’. He touches on how rural communities are not benefiting from resources in their own areas and the need for social responsibility. A big thank you goes out to all our contributors and readers, may the spreading of the sustainable development message continue, our future depends on it.

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C L I M AT E C H A N G E

Care for yourself, Care for Mother Nature By Elaine Sarudzai

Life as we know it will never be the same! The statement itself seems to be a paradox when we think of the fact that no one wants life to be the same but there is a desire to make and see things change for the better on a daily basis.

saddening fact in all our endeavour to improve the standard of living some things change for the worse. People, world over, have neglected the impact of their actions on their basic and foundational resource; nature! Human activity, especially industrialisation has accelerated the rate of climate change to levels that threaten the livelihood of millions of people. For much of the 20th century industrialisation was pursued without paying attention to the effects on climate change or the effects of climate change in general.

suffers most from the effects of climate change. Africa is the most vulnerable due to its geographical location, limited adaptive capacity, widespread poverty and low levels of development. At the global level, the recognition of climate as a threat to development has even informed the global agenda on development, with‘climate action’ being goal number 13 on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that were adopted by the United Nations as a upgrade to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) whole lifespan elapsed in 2015.

Climate change has risen to such levels that it can no longer be ignored. Just as the contributions to the problem are not evenly distributed, some countries have suffered more than others, form the effects of climate change. The unfortunate part is that Africa, which is the least contributor towards climate change

The need for global action towards climate change, although accepted at the global stage, depends on the activities on the ground for success. Although Africa has not made minimal contribution to the problem, it cannot fold its hands and do nothing. For people t address any problem, they have to see it as such, and decide to deal

with it. For the greater part, people in Africa have not seen climate change as man-made problem which can be prevented or at least slowed down; but generally view it as a natural course. This is a status that was denied by a group of young university students at Lupane State University, who decided that people should know about climate change and do something about it. The passion resulted in the formation of the Lupane State University Climate Justice Advocacy club. Since it is no secret that the youth are the ones who are going to carry the largest share of the impacts of climate change, the club decided to make the youths who fall under their sphere of influence their primary audience in its endeavour to raise an awareness in the community on climate change issues. The club’s major highlight in 2017 was the hosting of the ‘Miss Climate Justice’ beauty pageant on the 30th of

AH Wapera Shaz, Hauna Bag!!! Why are you riding a bicycle? You must be a poor man? Look at me, I live round the corner but I still drive to the shops so the girls can see me in my ride. Golf is a sexy car and attracts all the girls, they love it. Don’t tell my wife kkkkk

First of all, I am happily married and don’t need to impress the girls with a car. I cycle because it’s good for the environment and it keeps me fit and healthy. All this driving of cars is contributing to Climate Change. I do my best to reduce my Carbon Footprint, so I only drive when I need to. OH!!! What do you drive? I bet you it’s not better than my Sexy Golf? Actually, I drive the new 2016 BMW i8 Hybrid Sports Car. It is Environmentally Friendly, it uses less fuel therefore emits far less CO2 into the atmosphere. Most importantly in these economic challenging times, I save more money. I judged you too soon, maybe I should get a Hybrid Car. Haha No problem Lovemore, I always encourage my friends to get Hybrid Cars, they are environmentally friendly and less costly to run. You also shouldn’t drive everywhere, try Cycling and Walking to places that are nearby and use the Carpool system.

Climate Change - a change in

regional and global climate patterns, mainly due to human activity

Carbon Footprint - the measure of the environmental impact of a particular individual or organization's lifestyle or operation, measured in units of carbon dioxide (CO2)

Hybrid Car - a car with a petrol or diesel engine and an electric motor, each of which can propel it

Carpool - a group of people who travel together, especially to work or school, usually in a different member's car each day

September sponsored by Trocaire Zimbabwe, where modeling was used as an entering wedge to draw interest from the youth in Bulawayo. With a climate change theme: ‘Care for yourself, Care for Mother Nature’ the major category for the models was the design of an outfit from recycled materials. A short presentation by Dr C. Ncube from Lupane State University’s department of Development Studies on climate change, while all participants had to answer questions on climate change as part of the categories in the completion. The participants were from various academic institutions in the city and was won by Fikile Ncube from Bulawayo Polytechnic College. The audience was also allowed to answer questions on climate change for some tokens. This was an engaging way of not only sharing information on climate change but raising awareness on things that individuals and communities can do in mitigating and adapting to climate change. The success of this inaugural event has inspired the club to make it a yearly event with the hope of reaching a larger audience. The idea for the future is to have the reigning queen to conduct some advocacy work on climate change on young people’s platforms especially high schools. The use of entertainment can indeed go a long way in raising an awareness that will eventually turn the adaptation and mitigation strategies shared during these events from just being ideas but to result in lifestyle changes in households and communities as well. With young people making over half of the world population, if there are effectively reached, climate change information can go viral on social and online platforms that has the potential of rallying a continental movement with far reaching impact. What has begun as a small club by passionate young academics has the potential of impacting the world! You can not underestimate your potential, begin with those that are within your sphere of influence; if you succeed with them, your sphere increase and there is no telling how far that influence would reach! Care for yourself by caring for Mother Nature!

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WA ST E M A N AG E M E N T

Zimbo Green January clean up By Michael Zvakanaka

he first thing I looked for was CoH cleaners, as they should know where the clean up was. I started taking pictures. And I found them everywhere, cleaning! And cleaning well. Everything in a block swept into piles, and then the piles were put into bins on carts. All this amidst serious traffic pulling off the road wherever. Clean down to the tar. The workers were working. Perhaps CoH has too many in offices, and not enough on the streets? Perhaps there are too many wearing ties and sitting down and not enough standing up and getting their hands dirty? There is dignity in work and we salute the workers. Then I saw a man, vending (looked like telephone accessories), who finished his drink and threw his PET bottle on the ground to try and sell to a potential customer. There was a waste bin (empty, 210 litre drum size) within five meters. I picked it up and threw it in the bin and talked to another vendor in the group. A 37 year old man from Mabvuku. He agreed, the other guy was slack, we are all responsible for the marara, and the other guy was not doing his duty. However, CoH was supposed to clean up the litter. “How was CoH to pay for them?” (There was someone cleaning marara right in front of us, on the Town House lawn.) No, he was not a licensed vendor. He did not need to buy a license, people owning buildings must pay rates, and those must pay for street sweepers. After all, vending was not really a job, it was something they did, they had to do, because they could not find jobs. The government (no idea of the difference between local or national government) must provide proper roads, industry, and money from the banks. I walked on, took more pictures and asked more questions. I went into a building, a shop, where take away chicken and sadza was being made and sold. Three employees, who lived in Chitungwiza. They did not know anything about garbage. There was a skip bin down the street, they put all their garbage in there, and it was taken away. They did not know by whom. They did not know where it went. Sustainable? No, they did not know what the word meant. It was simply outside their concept of understanding.

I went into Harare on 6 January to assist Maritime with the ZimboGreen clean up in CBD. Wires were crossed, and it turns out I was supposed to be on First Street, but I understood Copacabana bus terminus, and that is where I started and did my bit! I was really there to observe, and ask questions, so this is what I saw and discovered.

Clean to the tar, and into piles at start of day

City of Harare cleaning, amidst traffic. Very brave

I spoke to a woman, standing in front of an EMA sign, who turned out to be a visitor from Rusape. What did she think of the city? “It was not dirty, and not clean.”

Traffic and litter, start of day

A man, 44, from Mount Darwin but living in Epworth, was selling photography. He was very talkative. (And another man kept butting in. He was mentally disturbed!) He calls it litter, or rubbish. People just throw it because they are ignorant. Not lazy, just ignorant. They, the individuals, are not responsible. The vendors cause litter, and they are there because of poverty. The CoH must take the litter away, but he did not know where to. He did not know the dump was full. The burning

he had heard of. Sustainable? That was about the well being of people. However, if industry made pollution, that was unfortunate, but the people needed jobs more than they needed clean air to breath. Sustainability was mainly the talk of people who say yes but do nothing. Talk is cheap. Above all, the stuff was garbage. Rubbish. Marara. Litter. Waste. It was not seen, by anyone, as a resource, that might has some value. If it was, then someone (no one cared, government or private sector) must make a job of it and remove unemployment. And this is what Maritime does.

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C ON S E RVAT I ON

Killing for Conservation By Johnny Whitfield

No animal better portrays the plight of African wildlife than the rhino. There are a lot of charitable organisations and media campaigns around the world that focus on the dwindling numbers of these rare animals that we have left. And yet ever year thousands of these animals are killed mercilessly for their horns - and as everyone knows that has meant the demise recently of the North white rhino as a species.

t the same time though, no animal better highlights the difference and benefits of that HUNTING can do for a species as compared to POACHING.

You see in Africa only a fraction of the remaining wilderness and animals we have left lie within the protective zones of National Parks but just as much again if not significantly more of this wilderness is paid for and protected by hunters. If pressure groups continue and hunting is abolished then those huge areas of land along with their animals will swiftly be overrun by the continual population pressure threatening these areas. Poachers will move in and kill any and all animals by any means that they have - however painful and cruel. The trees will then be cut down to make way for a sparse crop of mealies for a few years before the poor soil and low rainfall push people onward leaving a zone of emptiness and destruction in their path. Historically most National Parks were set aside not only for their natural beauty but also most lie in areas of marginal rainfall and high temperatures which made them unideal for human settlement. Traditionally the areas around National Parks that were hot and dry but less photogenic (for example our inland areas of Mana Pools comprised mostly of nasty jesse bush and tsetse flies) which were then set aside as hunting concessions. Those hunting concessions provide very important buffer zones between man and animals and reduce the impact of human wildlife conflict that would otherwise overwhelm our National Parks.

PHOTO SOURCE: JOHNNY WHITFIELD

Unfortunately to the wider world hunting and poaching are viewed as one and the same thing but the truth on the ground is that they are complete polar opposites in terms of what they give and what they take away. I am absolutely certain that the recent extinction of the Northern white rhino can be laid solely and firmly at the door of poachers whereas their Southern cousin’s still abound in fairly healthy numbers - and a lot of those animals have hunters to thank for their protection. You see, in the Western world there is money available to pay for things like fencing and rangers but in developing countries funds are often diverted to other more demanding sectors. This means that often National Parks employees are under-equipped and under-staffed to properly patrol and protect their areas. On the other side though mainly rich foreign clients will fly in for a few weeks a year to hunt a handful of select animals on neighbouring hunting concessions. More often than not a lot of those fees go back in to the concession and pay for modern and well equipped rangers and vehicles that patrol on their boundaries to keep animals in and people out.

Of course there’s no getting away from the fact that hunters kill animals. But then again, so do farmers - and commercial farmers kill millions of times more animals every year than hunters - only we don’t see the pictures of dead animals but rather the trays of meat on our shelves which somehow makes this more ethically palatable to the average consumer.

In many areas of Africa with growing populations there is increased expansion into wild areas and often this means that invariably there will be conflict with wildlife - whether that is just protecting crops from marauding baboons and elephant or sometimes lion predation on cattle and goats or sometimes even people. Generally though it is the wildlife that suffers because people will defend themselves will a variety of inadequate weapons which often injure and maim these animals or even resort to poisoning wildlife to remove the threat. When there are hunting concessions though there are generally well defined and maintained boundaries and fences that greatly reduce the chances of conflict which generally means less harm for humans and much less harm for animals.

Apart from regulation, most hunters are ethically controlled - not just by various sports and shooting bodies but also by a long tradition of hunting etiquette. In general only male animals past their breeding prime will be considered, a corrected calibered well placed shot is elemental as well as other sporting considerations such as not shooting from a vehicle or near a water hole and so on. So basically if you consider a quick and clean kill of a hunter compared to how millions of farmed animals that are culled under stressed conditions of a conveyor belt slaughterhouse - most of which have not lived a full or happy natural life outside of a cage - then ethically killing animals by hunting is far more humane than farming.

Realistically most hunting concessions have a strictly controlled and sustainable number of animals allocated to them for hunting every year - probably fewer than the average American household will consume in a year.

Secondly the number of animals hunted every year adds up to just a tiny percentage of the total number of wild animals that are protected and live out their whole natural lives in the relative peace on a hunting concession. And when considered as a number, then hunters account for barely a fraction of 1% of the total number of farmed animals worldwide that go in to feeding a growing human population. Yes, not all hunting is purely for game meat and a lot of the time species such as lion and elephant are targeted by trophy hunters but again most of those animals will be carefully selected by the hunting operator or professional hunter so have as little impact on a breeding population or species as a whole. This is because hunters have very long term vested interests in their areas they strongly consider genetics and sustainable harvesting of trophies because if they killed too many or most of their bigger stock they wouldn’t be able to get clients or business the next year so animal populations are allowed to thrive. In fact most of the biggest conservation success stories these days actually come from hunting concessions that protect vast areas of wilderness and countless numbers of trees, birds, insects and animals for the sake of a carefully chosen few animals every year to be hunted. Places like Bubye valley and Savé Conservancies support immense numbers of wild animals with growing wildlife populations of all types - often endangered species like rhino that are not hunted but instead allowed to breed and grow in the safe confines of a hunting concession. I’d even go so far as to say that if the territories of the Northern White Rhino weren’t in so many war torn countries and if hunters had been able to move to those areas then that Northern rhino species most likely would still be alive and doing well today - paid for by the very important hunting fees and foreign currency that hunters bring to Africa every year.

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C ON S E RVAT I ON

Trafficking of illegal wildlife products like rhino horn, elephant tusks and pangolin scales runs into the BILLIONS of US dollars every year and not one dollar of which is spent on protecting or maintaining the animals, species or wilderness areas where they are plundered. In return though most African governments do not have billions of dollars to spare to fight the war on poaching that is devastating our animals.

PHOTO SOURCE: JOHNNY WHITFIELD

Poaching syndicates today extend far beyond the casual Sunday afternoon meat poacher of old. These syndicates are often run and controlled by the very people charged with protecting these animals - often high ranking Government officials or diplomats who arrange for transport and trafficking of these illegal goods overseas - normally to Eastern markets like China and Korea. A lot of the time the proceeds paid to these Government officials are used to pay for arms and ammunition to maintain armies that keep their cruel regimes in power in places like South Sudan, Chad and the Congo.

PHOTO SOURCE: JOHNNY WHITFIELD

Which brings us to the clear and fundamental difference between hunting and poaching - hunters kill a very few carefully selected animals in as humane a way as possible; poachers will kill any and all animals indiscriminately by any and all means possible - which normally means a slow and painful death by wire noose or snare, a poorly placed or ineffectually calibered bullet or even worse by poisoning. Poachers donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t consider the breeding potential of a population or the sustainability of a species. They have no consideration for the long term maintenance of wildlife or wilderness areas but instead all they are interested in is killing for greed and profit - and normally specifically targeting those rare and endangered species like rhino that would not ordinarily ever be hunted.

So if overseas conservationists who care about wild animals and want to see hunting banned as an industry are successful in this, it will actually have the opposite effect on the ground! And instead a hunting ban will condemn the few remaining wilderness areas we have left and the millions of wild animals they support to a certain death by human encroachment as there is no other way to pay to protect these areas. We live on a planet with a growing population and diminishing land and resources. Hunters ensure that there will still be wilderness areas and wild animals including and especially those that are rare and endangered. If we want our kids to have a chance of seeing wildlife as it should be then we need to understand the good work that hunters

do in protecting these animals from the scourge of poaching and educate others to the differences. Hunters and anti-hunters are in fact on the same side and fighting to ensure the survival of the land and animals that we still have left to conserve. Our common enemy however are the poachers. We need to work together to educate not just our kids and ourselves of the facts on the ground and fantastic conservation results achieved by hunting operators but also to those overseas and especially in the East and dispel the myths and fallacies of animal products like rhino horn that drive the cruel and evil poaching trade today. Most of us want to see animals and people living side by side in harmony. Most of us want to see endangered

specifies continuing to thrive and grow in protected areas so that our kids one day will have a chance of seeing wild animals in wild places. All of this needs to be paid for and the only way to do it humanely and sustainably is by supporting those hard working and brave hunters and rangers on the ground who are actually making a difference and protecting these places. There are many worthwhile projects, concessions and conservancies you can research and follow online - and as well as Bubye and SavĂŠ valley conservancies others such as the Dallas Safari club rehabilitating a previously war torn area of Mozambique are doing a fantastic job fighting the poaching epidemic under Zambeze Delta Conservation. As well as many smaller operators like Charlton McCullen Safaris or Kambako safaris or indeed any of the hundreds of others of operators and safaris throughout Africa who are daily fighting a war that most of us donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even understand properly let alone who the enemy really is. If we educate ourselves and educate others as to what really works on the ground then our wild animals might just stand a chance - but only if we all work together.

We may not all agree with killing animals (although most of us still eat meat) but the troubling issue is that animals in Africa need hunters. Most of these hunting areas are in flat, arid, uninhabitable areas so other sustainable-use industries like photographic safaris are not viable options.

PHOTO SOURCE: JOHNNY WHITFIELD

The results speak for themselves and with the recent extinction of the Northern white rhino from poaching and the relative abundance of Southern white rhino that largely reside in areas protected if not directly by hunters then indirectly within National Parks that will be surrounded by hunters who keep these poachers out.

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F E AT U R E

Mountain Guides Boost Zimbabwe Tourism By Jane High

Some people cannot resist Mountains. All over the world people pit their fitness and climbing skills “against” the great crags and slopes of our most famous Mountains. Many die doing it. Some get lost or survive by sheer luck. But the lure of these giants just gets stronger. Africa has her share of these massive natural wonders and unknown to many, the highest in Zimbabwe and the highest in Mozambique have both claimed their share of lives. n the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe stand Mount Nyangani and Mount Binga and in between them runs a startling mountain range containing immense and valuable secrets. Secrets that are only recently being revealed and documented for a new generation of Zimbabweans. The process of finding, documenting and then teaching these secrets was activated in January 2018 - the result is the Zimbabwe Mountain Guide Training Scheme.

1. How long is the mountain guide course? The Zimbabwe Mountain guide training course is two and half years of theory and practical training. The final 6 months includes guiding work and attachments with Tourism operators. Once they have amassed the minimum guiding experience and completed their log books the candidates can sit their final exams.

2. What qualifications do 1 need to apply, if any? In terms of required qualifications

Guiding on Bundi Plain, Chimanimani Mountains National Park

as possible about their own area, from history to geology will be vital. It’s much more about the character of the student than his present academic qualifications. Training to be a guide can be the first and most important step in a long, diverse career in the Tourism Industry.

the main thing is that candidates have good language skills, both spoken and written. We are not specifically looking for any A’ Levels or O’ Levels. We will search for people who are passionate about nature. He or she should enjoy being out of doors and working with people. Enthusiasm to learn as much

Corner Waterfall, Chikukwa. Chimanimani

PHOTOGRAPHY: CHIMANIMANI TOURIST ASSOCIATION

3. Which type of personnel make the best mountain guides? The kind of person who makes a good guide varies, people are different and the guests that you work for are different. Groups may request or prefer a female guide, especially female clients. They usually like someone who is friendly, confident without being dominant and they should be experienced, hence the course being two and a half years, with a great proportion of that carried out in the mountains. Customers need to feel confident that their guide will not make mistakes. Obviously guides need to be energetic people. Physical fitness is important as is the ability to converse well – these are the minimum traits we will require.

PHOTOGRAPHY: CHIMANIMANI TOURIST ASSOCIATION

4. What are the benefits of employing local guides? It is essential to link surrounding communities with the benefits brought by Tourism. Safety of visitors is paramount and only a welcoming local community can make sure of this. Local people value these areas as a natural heritage when they are the first beneficiaries of any potential employment. They are the real caretakers. If they feel that protecting the flora and fauna of the Eastern Highlands is a good thing for the community because it provides jobs, they are likely to be vigilant - stopping damage to trees, preventing the shooting of their birds, that sort of thing. Local people employed as Cultural and Mountain Guides are also naturally interested in their own heritage and local culture. Tourism creates gender friendly jobs in these rural areas and particularly in the areas which still have intact ecosystems. People surrounding those natural areas are the future custodians and it is obvious that they should be the ones that benefit.

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PHOTOGRAPHY: CHIMANIMANI TOURIST ASSOCIATION

F E AT U R E

Late afternoon, Chimanimani Mountains National Park

5. As tourism increases in the area, how do u expect to reduce their ecological footprint?

also Nyanga – this is a spectacular and varied part of Zimbabwe to work in.

Let me give you an actual example In 1994 through to 1997 there were so many visitors coming through the Chimanimani Mountains National Park that residents ended up creating the Chimanimani Tourist Association in response to that very problem. Litter being left in the mountain, much firewood being collected and even branches being broken off living trees, paths becoming eroded etc. Complaints about some visitors not following Parks rules resulted in responsible Operators creating the Chimanimani Tourist Association to educate all who went hiking. Lodges took information and made sure that they spoke to anybody going up the mountain about bringing down everything they took up and how best to avoid damaging the Park. In general people who enjoy hiking respect nature and simply need the information on how best to reduce their ecological footprint. We pushed a Zero tolerance for litter. All of this experience will be built into the training of Zimbabwe Mountain Guides. They are going to be trained to ensure minimum impact from their clients on our mountains.

7. How many visitors do you receive each year? And predominantly from which countries? At the mome nt the E a ste rn Highlands is only receiving around 8% of the number of visitors coming to Zimbabwe. Most are going to Vic Falls - it’s easier to fly in and fly out. The problems we have had with our economy and the negative perception of Zimbabwe created by our politics has effectively destroyed the once vibrant tourism sector here. Visitors have taken their custom to Botswana, South Africa and lately to Namibia. Self-drive tourism is the big one for Eastern Highlands and that was completely destroyed by the roadblock situation that we had. Destroying an Industry is the easy part…rebuilding it is arduous and requires a whole change of mind set by our Government. We are also still too expensive and time consuming for start-up businesses in Zimbabwe. Take the vehicle car hire people for example – they are suffering from the same situation as we are, to

start your business you have to process upwards of a dozen different types of licenses, paying various government bodies just to get up and running. Imagine that is actually cheaper and less complicated for a client to hire a car in Johannesburg to tour Zimbabwe! This is even with the big challenge of driving through Beit Bridge with those cars. Zimbabwe has recently put up yet another obstacle - our Customs at port of entry now treat private but hired 4x4s as “Commercial,” so now the visitors coming into Zimbabwe have to pay commercial vehicle license fees. The response is predictable Self-drive visitors are simply avoiding us. Namibia and Botswana are enjoying an absolute boom in selfdrive while the Eastern Highlands languishes. Our policy makers need to wake up and realise we are in a very tough competition for business - our neighbours are just loving our mistakes. We are creating jobs for Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia and at the same time sending our own Industry into a tail spin! We hope that is going to change, we have all been engaging with government over that issue.

In terms of which countries they come from, Germany tops the list at the moment and then British, quite a few from the Scandinavian countries, France is also there, we do get some Americans, but the few remaining self-drive tourists are predominately from South Africa and Namibia. Germans are bringing vehicles in at Windhoek, using that route coming in from there. With the correct approach we should see a larger group coming in from the Diaspora and our own hire car companies flourishing.

8. What fascinating wildlife can one expect to come across? The flora and fauna is quite different from the rest of the country and much of it is in the form of endemic species of plants. These special plants give rise to a range of insects and birds which are limited to the Eastern Highlands. This incredible diversity is yet to be exploited by the Tourist Industry in terms of marketing. Almost every southern African country can offer you the big five mammals but endemic species of plants, like orchids, ferns, lichens and aloes along with small but gorgeous butterflies, moths or frogs are of tremendous interest to naturalists. Birding is especially rewarding. Rare birds such as the Taita Falcon in the mountains and threatened species such as the Blue Swallow. Miombo woodlands are important with specialised species that birding clients are looking for such as the Miombo Rock Thrush and the Cinnamon Breasted Tit, both are Miombo specials. In the highlands they are looking for Gurney’s sugarbird, Bronzy sunbird and Malachite sunbird. Such birds are limited to the Eastern Highlands. Continued on page 10

Roughly 50km long with four parallel ranges of mountains and one and a half of them occurs in Zimbabwe and the rest are in Mozambique. The Zimbabwean side is one of our smallest National Parks but it has the highest density of endemic species of all of them. It is known as a Biodiversity Hotspot. This is a transfrontier park so the opportunity we have here is for guides take clients in Mozambique as well. However the Mountain Guide Training course is not just limited to the Chimanimani’s – it is going to be for the Bvumba and

Sunrise, Chimanimani Mountains National Park

PHOTOGRAPHY: BAD RABBIT STUDIO

6. What size is the Chimanimani mountain range?

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F E AT U R E

For those who are interested in flora, Chimanimani has 40 endemic species of plants and small creatures such as dragonflies and frogs. Those people who have done a lot of traveling who now not so keen on sitting in the back of a vehicle looking at Big 5, are much more interested in the smaller things that are unique, they are the of people we find coming. When you walk you can notice the extraordinary details such as lichens and orchids on Msasa trees, or delicate ferns in the shelter of a rock covered in moss. These areas of the Eastern Highlands are currently of great interest to scientists because there are many undiscovered species. Just last year we had moth scientists from Belgium, UK and France. Prior to that we had the Fern scientists and the Mushroom scientists. We regularly receive the frog scientists. Frogs, lichens, dragon flies are indicators of a healthy environment (clean air and water). Bulawayo Natural History Museum is now collating this information on the Eastern Highlands. These protected areas are crucial to world science because endemic species avail information about evolution around the specialized flora of an area. Scientists are still working out the relationships between endemic creatures and their food plants.

9. On top of hiking what other activities are available to tourists? In Nyanga there is white water rafting and the Sky walk as well as the Turaco Trail, in Chimanimani there is mountain biking and horse riding as well. For young or fit people, “Bouldering” and “Canyoning” are taking off. The relatively new sport known as Bouldering is a type of free climbing on huge boulders. It is done without ropes simply your fingers, toes, body strength and flexibility. With help from experts in South Africa we plan to include Bouldering skills in the training of Zimbabwe Mountain Guides. Let’s not forget that in the Eastern highlands it is safe to swim because there are no crocodiles or bilharzia. People use it as a great time to spend with their friends or family putting together a delicious picnic, cooler box and off they go. This is the place for spending quality time in beautiful nature, away from technology. Something that a lot of families are missing these days.

10. How much can a tourist expect to pay? In general the Eastern Highlands is affordable for locals and overseas

PHOTOGRAPHY: CHIMANIMANI TOURIST ASSOCIATION

Continued from page 9

Leucospermum saxosum (Pincushion Bush)

visitors. Our guides are not yet qualified so they obviously also charge a lot less than the average fee for a trained Professional Guide. Presently in Chimanimani the fee is around USD20 per day and you can expect to pay someone who is more experienced in the region of USD35 per person per day.

11. What do you think can be done (especially by government) to promote the Eastern Highlands to compete with other major tourist attractions like Kariba and Victoria Falls. First and foremost is the protection of our mountains. I am delighted to see Permanent Secretary for Tourism Dr. Chitepo, just last week signed the Kinshasa Declaration. This is the Convention on Tourism and Biodiversity Protection. We made the big mistake of separating the Ministry of Tourism and Environment and placing our National Parks under Environment. This has been a disastrous move for both Tourism and for our National Parks. It is Tourism dollars which should fund our National Parks. I hope this will be corrected by any government coming in after the July elections. I think a new approach is in order. Partly the problem has been a lack of understanding of the product and of the potential market – the actual potential Customer, who and where they are. The Eastern Highlands is a specialized destination so you looking at marketing it in a different way to say, Vic Falls. You have got to sell directly to people who enjoy walking. Walking, hiking, trekking has a huge world-wide following, it is big culture overseas. It’s quite easy to get to them because those walking people do the usual thing which is they form clubs. They belong to mountain, orienteering

or adventure groups and they also read. There are publications all over the world that are specifically for walking and hiking. We need to have a presence there and explain to these folks that Zimbabwe HAS mountains. That walking is one of the best things to do here because we have wonderful weather. They can bring their families and they can have a holiday where they are walking in mountains with no chance of avalanches and freezing cold weather etc. Our Ministries didn’t understand just how reliant the Eastern Highlands is on self-drive customers. From Finance to Environment, to Home Affairs, Ministries make policies which have devastating effects on the Tourism Industry, without even knowing it. There is a thriving “4x4 Community” driving all over the Region. They have organized forums which map out great routes throughout Africa, good places to go with your 4x4. Our government policies have simply caused these groups to drive around us and yet they are the very people who stay for weeks in a country, spending money as they go. I believe government has been reluctant to engage with private industry and individuals who are experienced in the tourism industry. We are hampered by a lingering perception that this Industry is a “white man’s preserve” Dialogue and mutual trust has been slow in coming. Businesses have had to fight tooth and nail to stop going out of business because of a plethora predatory government policies. That is one of the problems that we need to overcome - this lack of trust between private industry and government. Policy makers have just seen entrepreneurs as the goose from which to extract maximum number of eggs. But endless paperwork, levies and taxes slow down the egg laying! It has become just been a question of

whether private industry survives under these circumstances. With all due respect most people have had to become informal traders to avoid the circling predators. For instance in Chimanimani our Rural District Council wants an annual USD$800 “Lodge Fee”, so somebody who has three rooms and offering a basic bed and breakfast will have to pay council US800 every year for the right to work! If they don’t do that they cannot register with Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA). By law they have to have this license. The smallest operator, having now found his $800 to hand over to a Council, which these days provides him with almost nothing, he must cough up another USD300 to join ZTA. So that he can then collect bed levies for ZTA itself. Three different license fees are required if you want to put a TV in a Hotel room. So even famous and up-market Hotels such a Leopard Rock are forced to remove televisions so that they can keep their prices somewhere near competitive. Once you add 15%VAT and 2% ZTA Levies the Hotelier is left with an overpriced product and no money for refurbishing, maintenance or upgrades. It is this approach by Government which has been a major factor in the decline of tourism and we need to sit down and solve those problems together. We are competing with the rest of the world for the customer called a Tourist and we need to cut down on time wasting and costly licensing procedures and admin. Every extraneous cost must be removed. In particular we need to build trust between our government and our private industry. Governments are supposed to make it easier for people to make a living – ours has done the opposite. I look forward to a clear turn around on ease of doing business. Stop talking about it and do it. Part 2 continued in Issue 10

People further interested in the Zimbabwe Mountain Guide Training Course should contact Course Coordinator Jane High P.O. Box 75 . Chimanimani. or touristassociationchimanimani@gmail.com

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C L I M AT E C H A N G E

Redeﬁning Development in the Age of Climate Change By Oswald Simbarashe Chishanga, Save Our Environment Trust

Climate change has slowly grown to be a complex challenge in the early years of the 21st century. Its effects on development is profound and well documented and if no effective policies and strategies are put in place climate change threatens to reverse or halt any human development achieved thus far.

he profound effects that climate change has brought to development are brought out by a World Bank 2015 report which states that a quarter of the population of developing countries still lives on less than $1.25 a day. One billion people lack clean drinking water; 1.6 billion, electricity; and 3 billion, adequate sanitation. A quarter of all developing-country children are malnourished. In addition development is likely to be halted because developing countries would bear some 75 to 80 percent of the costs of damages caused by the changing climate, (World Bank 2015). OMA Insurance Company estimates that since 1980 insurance companies have paid about USD 2 trillion towards damages caused by climate related incidents. This accounts for 88% of all property loses which brings out the need for people, businesses and countries to put in place measures that reduce the impact of climate change. It should be noted that even 2°C warming above preindustrial temperatures which is the minimum the world is likely to experience could result in permanent reductions in GDP of 4 to 5 percent for Africa and South Asia. The situation is worsened by the sad fact that most developing countries lack sufficient financial and technical capacities to manage increasing climate risk. Developing countries suffer more because they depend more directly on climatesensitive natural resources for income and well-being. Those countries that are in tropical and subtropical regions are already subject to highly variable climate. The effects of climate change cut across every spectra of society from economic, political to social dimensions. The effects of climate change are multiple and they touch or affect almost all the basic lifestyle of a person. For example, Climate change has directly or indirectly brought upon droughts, floods, hunger,

famine, forced migration, conflicts, early child marriages, water shortages, more heat waves, strong storms, proliferation of diseases like malaria and it will make it difficult to fight off completely decades old diseases like TB and HIV/AIDS as governments shall draw resources away from development initiatives. In addition, climate change cuts across national boundaries and therefore in that regard No country alone can take on the interconnected challenges posed by climate change, including controversial p ol i t i c a l d e c i s i o n s , d a u nt i n g technological change, and far-reaching global consequences. Africa is one of the continents that is experiencing the worst effects of climate change. This is largely due to the incapacity of these countries to finance effective climate mitigation, adaptation and resilient initiatives. This is worsened by the fact that the region has over decades being characterized by under development and poverty, thus climate change management is given less priority. However, it is important that addressing the challenges of climate change remains a top priority for both of developing countries, developed countries and development agencies. Against this background, Developing countries are bound not to meet most targets set in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) as climate change threatens to deepen vulnerabilities, erode hard-won gains, and seriously undermine prospects for development. Promoting development in the age of climate change is a complex process that demands extraordinary ingenuity and cooperation since climate change is immense and multidimensional. Such cooperation is of fundamental importance in fighting climate change because if people do not act now, act differently and act together development will get harder, not easier, with climate change. With the world always moving towards massive expansions in energy, transport, urban systems, and agricultural production. These traditional technologies and carbon intensities though they are

much needed for day to day human operations will however produce more greenhouse gases and, hence, more climate change. The question and argument is then to create a society in which people need not to only make development more resilient to climate change but pursue growth and prosperity without causing dangerous climate change. In that light the following three principles should be adopted if development is to be achieved in the age of climate change. Acting now is essential, or else options disappear and costs increase as the world commits itself to high-carbon pathways and largely irreversible warming trajectories. Climate change is already compromising efforts to improve standards of living and to achieve targets set upon in the SDG’s. Immediate actions are also needed to cope with the changing climate and to minimize the costs to people, infrastructure and ecosystems today as well as to prepare for the greater changes in store. The idea is to develop strategies that ensure climate change does not hamper development but instead foster development. The adoption and use of renewable energy sources like wind and solar can be a starting point since the use of fossil fuels worsen climate change. In addition with predictions of increased water scarcity in the next 30 years production of hydroelectricity is likely to be affected. Energy drives development thus the need to foster strategies that make climate change a development ingredient. Acting together is key to keeping the costs down and effectively tackling both adaptation and mitigation to the effects of climate change. It has to start with high-income countries taking aggressive action to reduce their own emissions. That would free some pollution space for developing countries, but most importantly, it would stimulate innovation and the demand for new technologies so that they can be rapidly scaled up. It would also help create a sufficiently large and stable carbon market. Both these effects are critical to enable developing countries to move to a lower carbon trajectory while rapidly gaining access to the energy services needed for development, although they will need to be supplemented with financial support. Acting together is also critical to advance development in a harsher environment since increasing climate

risks will exceed communities’ capacity to adapt. National and international support will be essential to protect the most vulnerable through social assistance programs, to develop international risk-sharing arrangements, and to promote the exchange of knowledge, technology, and information. Providing climate education to young people is a good starting point since they are the future custodians of the environment. If positive environment behaviour is imparted among young people that knowledge and skills shall be cascaded down to future generations thus inevitably creating a generation that is capable of developing climate mitigation, adaptation and resilient sustainable strategies. Acting differently is required to enable a sustainable future in a changing world. In the next few decades, the world’s energy systems must be transformed so that global emissions drop 50 to 80 percent. Infrastructure must be built to withstand new extremes. To feed 3 billion more people without further threatening already stressed ecosystems, agricultural productivity and efficienc y of water use must improve. Against this background it is therefore critical for the world to develop a robust paradigm shift from the traditional approaches to development. Climate change is affecting our daily way of life either directly or indirectly thus there is need to put climate change management at the foundation of development initiatives. Development in the age of climate change requires sound craftsmanship and enviropreneurship that ensures that climate change works for us not against us.

Save Our Environment Trust (SOET) was established with the mandate to protect, conserve, enhance and restore the natural environment of Zimbabwe. The organizations goal is to assist vulnerable communities in Zimbabwe develop sustainable strategies that enable them to mitigate, adapt and be resilient to the effects of climate change. SOET complements and supports existing government and private sector initiatives that strive to protect the natural environment. Tel: 0775 485 521 0717 485 521 E: oziechishanga@gmail.com E: soetzimbabwe@gmail.com E: saveourenvironmenttrust@gmail.com Facebook: Save Our Environment Trust Twitter: Save Our Environ 3

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R EC YC L I N G

maritime Waste Solutions

How a bag is made from pellets 100 % Zimbabwean Recycled All material is locally sourced, No imported material

STEP 1

STEP 3

STEP 2

First, the Film Line Machine. Pellets are fed into the hopper. They are melted. The material is extruded out and a stream of compressed air blows it into tube.

Film Line Machine

Compressor

Hopper

It rises in the air, passing through guides and pulleys to cool it in the air, and then is rolled up.

The size of the tube determines the bag width. The speed of the melted plastic feed, relative to the blown bag diameter, determines the bag thickness. Some skill and experience needed here!

STEP 4

STEP 5

Rolls are taken to the Bag Maker. Here, the rolled tube is simply fed onto a bed, and at the correct length, it is cut and sealed, and it is now a bag!

The bags go to the packers, who put a specific number in a packet, with a printed label and it is distributed to shop shelves.

Rolls

That is the recyclying story

How we got from this...

...to this

Further explorations The raw material. Who, what, how? Other journeys. Non-LDPE...

Contact us: 310 Mukuvisi Woodlands Road, (Beside Ransbury Mercedes), Msasatherecyclinglady130@gmail.com Mary Wazara 0778 484447 | mlaban86@gmail.com

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E D U C AT I ON

Youth And The Environment: “The Forgotten Relationship” By Edson Dambaza

The youth have special concerns and special responsibilities in relation to the environment. A number of environmental risks and hazards disproportionately affect young people, who have to live for an extended period with the deteriorating environment bequeathed to them by earlier generations. That being the case, young people will be compelled to engage in new forms of action and activism that will generate effective responses to ecological challenges.

oung people constitute a large part of the world’s population. Many, especially young children, are particularly vulnerable to environmental risks associated with, for example, access to clean and safe drinking water. In addition, young people will have to live longer with the consequences of current environmental decisions than will their elders. Future generations will also be affected by these decisions and the extent to which they have addressed concerns such as the depletion of resources, the loss of biodiversity, and long-lived waste generation. Hence the involvement of youth in environmental management initiatives has far more reaching benefits for the future sustainability of the environment especially in our developing countries of Africa where vast natural resources are being extracted in the name of development. The participation of youth in environmental protection can be sought at levels and locations ranging from grass-roots activism and participation in conservation projects to policy-making bodies and NGOs. However, this can only be possible if the youth are given platforms to express their sustainable ideas in areas such as clean energies, climate smart agriculture and hazardous waste management. In an article by Raymond Muwaniri on green initiatives in Zimbabwe, he suggested that it’s important to stress the education of youths and their involvement in Sustainable Development initiatives, he went on to clarify that youths have imaginative minds that yield the best ideas sometimes. That being the case, strengthening the participation of youth in environmental protection is partly a matter of increasing opportunities in governmental organizations, established NGOs and restoration projects; partly a matter of youth themselves devising new forms of action, as the preceding examples of innovative activism make clear; and partly a question of more effective

environmental education and media presentation of environmental issues. Effective school environmental clubs can be a means of promoting environmental literacy. Clubs provide an avenue for students to acquire skills needed to identify, investigate, and experience the resolution of environmental issues and problems. Interested students have access to environmental education beyond what is infused into the curriculum. The existing structure of school environmental clubs is passive and needs to be upheld especially in

primary and high schools through active participations and community involvement projects. Although in tertiary schools, environmental awareness is appreciated, it still needs more support. Th e g o a l o f e n v i r o n m e n t a l education is to help students become environmentally knowledgeable, skilled, dedicated citizens who are willing to work, individually and collectively, toward achieving and maintaining a dynamic equilibrium between the quality of life and the quality of the environment.

Therefore environmental issues present some of the most profound and complex challenges requiring attention today and in the coming decades. One foundation-building step in enhancing local, regional, national and global capacities to respond to those challenges is increasing environmental awareness. Here the role of youth is central, for it is in the rising generations that heightened awareness can most easily be achieved.

Mushrooms and Smart Farming

E N E R GY

As electricity load shedding continues, and poverty levels continue to rise some opt to use firewood instead of electricity, others simply have no electricity. These are some of the factors that have seen the demand for firewood shooting up in urban areas. When we started doing mushrooms we used firewood to fire our boilers for sterilisation which caused damage to the environment. I learnt how to use the sawdust stove from Epworth residents. This has led us to stop using firewood and use sawdust from factories and sawmills. This decision tackled two challenges: Reduce impact on deforestation and management of industrial waste. STEP 3

STEP 2

STEP 1

Put bricks where you will place your stove so that oxygen can enter the hole from beneath, as you light stove it will draw oxygen from beneath.

Gather sawdust from a sawmill or factory and compact sawdust in a container with a hole in the center (put a pipe in the centre remove after compaction) put ash or soil on top surface so that top part doesn’t burn, only the hole will.

STEP 4

STEP 5

I use a big container for more heat and it burns longer (5-6 hours) . Use a small container for cooking.

Once burning, put an iron sheet on top leaving spaces for air to escape, this reduces heat as the heat can be too much for cooking. Once burning and getting enough air this stove is smokeless.

The Home of Mushrooms in Zimbabwe 0773 842 677

nmupaso@mushtella.com

Fold a newspaper light it and insert into the middle or insert and light from beneath add more newspapers till sawdust is burning on its own.

www.mushtella.com

This one burns

HRS average 6 hours.

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P OL I C Y

Zimbabwe’s Open for Business Policy Vs Advancing a Sustainable National Economic Vision By Archie Mathibela

A gleaming convoy of mint Freightliners whooshes past the narrow, well-worn dusty strips of road in one of the country’s busiest highways. Heavily laden, their payload is a century’s gift from sustained gutting of the nearby Mountain’s treasure trove. In the distance, a conical tower bellows and exhales grey smoke from the stone crusher into a cloudless sky with the reckless abandon of a teenage chain smoker. The spectacle creates a thick carpet that envelopes the surrounds in a curtain of dust and gloom, sapping the life out of all the fauna and flora on this busy gateway for kilometres on end. he scene is ground zero for the biggest and most profitable cement by product extraction facility in Sub Saharan Africa. It’s a similar story in the rest of the country where minerals are spirited away with an alarming urgency that far out paces the economic development of the aboriginal communities whose plight barely registers as a footnote on the country’s economic indicator scale. From Muzarabani up in North Eastern Zimbabwe down to the bosom of Mberengwa District in the South East, lies one of the world’s richest mineral belts - the Great Dyke escarpment. Economic activity here moves at a frenetic pace that leaves locals behind gasping in awe

at the wealth in their own backyards. Their simple, unassuming ways are no match to the fast paced, insulated network of all powerful corporations, contractors, suppliers and expatriates agog in segregated privilege. An army of top notch financial and legal minds ensure virtual carte blanche rights everywhere they go. It’s the curse of resource rich communities where sovereign wealth and eminent domain play no part in advancing the economic interests of locals whose roots in these communities predate the colonial era. It’s not just in the mining sector, examples of socioeconomic legacy issues hanging over the Government’s head are legion; their sum total affects the sustainability of the whole

economy in the long term. This is why any attempt by President Mnangagwa to frame the new dispensation within the myth of an economic liberal republic should be understood alongside the logical axiom of ‘charity begins at home’. It’s not enough to create jobs, Zimbabweans should have equity and beneficial control of the means of production, otherwise all will be eternal slaves suckling at the tit of benevolent ‘investors’ in the service of a renascent petit bourgeoisie. Whilst capital is the oil that galvanizes economic activity and jobs its by-product, these two cannot be the sole arbiters. Granted, without skilled professionals and substantial capital the country’s decline will only continue and make it impossible to deliver the services that

will legitimise the new government. However, Government needs to adopt a futuristic outlook that frowns on mortgaging national resources for paper loans to satiate immediate wants as opposed to securing future needs. To wit, the ‘Zimbabwe is open for business’ mantra is predicated on inviting ‘investors’ in droves before a policy that puts the nation’s development agenda on a square footing is in place puts the country at a disadvantage. The current deal structuring arrangements from the energy, finance, agricultural sector etc may seem to elicit confidence in the political leadership and legitimize the status quo at face value, they will

PHOTOGRAPHY: ARCHIBALD MATHIBELA

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P OL I C Y

At this rate, it stands to reason that when the economy picks up, only a handful of Zimbabweans will have control of the means of production as the current dispensation gives unfettered economic access to foreigners with hard currency to spare as opposed to locals with bright ideas and fire in their belly. Moreso, in the mining sector with an exception in the platinum group metals and diamond sectors. In addition, the Government through media is dangling a ‘carrot’ (multibillion dollar deal headlines) to citizens without necessarily revealing the ‘stick’ (costs to the country in real terms). For all the razzmatazz around these deals, Government needs to be transparent about the real beneficiaries of these transactions including the beneficial owners of the entities that are servicing these contracts including the financing models and the whole supply chain, after all, the taxpayer is unwittingly the ultimate benefactor. In the short to medium term, these deals appear to be the tonic to pacify the ordinary people through unlocking job opportunities. The more discerning electorate would argue against the unsustainable parcelling out of opportunities at the expense of sovereign interests. It goes without saying that citizens in general and locals living in the geographical areas affected by Government’s economic policies in particular will bear the brunt of environmental degradation and loss of habitats should they be asked to make way for projects. On the upside, economic activity will pick up and jobs will become readily available. However, what will really get Zimbabwe ticking again is total mineral beneficiation, agricultural automation,value addition, and access to cheaper lines of credit to fund economic activity with Zimbabweans leading the charge. Again, in a haste to cast Zimbabwe as a neoliberal republic, the country may as well open itself up to opportunists with get rich quick schemes. The safeguard is beyond reproach control measures that ensure maximum dividends to finance a sovereign

wealth fund for investing in capital projects. A country that saves creates wealth. Wealth leads to prosperity and enables future generations a comfortable existence in free pursuit of the advancement of humanity. Lest it becomes a free for all looting spree as of old, checks and balances need to be put in place regarding the calibre of investors our Government enters into agreements with. Of late, the beneficial ownership of most companies remains veiled in secret offshore holdings registered in tax havens where any due diligence on their operations is impossible. Methinks, it should be a requirement to know who exactly the country is dealing with and their background for the obvious reasons of criminal injury which could make officials unwitting co-conspirators in plundering the country’s resources.

day through thoroughgoing regulation. In the absence of clear cut policies, everything falls through the grey area of an investor’s own self-serving devices which are often sold as corporate social responsibility programmes to pacify locals.

Zimbabwe being open for business should not just be about creation of jobs and attracting FDI which together with infrastructure contribute less than 15% to the variable productivity of a country. Beyond political legitimacy, Government ought to address ownership rights and the obligations of investors vis-à-vis our rural communities which are awash with ineffectual share ownership schemes. Most of the communities in whose names these schemes are set up rarely get dividends from this arrangement and the terms of reference have to be reviewed to ensure communities benefit from their resources in as much as an investor gets a return on their investment. Companies that setup shop in the sovereign lands need to go beyond just using locals as casual labourers, but to also ensure that they setup a support structure that enables training and skills development so they become active and beneficial owners of their resources. It is the role of Government from the onset to ensure that such undertakings see the light of

production that need urgent redress.

The idea that the best of our tomorrows are in front of us regardless of what our todays are saying prolongs the business as usual and cavalier approach towards sustainability in all economic sectors. At face value, President’s Mnangagwa’s clarion call to investors and the diaspora alike is commendable. However, over and critically above this sunshine narrative, one can understand how it could be misconstrued as just another election gimmick. As a country Zimbabwe has many outstanding legacy issues on empowerment and ownership and access to the means of

PHOTOGRAPHY: ARCHIBALD MATHIBELA

scarcely stand up to scrutiny in the long term. One notable casualty in this regard is the multibillion dollar Chirundu - Beitbridge highway dualization project whose cost in litigations, severance packages and other small print fees will threaten the viability of this critical national project. To set an example, many heads should roll, dereliction of national duty censured and perpetrators punished to the full extent of the law as a statement that Government really means business.

A balancing act needs to be put in play whilst appreciating that no dividends will yield overnight except to serve as a long term strategy. Moreso, with the wait and see attitude of some corporations already in the country like Anglo American whose CEO Chris Griffith at a Mining conference in South Africa recently took Mines Minister Winston Chitando to task about Zimbabwe’s policy inconsistencies. In the final assessment, the Zimbabwean Government needs to strengthen its social contract with citizens in line with the 17 UN SDGs for every country’s priorities towards uplifting its people’s livelihoods and create an enabling environment to equitably engage with the rest of the world. Over and above the call for FDI, Government needs to put in place rational economic policies, introduce a local currency, incentivise exports, encourage the return of Zimbabweans in the diaspora and secure greater access to fuel and energ y for economic recovery.

Tweeted News Sustainable Development in Zimbabwe Use #SustainZim and follow us on twitter @SustainZimbabwe

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C ON S E RVAT I ON

Facing Extinction Sudan, A Stark Reminder, Bringing Rhino Conservation Issues To The Forefront By Prisca Daka

On the 19th of March, the world mourned the death of one of the last three remaining northern white rhinos and only surviving male, Sudan. With the species already extinct in the wild, his death indeed brought to the forefront rhino conservation issues. We should ask ourselves, how did we get to the point where we can count the world population of such an iconic species and not use more than three fingers?

The Green Snippets CONSERVATION

Lifting the Ban on Elephant Trophies Will Probably Help Save Elephants The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced this week it’s reversing a ban against importing remains of elephants hunted legally in Zimbabwe and Zambia, which means that starting Friday, these “trophies” can be brought back into the U.S. as long as hunters apply for and receive the correct permits. The FWS argues that the reversal of the ban, first imposed by the Obama administration in 2014, will help create a revenue stream for pouring money back into conservation efforts to help elephants and other African animals, particularly those whose population statuses are currently threatened. [Source: http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/ science/2017/11/lifting_the_ban_on_elephant_trophies_will_probably_ help_save_elephants.html]

Campfire Association Press Statement On Lifting Of The Suspension Of Elephant Trophy Imports Into America Zimbabwe’s Community Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) hails the recent decision by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to lift the suspension of elephant trophy imports into the United States of America. We encourage the USFWS and the President of the United States to stand by the decision to issue import permits for sport-hunted elephant trophies. Trophy fees and meat from elephant incentivize CAMPFIRE communities to dedicate land as habitat for elephant and other wildlife. U.S. citizens represent the largest share of CAMPFIRE hunting clients. CAMPFIRE communities have been negatively impacted by the suspension of trophy imports, and we look forward to increased benefits, and therefore additional conservation incentives, with the lifting of the suspension. [Source: http://campfirezimbabwe.org/index.php/news-spotlight/26press-statement-21-november-2017]

AGRICULTURE

Demand for maize varieties growing

he real tragedy about the death of Sudan is in what it represents – Extinction, an unrecoverable loss! His death is a glaring reminder of why we should do all we can to protect not just Rhino’s but all endangered wildlife. We need to remind ourselves that once an animal species becomes extinct, it is gone forever. We need to think about the future generations and how our destructive actions towards biodiversity today may affect them. Extinction is a hefty price to pay, rhino’s and other wildlife cannot afford it – and should not have to. In recent years rhino numbers have dropped dramatically due to poaching for their horn which is prized in Asian countries. In traditional Asian countries and China the rhino horn is believed to have medicinal power that can treat fevers and cardiovascular diseases. Although extinction is a natural part of evolution, it is however occurring at a faster rate than usual and humanity has itself to blame. Today extinction has been induced through human

activities such as poaching, habitat destruction, over exploitation of wildlife and political conflict. The net result is an enormous loss of wildlife resources as well as the exclusion of certain wildlife species from playing their pivotal roles within an ecosystem. According to a population count done in Zimbabwe, in 2009, it was estimated that there were 425 black rhino and 300 white rhino country-wide on both state land and private land. Fast forward to 2018 and the rapid rate at which we are losing Rhino’s due to rampant poaching not to mention rhino deaths through natural causes, the population now could be at alarming low numbers. At the national level, steps have been taken to protect wildlife. Legal protection has been provided to wild animals against illegal killing and exploitation under the provisions of the Parks & Wild Life Act, 1975 (PWA). In addition the PWA has also been amended and made more stringent, enhancing the punishment for offences. For example hunting or killing a Rhino which is classified as a specially protected animal under

the PWA is prohibited and therefore it attracts a mandatory sentence of nine years on a first conviction and eleven years on a second conviction. The Act also provides for forfeiture of any equipment, vehicle or weapon that is used for committing wildlife offence(s). A forfeiture order allows the State to confiscate and dispose of property that is alleged to have been used in or in connection with the commission of a serious offence that contravenes provisions of the PWA. Yet despite this, such destruction persist every day, and efforts to address this challenge although rich in political commitment are chronically affected by lack of adequate funding or lax law enforcement or corruption. They also face threats from habitat loss and political conflict. Today we are seeing the world taking a committed stand to conservation, symbolizing a positive future for rhino’s and wildlife. With dedicated investment and change in attitude towards the protection of endangered wildlife…their future is bright.

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) have been championing efforts to look for more crop varieties, especially maize and wheat. NewsDay business reporter Tatira Zwinoira (ND) interviewed CIMMYT country representative for Zimbabwe Cosmos Magorokosho (CM) on Wednesday to find out more about their activities. [Source: https://www.newsday.co.zw/2018/04/demand-for-maizevarieties-growing-cimmyt/]

CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change threatens maize output

Without measures to counter climate change, the food security of our people on the continent is compromised. One of the measures to combat climate change in agricultural production is with seed of climate resilient crop varieties that withstand drought and heat stress, offering protection against the emergence of new diseases and pests. [Source: https://www.newsday.co.zw/2018/04/ climate-change-threatens-maize-output/]

FARMING

Investigating the factors that lead to the construction of gendered perceptions of climate variability and change of communal farmers in agro-ecological zones II and III of Zimbabwe

Farmers’ perceptions of changes in their climate are inextricably linked to the livelihood decisions that they make and their ability to bolster their adaptive capacity and reduce their vulnerability to climate variability and change. Yet research has shown that smallholder farmers’ experiences and interpretations of climate variability and change do not translate into perceptions that accurately align with the climate record and thus have considerable consequences for their ability to adapt and reduce their vulnerability to climatic stresses and shocks. Moreover, research has tended to concentrate on farmer’s experiences of weather and climate as the principal factor in the construction of their perceptions, whilst overlooking the role of non-climatic factors. [Source: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.703325]