“I’ll join in,” was Mathias Mundt’s spontaneous reaction when he heard how SAVE is committed to sustainable species conservation and the peaceful coexistence of people and wildlife in Botswana. For the managing director of M4 Consulting GmbH, it was clear: “If there is a foundation near me that implements projects like this, then, of course, I’m in!” M4 Consulting, based in Wuppertal, advises companies on the topics of franchising, company succession, business start-ups and financing – Mathias Mundt always has the topic of sustainability in mind: “After all, the future concerns us all, and everyone should do their part to make it as sustainable as possible.” Privately and with his company, he has been committed to the environment for some time, but now he would like to achieve even more by supporting the two SAVE children’s projects: “Giving children, and thus an entire country, a jump-start for a better future with preschool and environmental education – what could be more sustainable?”

Mathias Mundt would therefore like to support not one, but two children’s projects near the Okavango Delta, one of the world’s most biodiverse nature reserves, with his company in the long term. “The next generation is already starting at our company, too: my little son, whom I showed pictures of the projects, wanted to run right out and get his piggy bank. I am looking forward to travelling to this impressive country with my family soon – I see the visit to “our” two children’s projects, which is then firmly scheduled, as a unique opportunity to experience Botswana authentically. Maybe we’ll spend the night in one of the community-managed camping sites that SAVE supports near the nature reserves.”

Helping people help themselves

Community Camp Sites – another project that Lars Gorschlüter, entrepreneur and founder of the SAVE Wildlife Conservation Fund, supports with his foundation as part of SAVE’s development and education projects in Botswana. Sustainable help for self-help, is the basis at E4C, SAVE’s Education for Conservation approach, which combines development, education and species conservation work.

“In our projects, the children not only learn for school, but they also get to know Botswana’s wilderness and its animals better – on excursions to the national parks, but some of them also experience them in the wild for the first time,” says Lars Gorschlüter. Wildlife should be more to these children than just a tourist attraction or even a threat when they sometimes venture into villages around the nature reserves in search of food and water. This is another reason to teach children more about elephants, lions and co. – in Botswana, humans and wildlife compete for water and food, sometimes in life-threatening ways. Lars Gorschlüter is convinced that peaceful coexistence with wild animals can only succeed if the basic needs of the people in whose vicinity they live are met.

In its sustainable projects, SAVE, therefore, supports people and village communities in advancing their development in harmony with the ecological characteristics of their land. “We are always looking for effective solutions to enable wildlife and people to coexist with our projects,” explains Lars Gorschlüter, “in emergencies very practically with quickly implementable measures such as corona aid packages for families or water holes on dried-up migration paths for wildlife, but above all in long-term development, education and research projects.” In doing so, SAVE also collaborates with other organizations and renowned scientific institutions such as TUM to gain new insights into wildlife behaviour, which are then incorporated into the development of new SAVE species conservation projects.