Birdlife Botswana: Pioneering sustainable biodiversity and community- based knowledge

By Chedza Mmolawa

Since the establishment of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to the business world, this practice has always been encapsulated in the tradition of philanthropy and has focused on education, health, religious activities, and women empowerment. What most people and organizations overlook is that CSR is also referred to as a business responsibility and an organisation's action on environmental, ethical, social, and economic issues.

BirdLife Botswana (BLB) is a not-for-profit conservation organization registered with the Botswana Registrar of Societies to preserve and protect bird life and its environment in every dimension of the business, sharing ecotourism's benefits with the communities that they work alongside.

BirdLife Botswana was established in 1980, although before 2000, it was called Botswana Bird Club. The Society is the official representative of BirdLife International in Botswana and a member of Botswana Council of

Non-Governmental Organisations (BOCONGO) and World Conservation Union.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BirdLife Botswana, Motshereganyi Virat Kootsisitse, walked us through the organisation's mandate and some of the CSR initiatives they have undertaken over the years and recently.

He explained that BirdLife Botswana’s objectives are to encourage and promote an interest in and knowledge of birds and bird-watching, as well as to undertake, encourage and assist ornithological fieldwork, research, and recording within Botswana, while promoting and making advice and recommendations to the appropriate organisation (including government departments and agencies) on the formulation and enforcement of programs and legislation relating to the conservation of birds and their habitats.

BirdLife Botswana has also designed, coordinated, and contributed data. It was involved in numerous national and sub-regional projects including the publication of Bird Atlas of Botswana, a Birds of Botswana

field guide, Selected Botswana Biodiversity Indicators, Atlas of Southern African Birds, Important Bird Areas (IBAs) of Southern Africa, biannual waterfowl counts (as part of Wetlands International's African Waterfowl Census Programme) and monitoring of Wattled Cranes, Southern Ground Hornbills, Lesser Flamingo, Slaty Egret, Kori Bustards, Short-clawed Lark, Lappet-faced Vultures, and Cape Vultures.

The Society also collects data on bird ecology and distribution via the Bird Population Monitoring program, a Nest Record Scheme, and records of rare birds. BirdLife also produces promotional materials such as brochures, posters, and calendars and celebrates bird awareness days such as, World Migratory Bird Day, and other environmental days with the public.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AT BIRDLIFE BOTSWANA But most importantly, BLB established a community outreach program called ‘Empowering People,’ which is a dedicated vehicle for promoting conservation awareness, education, and the empowerment of local communities, through the sustainable use of endemic resources. BirdLife Botswana operates under the notion that to establish a healthy ecosystem in Botswana, they will rely on the support of surrounding local communities. They believe that education is the pillar that will uphold and support sustainable conservation, and the organisation is actively involved with the next generation of conservationists and environmental leaders.

BIRDLIFE BOTSWANA INITIATIVES Site Support Groups A Site Support Group (SSG) is an organised group of like-minded local people living in or around an important biodiversity site, interacting with and sustainably using its resources (at different levels) in pursuit of common interest. All SSG operations are guided by a clear vision, mission, objectives, and activities, and the SSG embraces the principles of sustainable use to manage natural resources. The form and set-up of SSGs vary: they may be self-help groups, Community-based Organisations (CBOs), bird-watching or guiding groups, or even sport clubs, but they must always have an environmental agenda.

BirdLife Botswana has had several of these since it started engaging with local communities to form SSGs with funding from the SwedBio project that aimed to sustain biodiversity and sustain livelihoods in rural Botswana.

Training Local Bird Guides Birdlife Botswana is promoting birding tourism (avi-tourism) as a way of diversifying Botswana's tourism product and empowering Batswana to become involved in the tourism industry while at the same time assisting with bird monitoring throughout the country.

“The cornerstone of our approach is the training of specialist bird guides. These guides are trained and accredited by BirdLife Botswana and are contactable directly (or through the nearest BirdLife Botswana office) should their services be required,” explained Kootsisitse. Environmental Education Wrap-up for Schools The organization has designed biodiversity educational programs for scholars at different levels. They have a program for younger children at the primary school level. Learners are taught what the environment is and explain what it consists of. They are taken on bird walks around the schools, spotting birds and identifying them. "In class, we try to make it interesting by not focusing on the theory part as it might bore the students," said Kootsisitse. "As for universities and senior school students, presentation on a certain environmental topic is shared with them. Students show a keen interest in how birds can travel long distances in a magical way and back. And this has helped us in drawing a lot of memberships from schools. Vulture awareness is one of the topics I also present to universities that has also made such a great impact on how students have been viewing vultures. It made them understand their importance to the ecosystem and the environment in general," he added.

BirdLife Botswana remains active in providing services to its members, which are the valuable mainstay of BLB. It continues to be heavily involved in education and outreach, and to undertake research, and evolve in conservation.

Motshereganyi Virat Kootsositse CEO of Birdlife Botswana