Clive Stockil
Clive Stockil has received a Lifetime Achievement Award in the inaugural Tusk Conservation Awards.
Within a couple of minutes of meeting Clive on his Save Valley property in 1995 he asked me the challenging question “Why is the cow not an endangered species in Africa?” and reminded me of the work I had done during my Political Science degree at York on common property resources and the Tragedy of the Commons. I ask out students Clive’s question every year.
A quiet man of deep thought I had the privilege to work with him when we were researching Tourism, Conservation and Sustainable Development in the ‘nineties. Save Valley was one of our study sites. O learnt more about ecology and conservation from Clive than I have learned from any other individual.
“His achievements on two fronts stand out: his creation of a stronghold for rhino, elephant and the African wild dog in the Save Valley Conservancy where we tracked the black rhino; and his pioneering work on behalf of rural communities and for community conservation initiatives, here and near the border with Mozambique”
“Of English and Scottish descent, he was born in this hot, dry, remote region in 1951 (“It was like a little bit of the Garden of Eden that had been left behind”) and grew up with the Shangaan and Shona people, speaking the two languages as naturally and fluently as English – one of the keys to his later successes. In 1967 he “rebelled against formal education” by going on a five-month “walkabout” in the bush with three Shangaan friends. “That wilderness experience with a few quality individuals stands out as a highlight in one’s life,” he told Nigel Richardson
The Conservation Award went to Tom Lalampaa, the Chief Conservancies Officer for Kenya’s Northern Rangelands Trust
There was also recognition for
Alasdair Harris, for marine conservation in Madagascar (Highly Commended);
Edwin Kinyanjui, for elephant conservation in Kenya;
Josia Razafindramanana, for her work with lemurs in Madagascar;
Kerri Wolter, for vulture conservation in South Africa.
Read more in the Telegraph
