Clive has been actively involved with conservation and environmental education for over 40 years. He founded the Endangered Wildlife Trust in 1973, and with his wife Conita he set up Educational Wildlife Expeditions which introduced many adults and children to the bush. From 1980 onwards he and Dale Parker established the Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, and in 1985 he founded the Lapalala Wilderness School, which he and Conita ran until their retirement in 2003. During this time he was instrumental in establishing the Waterberg Biosphere Reserve as well as the Waterberg Nature Conservancy. He is the author or co-author of numerous books about wildlife and conservation, including most recently The Rhino Keepers with his son Anton Walker.
John is a trained zoologist with a degree in Natural Sciences from Magdalene College, Cambridge. He also completed his PhD on the reproductive physiology, growth, and population dynamics of the African elephant in the Luangwa Valley in Zambia.
He has more than 45 years of experience in a variety of conservation management, EE and research projects. During his career, he has held a number of important positions, including chief professional officer for the Natal Parks Board, professor and head of the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Natal and chief executive of WWF-South Africa.
Richard trained as an exploration geologist and spent several years in the field throughout southern Africa, before completing a Masters degree in mineral economics and marketing at Wits, and later an advanced management course at Harvard.
Following early retirement in 2005 from his role as the strategy and business development director of a large South African mining company, he moved with his wife Lyn (a professor of archaeology at Wits) to the Waterberg, where both have since been involved in numerous voluntary educational & conservation organisations and programmes in the region. They have lectured to tertiary students at LWS since 2007. Richard was invited to join the LWS Board in 2019.
Mike has been involved at Lapalala for the past 15 years and has a deep interest in game breeding and conservation, including environmental education.
He has an Honours degree in agriculture and is the CEO of Rapula Farming. He serves as a trustee on the board of the Cape Town Environmental Education Trust and is the Chairman of the Quagga Project.
Duncan first came to Lapalala with his family when he was seven years old, and ever since then he has cared deeply about the reserve and all that it means to conservation.
Duncan has an Information Systems Honours degree from the University of Cape Town. He is the co-founder of Hemporium, a company operating in the hemp industry, and sits on the boards of several other companies. He is a trustee of the Mapula Trust as well as of various philanthropic trusts connected with the environment.
Graeme has been associated with both the conservation and education sectors for the past 27 years.
During this time he has gained vast and diverse experience, which he has applied in various positions to the benefit of the public and private sectors in Namibia and South Africa. He currently holds a lecturer position at the University of South Africa in the Department of Nature Conservation.
Rosemary has been a consultant trainer and facilitator since 2007. Initially qualifying as an educator with a BA from the University of Johannesburg in 1988, she has since acquired qualifications in training, coaching, supervisory management, community development and project management, among others.
She has worked as a consultant in many industries, including rail, energy, mining, construction, agriculture and various others, and has been active in developing courseware and training materials for various SETAs. She has also partnered with organisations such as GreenMatter and WWF in selecting candidates and facilitating interviews, and was involved in recruiting, training and placing game rangers for Eastern Cape Parks.
Ntokozo was officially recognised as a National Geographic Explorer by the National Geographic Society in 2022.
With almost 22 years of television production experience, Ntokozo’s career behind the camera has been accompanied by an equally successful on-screen career, highlighted as presenter and executive producer of the multi-award winning environmental TV programme, 50|50, that gave her the immense appreciation she has for the natural world. She has received numerous other awards and recognition for her work, including WESSA’s National Award for Individuals, for inspiring young people from different backgrounds to take conservation and the environment more seriously. She is now the Managing Director of a production house, Sugar Bean Pictures, which produces television and film content with a specific focus on social and climate justice.
Peter Anderson is a wildlife property specialist with over 25 years of experience in creating and enlarging conservation and protected areas throughout southern Africa.
These initiatives have included the establishment of sustainable projects around tourism and communities throughout the sub region.
Peter serves on the board of Lapalala Wilderness (Pty) Ltd and the Lapalala Wilderness Foundation (Pty) Ltd NPC, which is a Public Benefit Organisation and mandated authority which manages Lapalala Wilderness.
With a substantive political background, Mr Msimang is widely recognised as a leader of change in South Africa with varied experience in transforming institutions.
He is a member of the WWF South Africa Board and currently chairs Corruption Watch and serves on various civic society, environmental management and private sector boards.
Msimang obtained his BSc and MBA during his time in exile and went on to work for various international development organisations, namely World University Service of Canada (WUS/C) and CARE-CANADA which assigned him to Ethiopia and Kenya as well as the United Nations Children’s Fund and the World Food Programme.
On returning to South Africa in 1993, Msimang held several senior positions in public sector organisations, including South African Tourism, South African National Parks and the State Information Technology Agency in which he successively served as CEO. He retired from civil service in 2010 following a three-year stint as the Department of Home Affairs Director-General.
Mashudu holds a National Diploma in Nature Conservation, an Organisational Leadership Certificate, and a Hospitality Management Certificate. He is currently completing his BTech (Hons) Degree in Nature Conservation at Tshwane University of Technology. Currently pursuing master’s in environmental education.
Further to 22 years of experience in Environmental Education and conservation and a particular interest and passion for Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and social change processes, his role at Lapalala Wilderness School, ensures not only the smooth operations of its daily management, including staff and the school’s outreach programme, adherence of policies and trade union agreements but also most importantly the maintenance of relationships with donors and all stakeholders worldwide.
Merriam holds a BCom Marketing Management degree and N6 Business Management diploma.
She has 15 years’ experience as a payroll and human resource administrator and marketing administrator and is proficient at finance management using Pastel Accounting. She manages the general office administration and maintains the Lapalala Wilderness School assets register.
Coming from a local community near Lapalala, Lizzy has an intimate knowledge of the needs of learners and community members in the area.
She joined Lapalala Wilderness School in 2005 through a learnership programme and, since then, her knowledge for EE has steadily grown, as has her interest in birds and birding. In her role, Lizzy explores options and implements initiatives to expand our community school outreach programme and enhance its effectiveness.