** Includes linked detailed “Explainer” of the Movement **

Leading African travel operators are encouraging travel professionals to work together to advance safari conservation and community support in a collective movement to build a more resilient future for Africa, its people, and its wildlife.

Africa Change Makers is a call to action to travel partners and operators to safeguard Africa’s future. This much-needed initiative is inspired by the power of collaboration, shared passion, and concern for the continent to sustain the great work done by Africa’s tourism industry and to build a reserve of funds to tackle inevitable future challenges.

African Bush Camps (ABC) is one of the founding partners of the Africa Change Makers movement urging like-minded travel industry leaders and trade organizations to help preserve Africa’s vital ecosystems by contributing a proportion of the value chain towards a crisis fund to ensure more tourism dollars stay within Africa. At the same time, the initiative aims to influence more informed and responsible decisions among future travelers allowing them to make a conscious contribution to Africa’s future.

Click here for the Africa Change Maker Explainer

“Much was achieved pre-covid in conservation and community uplift through tourism, but the pandemic exposed just how vulnerable and ill-prepared our industry was in the face of crisis,” says ABC CEO and founder Beks Ndlovu. “Africa Change Makers provides the opportunity to build more meaningful interactions in the industry. When united, we have the power to give back even more, helping secure a healthy future for Africa’s wildlife and its people.”

The movement aims to secure a ‘war chest’ for Africa to face future challenges by inviting travel operators to step into the role of a Change Maker and put funds back into the safari conservation ecosystem through an established fund. Each partner will contribute a minimum of US$5 per bed night which will be made available to support the long-term sustainability conservation and community initiatives in Africa.

“The last two years have shown that we need to ensure conservation continues even if travel and tourism temporarily doesn’t,” said Tristan Cowley, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Ultimate Safaris Namibia and an Africa Change Makers founding partner. “As a conservation travel company, our priority has always been to ensure conservation and rural development are sustainable and ultimately supported by responsible tourism. With Africa Change Makers, we are now inviting our partners in travel to assist us with this to ensure conservation resilience for times of tourism distress, and our next crisis could be around the corner.”

Africa Change Makers also guides travelers who understand the vital importance of supporting companies that go the extra, sustainable mile. Travelers choosing to book with an Africa Change Maker have the opportunity to make a substantial difference and can be assured that the companies they support are making a long-lasting impact in Africa.

It’s not too late to change course and collectively rebuild Africa’s defenses. Despite being one of the world’s most sustainable destinations, Africa has less than 5% of global tourism revenue. By encouraging more conscious travelers and bringing more resources to the continent, we can work together to protect the earth’s natural resources better and prepare for likely future challenges.

For more information, visit africachangemakers.org and participate in the #africachangemakers conversation on social media.