From Rescue to Research: The Evolution of AfriCat
A New Era of Science-Driven Conservation at the Okonjima Nature Reserve
The Ecological Imperative for Change
Across the globe, wildlife populations are declining at an alarming rate. The Living Planet Report estimates a 69% drop in vertebrate numbers since 1970, with about one million species now at risk of extinction. In Namibia, these global pressures, combined with natural aridity and land-use changes, are placing an extra strain on already fragile ecosystems. As urbanisation and other human pressures transform and fragment natural habitats, understanding how wildlife persists in these altered landscapes has become increasingly urgent. For organisations such as AfriCat, which initially focused on carnivore rescue and conflict mitigation, these realities have created the conditions for a broader, more research-driven conservation model.
The Evolution of a Conservation Ethos
Over three decades ago, the AfriCat Foundation began as a grassroots response to human–wildlife conflict on a small family farm in Namibia’s central highlands. Its founding purpose was to give large carnivores a second chance in an era where lethal control was common and scientific understanding was limited. Over time, this early vision grew into one of Namibia’s most recognised and enduring conservation programmes.
Today, AfriCat stands renewed and is no longer defined by rescue and rehabilitation, but by long-term ecological research and evidence-based management. Anchored within the 22,000-hectare Okonjima Nature Reserve (ONR), AfriCat’s mission now rests on three interdependent pillars: Research. Protect. Restore. This transition reflects a broader evolution in African conservation thinking from reactive welfare and isolated interventions to proactive science and ecosystem-level understanding.
From Rescue to Research: Lessons from Experience
The founders of Okonjima, the Hanssen family, were not trained as conservationists. As cattle farmers in a drought-prone region, they faced a combination of ecological and economic pressures that have shaped much of Namibia’s private farming sector. The challenges extended far beyond herd size, though. Episodes of plant toxicity and nutrient-poor soils, due to a phosphate deficiency, undermined both pasture quality and livestock fertility. Predator conflict added another layer of pressure. Lethal control was common practice at the time, yet removing leopards or cheetahs seldom reduced livestock losses because other individuals quickly moved in to occupy the vacant territories.
Following the untimely death of Rose at 56, the Hanssen family matriarch, the family reached a turning point. Her husband, VJ, frustrated by the cumulative pressures of farming and deeply affected by personal loss, no longer wished to continue with conventional livestock production. Namibia’s independence in 1990 then created a new national momentum, opening space for emerging industries and alternative land-use models. The next generation, Wayne, Donna, and Rosalea Hanssen, then stepped into leadership, and none chose to pursue traditional farming. Instead, they envisioned a different future for the property, one rooted in conservation and the growing potential of nature-based tourism.
This transition laid the foundation for AfriCat, and in 1993, the family formalised their work in predator rescue, farmer outreach, and environmental education through the creation of the AfriCat Foundation. After three years, the transformation of the ONR began, marking the start of a long-term commitment to adaptive land management practices for wildlife conservation. The reserve initially comprised only 5,400 hectares, and as the conservation vision expanded, four neighbouring farms: Ombujongwe (7,500 ha), Joumbira (4,000 ha), and Marathon (4,500 ha) were incorporated , ultimately creating the 22,000-ha Okonjima Nature Reserve.
During its first two decades, AfriCat was widely recognised for its work in large-carnivore rehabilitation, rescuing and releasing more than 1,050 individuals which were affected by human–wildlife conflict. A substantial and instructive part of AfriCat’s early work was the cheetah rehabilitation programme. This initiative provided a secure environment for persecuted or displaced animals by supporting their behavioural and physical recovery, and prepared suitable individuals for release into areas with lower conflict risk. During this period, AfriCat also established its Environmental Education (EE) Programme to strengthen public understanding of carnivore ecology and coexistence, welcoming thousands of Namibian and international schoolchildren to the Reserve.
COVID-19 as a Turning Point for AfriCat’s Future Strategy
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, AfriCat’s operations were brought to an abrupt standstill, and the Foundation was forced into a period of critical reflection that reshaped its direction. The sudden loss of tourism revenue made it impossible to continue high-cost activities that did not generate direct income, and the long-running EE programme unfortunately closed in 2020. This pause coincided with a broader reassessment of more than two decades of welfare-driven rescue and outreach, prompting AfriCat to consider how it could remain resilient, relevant and scientifically valuable in a changing conservation landscape. The experience of navigating donor-dependent projects highlighted the need for a self-sustaining operational model, reducing reliance on external funding and the administrative burdens attached to it. AfriCat has since focused on strengthening its business foundations and building a research-led conservation mandate that can be fully supported by Okonjima’s tourism enterprise.
Although the school-based EE programme is no longer active, AfriCat continues to engage guests and visiting tertiary groups with plans to reintroduce a new education pathway in the future. This next phase will prioritise guide training and science-focused environmental learning for students already committed to conservation, ensuring that education remains a cornerstone of AfriCat’s mission.
Private Reserves and the Okonjima Model
A central question that emerged during this restructuring was how AfriCat could adopt a research-led model capable of addressing broader conservation challenges. According to the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism (MEFT) 2021-2022 report, Namibia’s conservation success depends on collaboration between national parks, communal conservancies, and private reserves that together safeguard a mosaic of habitats.
AfriCat realised that private reserves offer a critical pathway forward, and its location within the ONR placed it in a uniquely strong position to contribute. The Reserve already supported ongoing scientific work, giving AfriCat a foundation upon which to refine its mandate and expand its research focus. Within Namibia’s broader conservation network, the ONR plays an important role in safeguarding the underrepresented acacia savannahs of the central plateau. The Reserve has already published research on leopards and brown hyenas, creating a strong scientific foundation from which AfriCat could expand into more detailed, long-term studies of these carnivores. Beyond carnivore ecology, research from the ONR includes peer-reviewed studies on dung beetle diversity, white rhinos and clinical research on cheetah health. Together, these studies show that Okonjima can generate insights across trophic levels and scientific disciplines, demonstrating how private reserves can contribute meaningful evidence to national and global biodiversity goals.
A New Research Approach
AfriCat’s renewed mandate is built around a clear science-based philosophy captured in its new motto: Research. Protect. Restore.
- Research – focuses on generating reliable ecological data to understand how a fenced private reserve supports island-bound, non-migratory species such as leopard, brown hyena and pangolin, and how these populations interact within a semi-arid savannah ecosystem.
- Protect – applies this evidence to evaluate whether enclosed reserves can maintain ecological stability, promote population viability and reduce conflict risk for species that do not require large-scale migrations.
- Restore – investigates how historical land-use impacts, particularly bush encroachment, can be reversed to rebuild functional habitat and support ecosystem resilience.
To guide this direction, AfriCat has established a research plan structured around three linked objectives.
Conducting Research on Protected Areas
Research inside the Reserve evaluates how effectively enclosed protected areas support wildlife populations and maintain long-term ecological sustainability. This includes assessing population health, ecological balance and the Reserve’s capacity to function as a coherent conservation system.
Advancing Conservation Knowledge
The ONR provides a unique environment in which to answer conservation questions that are difficult to study elsewhere. Its controlled boundaries and consistent management enable detailed analyses of predator-prey interactions, habitat use, social behaviour and ecosystem resilience. These conditions allow AfriCat to generate robust ecological insights that help clarify the contribution private reserves can make to national biodiversity goals.
Improving Reserve Management Practices
Findings from AfriCat’s research directly inform management decisions across the ONR. This evidence-led approach ensures that the Reserve remains ecologically healthy, sustainably managed and effective as a conservation landscape. The results also offer guidance to other private landholders seeking to balance wildlife protection with long-term land stewardship.
AfriCat’s Current Research Portfolio
Since restarting its work after COVID-19, AfriCat has invested in establishing strong scientific foundations for this new direction.
- Technology-Driven Wildlife Monitoring
A reserve-wide LoRaWAN telemetry system that supports fine-tuned monitoring of animals, environmental conditions and Reserve assets, with the reach extending beyond ONR boundaries. LoRaWAN, short for Long Range Wide Area Network, is a low-energy communication system that carries data across large areas. It allows AfriCat’s GPS-collared animals to transmit regular location updates, improving the accuracy of movement research while reducing the need for intrusive field tracking.
- Long-Term Research Populations
The wildlife research population has expanded to include more individuals than ever before of key species, including leopard, brown hyena and pangolin. Baseline data on additional species is also being collected to support future research.
- Multi-Layered Camera-Trap Network
A detailed and multi-faceted camera trap network has been developed, refined and implemented, along with a long-term system for processing the thousands of images it produces.
- Integrated Environmental and Genetic Databases
Inventories, life histories, genetic analysis and databases of research individuals have been consolidated and maintained. These continuously growing datasets provide a strong baseline for understanding wildlife populations over time.
Data collection has broadened to include weather patterns, vegetation and prey availability, recognising the importance of monitoring entire ecosystems rather than single species.
- Collaboration
Partnerships and collaborations have been strengthened with national and international universities, researchers, conservation organisations, companies and government institutions, expanding AfriCat’s expertise and capacity.
Collaborators include:
Symbolism and Continuity: Redefining AfriCat’s Identity
For more than thirty years, the AfriCat logo has evolved alongside the organisation’s mission. The original 1993 design for AfriCat, short for “A Free Cat,” had two small “e’s” above the “i” symbolising freedom. This reflected a pioneering dream to rescue Namibia’s carnivores and return them to the wild. As AfriCat grew, its focus expanded beyond rescue to research, education, and long-term coexistence, prompting the introduction of a bold cheetah face in the early 2000s. This second logo, sharing Okonjima’s distinctive red palette, represented a shared commitment to protecting Namibia’s large carnivores through science and collaboration.
Today, the new AfriCat logo honours that legacy while looking to the future. It has a leopard head, a tribute to the Foundation’s longest-running research project and its enduring partnership with the ONR, but introduces tracks of multiple species, which are symbols of interconnectedness and AfriCat’s expanded ecological mission: Research. Protect. Restore.
Learning from the Land
At its core, AfriCat’s work reflects humility before complexity. Through its long-term ecosystem monitoring, AfriCat hopes to provide empirical evidence that informs management decisions within Namibia and contribute to the global discourse on fenced-reserve ecology. Looking ahead, AfriCat will continue to refine its methodologies, publish findings in peer-reviewed outlets, and expand its collaborative networks. The Foundation’s vision is of integration, linking data, landscapes, and people in a shared pursuit of resilience. In doing so, AfriCat demonstrates that rigorous science and pragmatic conservation are not opposing ideals. They are, as the ONR shows each day, different expressions of the same commitment: to research, to protect, and to restore.
