Water lilies in the Khwai River (G.Kayano, 2022)
By Gabe Kayano, Student Program Associate Director
We will win! This phrase is often delivered by Program Co-Director Cosmos “KC” Rathipana after sharing somewhat disconcerting news. It was originally meant to motivate students in situations like vehicle breakdowns or when honey badgers invaded the kitchen tent and consumed half of our food supply. Throughout the years, more than a cheerful motto, these words inadvertently became the defining spirit of Round River’s Botswana Program. In spite of all adversities, we get out of our tents every morning ready to hop into a dusty car because we know what awaits us out there, and we know it is worthwhile.
Since 2012, our continued efforts in the Okavango Delta have brought more than 170 students to the area, looking for more than just adventure. While countless days have inspired thrilling stories with interesting characters and unbelievable wildlife encounters, what they take home with them goes deeper: new perspectives fostered by the people and communities they connect with, resilience shaped through shared challenges, and a lasting appreciation for conservation rooted in experience. Students, staff, partners and friends have come and gone, and the ever-changing nature of the Delta means each iteration of the program is different in some way. However, even though the program may have changed throughout the years, at its core it remains true to its essence: it continues to support the efforts of the communities of Sankoyo, Mababe, and Khwai in developing, implementing, and sustaining wildlife-monitoring standardized methodologies that inform management strategies that benefit both wildlife and community trusts.
Berkley teaches Gorata and Dux how to save tracks on the GPS (G.Kayano, 2025)
Striving to achieve best practices in Community-Based Natural Resource Management, every year our work has relied more and more on collaborations with community members. They are the ones who truly understand conservation issues in the area, happily share their wisdom, and are also proud stakeholders who want the best for their communities. While KC’s wealth of institutional knowledge facilitates coordination with entities like the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) and the Okavango Research Institute (ORI), our operations in the Delta are currently spearheaded by Mr. Dikatholo “Dix” Kedikilwe. Born and raised in Sankoyo, he is a respected member of the village’s Trust Committee, one whose striking prowess in growing crops is only matched in intensity by his passion for conservation and his commitment to his people. In the field, Dix is joined by Mr. Pabalelo “SB” Motswadi, who has roots in both villages of Sankoyo and Khwai, and is always ready to share his profound knowledge of the land and culture with students.
Dix teaching students how to inspect the vehicles in Mababe (G.Kayano, 2022)
Dix and SB’s leadership in the field has been instrumental to Round River’s work in the area. More than coordinating our operations in the field and teaching classes, they also provide students with a unique perspective of the Okavango Delta – a glimpse into how locals view matters such as the growing tourism industry, the country’s socio-political context, international sports, and of course, conservation issues. This has enabled the development of projects like the “The Multilingual Field Guide to the Okavango Delta”, a student-developed natural history guide to the most formidable life forms of the Delta. It includes species names in Setswana and the traditionally spoken languages of Sankoyo, Mababe, and Khwai, as well as cultural anecdotes and relevant historical facts. The project was conceived by students Ziggy Berkoff and Lauren Ulrich in the Spring of 2023, and received contributions from many other students in the following years. The original inspiration came from an idea provided by Mr. Tshiamo Kebuelemang, a member of the Mababe community who was concerned with the low perfusion of traditional culture in the community’s youth. The guide was elaborated as an attempt to preserve traditional languages and cultural knowledge, and it has been well-received by many community members. Such an outcome wouldn’t have been possible without the invaluable contributions from Dix and SB, who coordinated interviews with elders in all three villages, translated, and helped students with spelling and pronunciation.
The “Languages Project” in its final version, created by Z. Berkoff and L. Ulrich, with contributions from A. Gursky, G. Scovile, Z. McClimon, L. Lobon, L. Hughes, K. Morrisey, and A. Kurtz-Papadopoulos.
Working closely with communities also means making the extra effort to listen to their concerns and making sure our work benefits the villages as a whole. Since the lifting of the hunting ban in 2019, tourism activity has been noticeably increasing in all concessions. Mababe has seen a sharp increase in safari and hunting operations, while Sankoyo has started their own hunting operations in selected areas of the concession. Additionally, a number of brand new private camps have been recently built along the Khwai and Mababe Rivers. Even though changes like these economically benefit the communities, the impact of increased human presence is glaring. Predators are harassed by safari vehicles on a regular basis. Trash and human refuse management grows more and more challenging with every additional tourist. Animal encounters have become rare in places where they used to be abundant. While we do not yet know the extent to which this increased tourism activity will affect these ecosystems, some community members are concerned with the level of change that has taken place in the last few years. In this context, our commitment to the long-term monitoring of wildlife populations within these concessions may provide valuable insights for wildlife management and will hopefully assist with solutions that support both enduring environmental health and the prosperity of local communities.
In March 2021, the data resulting from our monitoring efforts conducted from 2013 to 2019 was published in the report Community-based Wildlife Monitoring in Selected Concessions of the Okavango Delta, 2013 – 2019, A Partnership between Round River Conservation Studies and Okavango Research Institute. The combined efforts from seven years of monitoring, involving 11 student cohorts, 50 escort guides, and several Round River staff members provides recommendations on best practices for monitoring methodologies and some considerations on the population status of selected species. The analysis was led by Kaggie Orrick, a Round River alum who returned as a Botswana Program Instructor for multiple semesters. Currently, an updated version of this report is in the works, aiming to expand the scope of the previous report to 10 years of monitoring (2013 – 2023).
SB enjoying the view of the Sky Beds (G. Kayano, 2024)
It is important to note that all of these achievements were only possible because of the relentless support from Dr. Gaseitsiwe Masunga, from ORI. Today, in 2025, the program still attracts students who want to make a difference and choose to spend a semester abroad working on real-world conservation issues. Dr. Masunga is well aware of all the challenges our students face, but he continues to receive them with a large smile, encouraging them to do their best. It’s not an exaggeration to say that the contagious positive attitude of the Batswana continues to be what carries our students through the heat and dust, motivating them to get up early in the morning and go out on transect after transect. Students unconsciously absorb this energy on a daily basis from Dix, SB, and all the escort guides. At the end of the day, when someone asks if the seswaa burned, or if the car got stuck in the sand, or even if the ablutions are blocked by a herd of elephants, we all know to smile at these problems because they don’t matter. After all, “…don’t forget, guys: we will win!”
Waterbucks in the floodplain (G. Kayano, 2025)
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