Children in the Wilderness (CITW) is an independent non-profit organization established and supported by Wilderness. CITW hosts rural children that live alongside Wilderness and other partner concessions, and through their Eco-Clubs, YES Programme and Eco-Mentor training, teaches them the importance of conservation. The children are exposed to their wildlife heritage, building and strengthening their capabilities to cope with life’s challenges. They are educated with the life skills necessary to actualize their greatest potential, so that they are equipped to become the future custodians of these pristine wilderness areas.
Find out more at childreninthewilderness.com
Empowers Africa has partnered with Children in the Wilderness in order to provide a cost-effective solution to fundraising in the United States by acting as their fiscal sponsor. Any donations made here will be granted to Children in the Wilderness.
Empowers Africa uses Stripe to process credit card donations. Stripe has very stringent security rules which may lead to declined credit card transactions. If you are experiencing trouble processing your donation, kindly contact Nadia Derelieva at (917) 328-1611 or via email: nadia@empowersafrica.org
Children in the Wilderness Campaigns
Wilderness Community Drought Relief
As Southern Africa suffers from its most severe drought in decades, brought about by a severe El Niño event, millions of people face food insecurity. Our 40 years of conservation tourism experience have taught us that communities are inseparable from the wild places we protect, and the wildlife that call them home.
As custodians of many of the affected wilderness areas, we recognise our responsibility to support our partner communities in this time of crisis. We can’t bring back the rains, but we can support with vital food relief to those most in need. Funding to the amount of US$250,000 has been secured from the Mike and Karen Stone Foundation. We have mobilised our local teams across Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Zambia (east Africa is not impacted by the drought). These teams will concentrate relief efforts on the communities most severely impacted by the ongoing drought and in urgent need of temporary food aid. Our teams have consulted with local community leaders and government officials to identify the people most needing of support. We have also sought their views as to how this support should be provided.
On the basis of these consultations, we have designed our intervention. Over the next three months—expected to be the most challenging period of this devastating drought—our teams aim to distribute more than 9,000 emergency food parcels to 12,500 people, largely children. This latter focus is intended to ensure proper nutrition in school in order to both alleviate pressure on parents but also, more importantly, to ensure proper nutrition while learning. Our relief plan encompasses both the preparation and delivery of these food parcels. It is hoped that the need for this intervention will be short-lived, given that the El Niño event that caused the drought is in the process of being replaced by La Niña, which will hopefully lead to good rains in the coming months.
This intervention will also help to reduce the pressure on natural resources, which always results when livelihoods are threatened by natural or man-made disasters.
Donors wishing to add to this campaign, which would allow the inclusion of further beneficiaries or the enlargement of the proposed food parcels, can do so at this link.
Children in the Wilderness Campaigns
Children in the Wilderness General Programs
By exposing children to their natural heritage, all of the Children in the Wilderness programs create a network of learning sanctuaries that uplifts and cares for our children and conserves our planet. In this way, we are inspiring children to care for the environment and become the custodians of these areas in the future.
Education Bursaries
Providing a child with the opportunity to complete their education is life-changing and a wonderful gift! The Scholarship Programme provides funding for the necessary school fees and if possible, we try and assist with uniform, stationery and other school expenses as well. Funding from our programme comes largely from Wilderness Safaris guests and agents, as well as other partner NGOs.
General Donations
If you do not have any specific project in mind and wish the organization to use their own discretion, please click here.
Donate in Rand
If you’d prefer to make a donation in Rand, please use the following donation button. You will have the chance to indicate a specific program if applicable.
Empowers Africa can only offer tax deductibility in the U.S. as we are a U.S. 501(c)(3) public charity and not a South African nonprofit.
Donations can also be made by check or wire transfer:
Checks should be made out to “Empowers Africa” and should be mailed to:
Empowers Africa
2 Beekman Place, Ste. 18B
New York, NY 10022
www.empowersafrica.org
(917) 328-1611
Kindly note in the memo section of the check that funds are for Children in the Wilderness and indicate a specific program if applicable. Or email us at info@empowersafrica.org.
For wire transfer details or more information, please email us at info@empowersafrica.org.
Empowers Africa has been approved as a U.S. public charity, contributions to which are tax deductible for U.S. federal income tax purposes under Section 501(c)(3) [EIN: 32-0403737] of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code.
Thank you for your support!