David Wilkins

I’m David, a Net zero employee living in Cambridge in the UK< form the UK and about the last person you’d expect to be a rewilding Ambassador. I have no family connection to south Africa, no conservation background and have never been into he bush. But I do have a background in Journalism, have worked in cape town south African and now work for the British Antarctic survey. I’m a passionate believe in saving what remains of our African wilderness before it’s gone forever because once gone we don’t get it back. Being totally blind and partially deaf I bring a unique perspective into this work. I love talking to people, listening to empeople and trying to inspire people into backing things which are really exciting.

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My first safari experience was not a fantastic one. Is pent it in a bus driving through Table Mountain National Park seething because nobody would tell me what was outside the window. If you can’t’ see this is no fun at all. The second was dramatic. Shadowing a game ranger patrol on The South African Coast. This safari trip was spent in a Gemini boat being hit by a wall of spray and finding that the jacket I’d rather unwisely tied round my waste for “later,” was now completely drenched. But hey, it wasn’t boring!.

The story goes back some way, and it could be argued that it was my first encounter with two animals that kindled my interest, and elephant and a snake. The elephant was in London Zoo, with the keepers allowed me to feel, for the first time at the age of three. Over 30 years later I have an image of rough skin, and a colossal size. Which The snake some years later was a fully grown pet python,, and I was mesmerized by the reptile’s beautiful texture. I still want a pet one even now. But as the years went on, I took my degree in journalism and creative writing, discovered tall ship sailing and moved into my first independent home. I believed I might end up as an international journalist, maybe in Jerusalem. But Africa was buried deep inside waiting for a spark.

The spark came in 2011 when I was offered an internship at the Big Issue Magazine in Cape Town South Africa. To the horror of my sighted friends, I announced I was flying to South Africa alone to work for four months with my long cane, my luggage and no sighted friends to go with me. This internship was the making of me. I had to live and work in South Africa on my own, and among other experience had a close-up encounter with a wild animal. Standing in the pen of a wine farm in Constantia, stroking a cheetah that had been poisoned before turning to the wile. I can still now feel the depression in its fur coat where it’s spots are and feel it’s body vibration as is it responded to the caress of my hand. You could almost believe that it as purring. In preparation for my trip I had gone a shopping spree of books. Some I wanted to read but never got round to reading, others I completely forgot I had until I got back home again. But one book had the ripple effect of a stone dropped into a pool.. The wilderness Family by Kobie Krüger, was the memoir for a game rangers wife living in the Kruger National park. From my room in observatory with a cup of red bush on my desk, or munching a plateful of rusks (dipped in coffee naturally) I journey through wilderness that is the south African bush, experienced the magic of Mahlangeni, and form the comfort of my chair met a variety of incredible creatures and people. My love affair with Africa’s wildlife was born.

Just as importantly Cape town allowed me to begin to speak some Xhosa, and to meet the diverse people groups that make up South Africa. These ranged from game rangers from the table mountain national park, homeless people on the street and shebeen queens in Nyanga township. The locals of Nyanga were even kind enough to name a township tour after me, and indeed I believe the David Wilkins Township Experience can still be found today. Enjoy the Smiley.

Life seemed pretty dull back in the UK, I soon longed to find and spend time with south Africans, and joined the South African chamber of Commerce. I’m no businessman, but it seemed the best way to get to do what I really wanted, to do pass the time of day with South Africans from parts of the country I’d never visited. And to improve my mind a little. In there company I heard about the lush vegetation for Durban, the urban and famous Johannesburg and even about the nightlife of Pretoria which everyone in Cape Town forbade me to visit. And even to hear about the farm life of the Bo Karoo. So when I was invited to join the launch of Rewilding Africa in the UK in 2022, I thought,
“why not.” However little did I know the changes it would bring.

The passion for the speakers was inspiring. The love they bore for African wildlife was incredible and I could not but offer to help. For at the same time as my passion for South Africa deepen so was my love for the environment. In 2011 it was something I knew was important, but not much about it. By 2022, having worked in 2 BBC roles and a stint in the European Parliament I was finding my own voice. The time had come to join the fight to strengthen what remained before it was gone forever. And besides, if it gave me an excuse to do something with fellow South Africans again, how could I say no?

I will never physically see the beauty and colours of Africa. I may never be able toa ford a tour and hear the roar or a lion, the trumpet of an elephant the bark of a baboon or the cackle of the hoopoe. and I have yet to sit by a fire in the bosh sharing stories. I still have yet to taste a braai despite my time in South Africa, out of one thing I am sure. Africa gave me a totally blind and partially deaf journalist the confidence to believe I could go it alone, and to defy anyone to tried to say that my disability meant I couldn’t do anything. Because of my time in South Africa, I am now Working in my current job at the British Antarctic Survey on their net Zero team. And because of the people I met there, I was willing to put up my hand they when I heard Rewilding Africa wanted volunteers. I urge anyone here reading this to explore the Rewilding Africa website and to join us on this incredible journey. The wilderness of Africa must be to be rewilded, let’s join together to save what we have left, to rewild to give us more and then let us hold onto it, for all future generations.

Author: James Arnott

I am a passionate Conservationist wanting to make a meaningful impact through offering my Development Consulting, Deal Making and Speaker experiences and capabilities to Community Conservation efforts in Africa