Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Honors Thesis (Open Access)

Department

Colby College. Environmental Studies Program

Advisor(s)

Philip Nyhus

Abstract

Wildlife rangers play an essential role in conserving biodiversity worldwide. Until recently, little was known about ranger working conditions and welfare. In 2019 the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) released a report that summarized survey results about ranger wellness from 7,110 rangers across multiple continents. However, the WWF study had geographic gaps and did not survey rangers from southern Africa, including the Republic of Namibia. In Namibia, rangers in the Kunene region are central to the conservation of the desert-adapted black rhino. Save the Rhino Trust (SRT) is a Namibian organization that supports rhino rangers and black rhino conservation. The aim of this thesis is to compare the status of Namibian rhino ranger welfare to the welfare of rangers in other African countries surveyed by the WWF using the WWF survey data and survey data from a 2021 SRT survey of 55 rangers. Additionally, this thesis aims to evaluate the impact of a welfare intervention implemented in 2021 by SRT using the 2021 survey and a 2024 SRT survey of 25 rangers. I find that Namibian rangers have improved welfare compared to other rangers in Africa related to exhaustion, access to clean drinking water, and the belief that the basic necessities provided to them are sufficient. However, rangers in Namibia have less access to medical treatment and insurance than rangers in other African countries. The results of this thesis suggest that SRT’s welfare intervention to date has had mixed results. The SRT interventions have helped rangers to address selected ailments, such as headaches, scorpion stings, and diarrhea, but there is remaining need for ongoing programming such as regular doctor’s visits and continual first aid training to continue to support and improve ranger welfare. Understanding the status of ranger welfare as well as what can be done to improve ranger welfare is critical not only for black rhinos in Namibia but for the conservation of many other species around the world.

Keywords

Namibia, Black rhino, ranger, ranger welfare, rhino conservation

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