Nature Connect marks 25 years of building pathways between people, nature and opportunity 

How do you inspire people to love and protect nature? 

There is no simple answer. It does not happen through a single lesson, one camp, or an once off training intervention. It takes time. It takes trust. It takes repeated opportunities that allow young people to connect with the natural world, see themselves as part of it, and begin to imagine a future where they can help care for it. 

For the past 25 years, Nature Connect has been doing exactly that. 

From its beginnings at Zeekoevlei, the organisation has grown into a long-standing environmental education, skills development and conservation organisation, working to change lives through nature. Its work has reached learners, youth, educators and communities across South Africa, creating pathways that begin with connection, skills development, employment, and ultimately lifelong environmental stewardship. 

One of those stories is that of Anwar Boonzaier.  As a teenager from an under-resourced community in Cape Town, Anwar attended one of Nature Connect’s sponsored overnight nature camps at a local nature reserve. Within a short drive from home, he encountered hippos, flamingos, open landscapes, and a side of Cape Town he had never fully known before. That first experience was life-changing and opened a door. Anwar reflects that “in 2007 when I attended a camp at False Bay Ecology Park Campsite. I was in Grade 9 at the time, and then for the first time I saw something, I saw a career.  

I was always that person that had the courage to speak in front of people, especially in school, I was always the first one to go for oral and things like that, so I could relate to the career that I saw. I saw Morne (the Camp Educator at the time), I saw how they were engaging with the participants, with us, and ever since my camp in 2007, I had that goal in mind that I want to do what they are doing, but obviously in the community that I’m from, the Lotus River and over time this dream started to fade.”  

After school, Anwar returned to Nature Connect through a government-funded youth development opportunity, gaining work experience with the organisation that had first sparked his interest in the environment. He later completed a Nature Conservation learnership through Nature Connect, combining formal training with practical workplace experience. 

Today, more than a decade later, Anwar has helped introduce thousands of children to nature through environmental education camps, creating for others the same sense of possibility that once changed the direction of his own life.  

He further reflects that: 

 “ looking at the camp that I finished now, it brought quite a lot of memories back, and it just gave me that courage, like, this is the reason why I am here, this is the reason why I am going, because of the learners, or that type of group that I was working with, and yeah, my journey is still going strong, I’m still learning a lot, and I’m still taking every opportunity that I can, and I’m still engaging, and I’m still making sure that all the learners can and will be able to carry out their dream, whatever goals or dreams they have, I’m a real testament of, if you can dream it, you can achieve it, all you need to do is put some hard work in.   

Nature connect made possible for me is changing my life for the better, and that I will say 10 times again, not just because I am a staff member, but its 100% in fact 150% that it changed my life for the better and made me a better person.   

There’s not enough thank you that I can give to Nature Connect, but the one thing I can say is, we are living and working according to our slogan, which is saying, ‘changing lives through nature’, that is exactly what we are doing, we are changing life through nature, and we won’t stop, we will keep on going until we reach every inch of the Western Cape.  We just keep on going and changing lives of the underprivileged youth, youth that don’t have any, that can’t see any option, youth that lives in communities where a role model is very hard or difficult to find, and if I can be that role model along with my colleagues, then definitely we can be the best that we can and carry out this slogan.” 

Anwar’s story is not an isolated one. 

Over the past 25 years, more than 60,000 children have attended Nature Connect’s immersive overnight nature camps, often experiencing their first meaningful connection to the natural world. Many more learners have been reached through curriculum-linked environmental education, school-based activities, teacher support, youth leadership programmes, conservation training, and community-based environmental action. 

For some young people, that first camp is simply a powerful memory. For others, it becomes the beginning of a longer journey. 

Jumah Ali first joined Nature Connect’s Conservation Leadership Programme as a nature-passionate 11-year-old in 2014. Years later, while pursuing a degree in Accounting, he continues to give back by supporting environmental education camps and mentoring the next generation of Conservation Leaders. He has also represented youth voices in environmental spaces, including attending the Earthshot Prize Awards in South Africa and delivering a plenary speech at the 2025 Environmental Education Association of Southern Africa Conference. Jumah Ali Abubakr has this to say about his journey with Nature Connect:   

“I am currently a Part-Time Environmental Educator at Nature Connect. My journey with Nature Connect began in 2014 when I attended my first overnight camp at ZEEC. That experience sparked my passion for nature and helped me understand the importance of the natural world and my place within it.  As the years went on, I was fortunate to be selected for Conservation Leaders. Through this programme, I was able to meet inspiring people in the conservation space, travel to incredible places, and experience environments that many young people only get to see on TV. The programme opened many doors for me and helped shape me into the person I am today, while teaching me the importance of protecting and advocating for vulnerable environments.   

Working as part of the Education team has been a truly full-circle experience for me. I once stood where many of the young people we work with stand today, taking part in these programmes and learning about the environment. Now, I have the opportunity to be on the other side, using the skills and experiences I gained as a student to inspire and guide young minds towards environmental awareness and positive action within their homes and communities.   

I feel fulfilled and honoured to be in the position I am in today, where I can give back while continuing to grow alongside the children we work with. Through these experiences, I truly believe in Nature Connect’s motto,Changing Lives Through Nature’.” 

Christyline Matthews says “my life started when I started working with Nature Connect and I could see a bright future.”  Christyline’s journey reflects the same long-term impact. One of Nature Connect’s first skills development participants, she began in a capacity development programme, became part of several key pilot programmes, and today supervises and supports young women as they navigate their own learnership journeys.  

These stories show the true depth of Nature Connect’s work. Impact is not only measured in numbers, but in the young people who return, lead, mentor, teach, and carry the work forward. 

Nature Connect’s approach is rooted in a long-term pathway often described as a Crèche-to-Career model. It recognises that young people enter the environmental space at different points in their lives: from early childhood activities to early-career conservation roles. Across these stages, Nature Connect’s work can be understood through three connected actions: Connect, Create and Care. 

It begins by connecting people to nature through real experiences in real places. It continues by creating skills, confidence and opportunities into the green economy. It grows into care, where young people and communities become active participants in protecting biodiversity, restoring ecosystems, and shaping a more sustainable future. 

“As South Africa faces the combined pressures of youth unemployment, climate change and environmental degradation, we cannot separate people from nature,” said Dr Anthony Roberts, CEO of Nature Connect. “If we want young people to care for the environment, we must first make sure they have the opportunity to experience it, understand it, and see a future for themselves within it.” 

This work is especially important in communities where access to safe, meaningful nature experiences is limited, and where young people face barriers to education, employment and opportunity. Nature Connect’s programmes create entry points into the environmental sector while building confidence, leadership, practical skills and a sense of belonging. 

Over 25 years, the organisation has grown beyond environmental education alone. Its work now includes a whole-school sustainability programme, youth development, accredited and non-accredited training, workplace experience, community engagement, on-the-ground conservation work, and support for the broader conservation sector. 

Yet the heart of the work remains the same: creating opportunities for people to connect with nature and, through that connection, to build pathways of hope, purpose and responsibility. 

For Nature Connect, its Silver Jubilee is not only a celebration of the past 25 years. It is a reminder of what long-term investment in people and nature can make possible. 

The next generation of Christylines, Anwars and Jumahs are already out there, waiting for the first spark, the next opportunity, and the chance to take up the baton.