From Fences to Flow: Wildlife Roam Once Again
We are now one year into the Regeneration Landscapes Grant, supported by the OAK Foundation, and we have one very happy neighbour Peter Cox, who has joined the ORKCA landscape and experienced the impact firsthand.
‘’I have spent decades on farms Umeis and Kinderzit, in southern Namibia. My family has been involved with the land for many years. Over time, I have seen the land fenced, dry, and fragmented.”
Then ORKCA got involved…
What followed was a steady shift towards meaningful restoration. The fences which once separated the two farms were removed. As the barriers disappeared, the land had more space to breathe, wildlife moved freely, and natural corridors opened up.
Once the fences were gone, water was the next step towards regeneration. ORKCA installed four solar-powered boreholes. These water points provided wildlife with the water they needed to survive and life slowly in large numbers started to return to the area. One could notice new tracks appearing in the sand, birds started gathering, and antelopes spotted grazing on the land.
It is humbling to watch wildlife reclaim the space that has always belonged to them. There are no fences, no artificial limits on their movement patterns, which allows nature to carry on as it has for thousands of years.
What ORKCA has done involves hands-on work: removing barriers, provision of water for wildlife, reconnection of fragmented landscapes and most importantly, it is proving that rewilding works.
I have been visiting these farms since the mid-1990s, and seeing how they were back then compared to now has changed my view of conservation- it is about working the land, and it is about partnerships that transform private land into part of a living conservation landscape.
The sight of wildlife returning to these farms has been one of the most meaningful experiences for me. It shows that when nature is given space, water, and freedom to move, they come alive. This is what hope looks like in a very arid southern Namibia.
I look forward to making many more memories on this land, and knowing the work ORKCA is doing, it gives me much hope for the future.
Gratitude to the OAK Foundation for making this possible, and to Peter Cox for his commitment to the landscape and for sharing his experience with ORKCA.