Two female South African conservationists call on peers to join the fight to protect wildlife

Two South African women who have climbed the conservation ladder to the top would like to see more women becoming conservationists.
Kerri Wolter and Cathy Dreyer have called for greater recognition of female conservationists.

Wolter and Dreyer are using the weekend’s International Women’s Day and Monday’s World Wildlife Day to recruit fellow women to join in the fight to save wildlife and biodiversity in South Africa.
Dreyer is the first woman to be head ranger of the Kruger National Park (KNP).
She believes more women need to be recognised and encouraged in the conservation field.

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If you had asked me years ago whether l would become the first female head ranger of Kruger, l would have said no,” said Dreyer.

“At the outset of my career l was really quite happy to live in a tent and spend all my time among the animals,” added Dreyer.
The women have won prestigious TUSK Conversation Awards. TUSK is an international conversation organisation which runs an annual awards for conservationists.
Dreyer says she was shocked when she won the TUSK Conversation Award. She said the award gave her exposure and elevated her work.

It gave me the belief that l could take on a challenge as big as managing a park the size of Kruger.”

TUSK has released a statement profiling both Wolter and Dreyer.
The statement said the women protectected vultures from extinction and led anti-poaching efforts in the KNP.
“They have spent their careers fighting for wildlife and for greater representation of women conversation,” reads the statement.
It further says the women know first-hand the impact of recognition and mentorship in the male-dominated field of conservation.