2017 Tusk Conservation Awards to be held in SA

The awards, first established in 2013 with the support of Prince William, aims to recognise the exceptional work undertaken by some of Africa’s ‘unsung heroes of conservation’. Previous winners of the prestigious Prince William Award have included conservationists Clive Stockil (Zimbabwe), Richard Bonham (Kenya), Garth Owen Smith (Namibia) and John Kahekwa (DRC). And in 2016, Sir David Attenborough was presented with a special award in recognition of his immense contribution to the natural world. Last year also saw Cathy Dreyer win the prestigious Tusk Award for Conservation in Africa. She was not only the first woman, but also the first South African to receive this accolade.

Says Charlie Mayhew, Tusk CEO, "Tusk is very excited to be bringing the awards ceremony to Africa this year. The success and interest in the awards has surpassed all our expectations and we very much hope to receive another strong list of nominations for the 2017 awards. I urge people to nominate their conservation hero as quickly as possible.”

Call for 2017 nominations

Ahead of the gala awards ceremony in Cape Town, Tusk is now calling for nominations from right across the continent of Africa who will be considered by the expert panel of judges for the awards.

The three categories are:

The Prince William Award for Conservation in Africa is a lifetime achievement award, which comes with a £40,000 grant and is sponsored by Investec Asset Management. It recognises outstanding dedication and exceptional contribution to conservation in Africa.

The Tusk Award for Conservation in Africa is for an individual who has been judged to be emerging as a leading conservationist and recognises their outstanding contribution to date. This award is sponsored Land Rover and comes with a £25,000 grant.

The Tusk Wildlife Ranger Award recognises the dedication and bravery of rangers working to protect Africa’s increasingly endangered wildlife. This award secures a £10,000 grant.

Nomination forms can be downloaded online via www.tuskawards.com. The deadline for pre-nomination applications is 10 March 2017.

Speaking at last November’s event, Prince William said, “As ever, I have been humbled by the sheer dedication and commitment that all of our 2016 nominees have shown, in preserving – against the odds - our precious natural world. Their work is dangerous but vitally important – and we are immensely grateful for it.”