I've received an inspiring and heartwarming number of requests from you wonderful people asking what you can do to help rhino. So I've compiled a list of different things that you can do help make a difference.

1 - Fundraise or Donate

Rhino are dying in numbers, there are organisations out there that are desperate for financial support to monitor and save rhino, and those fighting on the ground need the facilitation  dand the backing to protect rhino. Poachers are fuelled by infinite wealth and demand in the far East, and unfortunately the number of poor rural communities to exploit for poaching are endless, so those protecting rhino need to develop and evolve to fight this. Your money will go towards to paying and training anti-poachers, counter- poaching equipment, monitoring equipment, vehicles, drones, dogs, horses, tracking collars, surveillance, education, awareness, vet bills, translocation projects, orphanages and more. From the big ballplayers to the smallest NGO, you can help to keep these organisations going and help the rhino directly on the ground. Many organisations will team up to help those who can’t afford to protect and monitor their own rhino, I’ve witnessed first hand how much of a difference that your donations can make.

Two NGO’s that I’ve worked closely with, who are close to my heart, and whom I can personally I can guarantee are making leaps and bounds towards protecting rhino, are the African Rhino Conservation Collaborative and Chipembere Rhino Foundation.

2 - Volunteer

There are so many roles that volunteers can play in the fight for rhinos, just look at mine! Everyone has a different skill, a different idea of how they can help or what they are capable of doing. On the ground rolls: from educating communities, to helping raise orphans, from assisting wildlife vets to media, and then there’s rolls helping to protect, monitor, conduct research, the list goes on... A lot of these projects involve paying to volunteer, it’s not something that’s always avoidable, but it will be the experience of a lifetime, and you can really help to make a huge difference. On the other hand, you don’t have to travel to Africa to make a big difference, there are organisations in most countries that need volunteers to help with the administration, office, event organisation, fundraising, creative design and other necessary aspects to support their amazing work. Often overseas volunteers who commit enough time end up getting to visit the rhino groups that they support, so why not contact NGO’s to see how you can help?

3 - Raise Awareness

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” - Nelson Mandela.

We can’t make a change to things that we aren’t aware of. If you’re passionate and knowledgeable about a subject, it can often shock you how little others know about it. We’re fortunate to live in a time where we all have social voices that can be heard all over the world. Collectively we can reach millions of people at the click of the button, so like, share, comment, have your say online, someone always needs their eyes opening. You could be the difference between someone donating to make a difference, you can be the one that stops someone poaching, or from buying that rhino horn. The rhino crisis is a political situation that spans across multiple nations and epitomises many environmental issues, have your opinion, have your say, keep updated and talk! This links into the next thing you can do. *Remember to stay informed yourself - You can do this through my social media, but also I'd recommend watching STROOP. 4 - Social Pressure

The justice system in South Africa is heavily influenced by social pressure, there are so many high profile poaching cases that get overlooked by judges, or get given bail and either simply disappear or the cases fizzle out. If the world shows that we are watching, that we follow these cases and are calling for tougher sentences, there’s much more likelihood that justice will be served. In November 2018, MEC Oscar Mabuyane led a march against rhino poaching through the streets of Grahamstown, ending at the high court where the case of the notorious poaching syndicate the ‘Ndlovu gang’ was due to resume. The poachers had attempted to counter trial against the police in order to the hard evidence obsolete. The social and media pressure was listed as one of the reasons for the counter trial being overthrown as the trial was ‘clearly in the public interest’. Now those poachers have been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment, a historic day for the justice against rhino poaching. Take nothing away from the years of hard work and gathering of evidence from the police and prosecution, their work and dedication was phenomenal, but the social pressure surrounding this helped to make small differences during key parts of this trial.   Social pressure can also be used to stop the demand: In the 1980’s, one of the biggest consumers of rhino horn was Yemen, where it was used to make a curved dagger handle known as a jambiya’. Since then social pressure, government cooperation with CITES, and a successful public awareness campaign has virtually eradicated the Yemeni demand for rhino horn. Similar instances have happened over the years in Taiwan and Japan; it can be done! 5 - Go on Safari

Possibly the most appealing of the list so far, a holiday that helps save wildlife? That’s right! Simply travelling and going on a safari can be one of the most beneficial things you can do for rhino. Most reserves rely solely on tourism as their only source of income, and they will have some kind of small fee/ levy in place through your payment that will go directly into conservation, anti-poaching and protecting wildlife. Tourism is huge for African countries, the lodge workers, rangers and anti poachers will likely come from poor rural communities surrounding the reserves. By going on safari, you are to provide these communities with employment directly through wildlife conservation and eco-tourism, and by travelling you are helping to develop the country and local economies though tourism. Development comes hand in hand with education, which will then lead to future growth and increased quality of life. Whilst at the same time reducing the incentive for local people to poach or give vital security information away to poachers.

It’s as simple as that, it’s not too good to be true. Cross that dream African safari off your bucket list as soon as you can, you’ll be saving rhino as you do it! WARNING: Make sure that you don’t associate any rhino photos with a particular reserve, either don’t post or don’t mention the name, and make sure geolocation is turned off on your camera. The poachers are watching! 6 - Sell or buy products that donate to rhino charities

This one pretty much speaks for itself. If you’d like to donate to rhino, most organisations have their own shop with quality relevant merchandise, why not treat yourself something nice and know that you’re supporting rhino at the same time. Or show off your artistic ability and help rhino at the same time, turn that talent into something even more great. Most organisations are looking for new merchandise to add to their online shops. A few examples are here (there are a lot more) Karmagawa Save the Rhino International Rhino Tears Jewellery Rhino Tears wine Global Conservation Force Vetpaw

7 - Become an anti-poacher

Train to be the ultimate wildlife warrior and help to protect rhino on the ground. Imagine waking up everyday to track rhino and patrol the savannah to protect them. People from all backgrounds, races and genders are anti-poachers, the only limitation is your mental and emotional strength. Life is tough in the bush, extended hours, remote locations, lack of connectivity, scorching hot days, long cold nights, dangerous animals and dangerous people, not everyone is cut out for this way of life, it’s not just a job, it’s a calling. Can you answer it?

After training, just like in the military you can specialise in different roles; from foot patrols to surveillance/ intelligence, from pulling snares, to dog handling, there are now even horseback patrol units to those horse riders out there.

For those interested in becoming an anti-poacher, I’d recommend Tactrac APU. Contact them about attending their course and having the experience of a lifetime.

Other anti-poaching courses that I’m aware of are Protrack and IAPF.

8 - Don’t Look Away

I’ve received many messages telling me not to stop/ take down or censor the content that I have shared, people don’t want to see harsh realities. We’re living in a time where so much wrong is happening in the world, there are so many environmental issues and injustices are ongoing, things that so many people want to turn a blind eye to because it’s not nice to see. If we’re going to have a secure environmental future and save the remaining inhabitants of our planet, we need to face reality, look to change ourselves, then we can stand up and make a difference.