Overview
Across the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere Region, conservation and development are not separate conversations – they play out in everyday life. In kitchens where families cook over open fires. In fields where people are living and growing crops alongside conservation areas. In villages where few formal waste systems are in place.
Our Community Solutions Team works where these realities meet the bigger goals of conservation and sustainable development.
Working alongside communities, traditional authorities and partners, we help develop practical responses to challenges that affect daily life. This includes supporting safer ways for people and wildlife to share the landscape, expanding access to clean and efficient cookstoves that improve household health while reducing pressure on natural resources, and developing local waste solutions that protect both communities and the environment.
By building relationships, sharing knowledge and supporting locally led initiatives, the team helps communities strengthen their resilience while contributing to the long-term health of the K2C Biosphere Region.
Key Facts
Location
Finale, Phalaubeni, Bushbuckridge, Limpopo
Focus
Human-wildlife co-existence, Community waste solutions, Fuel-efficient cookstoves, Community engagement
Partners
TASC Foundation, Plastic SA
Contribution to K2C Strategic Priorities:
Partnerships (SP4); Production Landscape (SP4); Community Enterprises (SP5); Policy Influence (SP6); Knowledge Management (SP8)
What We Do
Community Engagement & Practitioner Network
Our Community Engagement Practitioners are rooted in the landscape. They facilitate dialogue, surface local priorities, and ensure that programmes respond to lived realities. This network forms a bridge between communities, conservation initiatives and development partners, strengthening trust and shared understanding.
We work with schools, youth groups and community platforms to build environmental awareness and leadership. By connecting ecological literacy with everyday realities, we support the next generation to see themselves as stewards of the landscapes they call home.
25
Schools engaged
26 000
Household surveys conducted
Human–Wildlife Co-existence
Living alongside wildlife brings both opportunity and risk. Through structured dialogue, practical interventions and collaborative problem-solving, we support communities in navigating human–wildlife interactions in ways that reduce conflict and protect both livelihoods and biodiversity.
2
Community-owned tourism projects launched
Waste Management Innovation
In rural contexts, waste is both a challenge and an opportunity. Through projects such as the Waste Beneficiation Centre and partnerships with organisations including Plastic SA, we support locally relevant waste solutions that create enterprise pathways while addressing environmental risk.
1
Waste Beneficiation Feasibility Study completed
Clean Energy & the Cookstove Carbon Project
Through the TASC Cookstove initiative, we support access to cleaner, more efficient cooking solutions. This improves household health outcomes, reduces pressure on natural resources and contributes to measurable carbon benefits.
1,120,000
Tons CO2e emissions avoided
53 000 ha
Reduction in indigenous wood harvesting
Voices from the Community
“We’ve seen large amounts of waste where areas have become dumping sites, sometimes because services are not being delivered. But when we bring communities, municipalities and partners together, and really listen to each other, people start to understand the impact and come forward with their own action plans to protect their natural resources.”
Hope Morema
K2C Community Solutions Team
“Seeing communities resort to harvesting their own fruit trees for firewood tells you everything — resources have been depleted, and deforestation is very much a reality. But my heart swells with pride knowing that through the TASC Cookstove Project, we are not only reducing household carbon emissions and providing clean cooking solutions, we are also helping nature restore itself — one stove, one tree at a time.“
Susan Moeng
TASC Cookstove distribution team
Funding Partners
Strong partnerships allow us to build trust with communities and work towards lasting change.
Resilient landscapes depend on resilient communities.
Our Work in Action
Get in Touch
Vusi Tshabalala
Programme Manager