FEMALE RANGERS

Empowering Women on the Front Line of Conservation

As our work with Project Ranger has made abundantly clear, conservation areas need boots (and eyes and ears) on the ground. At the same time, a central mission within the Great Plains Foundation is empowering women. These were the inspirations behind Great Plains’ Female Ranger Units. These all-female units act as biodiversity monitors, gathering essential data about the areas they patrol and will act as early detection forces against illegal wildlife crime.

Hiring female biodiversity monitors builds their capacity as individuals and empowers the communities they represent. Great Plains’ Female Ranger Units also offer opportunities to shift gender stereotypes, empower women, and establish strong female role models for young girls. The long-term conservation impact of this project is equally powerful; female rangers foster the community buy-in necessary to preserve Africa’s most precious ecosystems. The first female rangers began their training in 2022 in Botswana and there are now active units operating in Great Plains’ areas of operation in both Botswana and Zimbabwe.

$15,000 covers the cost to hire, train and equip a new Female Ranger and cover her salary for one year.