Meet the African Impact Team

The African Encounter team, of which African Impact is the volunteering arm, is led by Andrew and Wendy Conolly, who have more than twenty years experience in the safari, tourism and hospitality industry. Through African Impact, they hope to benefit the people of Africa and celebrate the continent's richly diverse landscapes and wildlife.

Andrew fell in love with Africa on a fortnight safari to Kenya in 2001. In 2007 he volunteered on 4 projects around the world including our Lion Conservation & Community Education project at Victoria Falls. On the trip Andrew hoped to find a volunteer program that he could work at, applying the skills he gained as a corporate Programme Manager. Now he is in a beautiful part of the world helping the people, wildlife and environment in and around St Lucia and has been a Manager there since January 2008.

Beck has been in tourism for over 10 years and joined African Impact in 2006. He oversees the financial reporting for our projects in Vilanculos, Livingstone and St Lucia and is also involved with the organisation at director level. He has a great passion for conservation in Africa and enjoys hiking in wilderness areas. Beck also recently raised funds for the Friends of Hwange Trust by participating in a 6-day hike across Hwange National Park!

Mpho lives in Khula Village Community. She attended a Tourism Guiding Course and started working for African Impact as a Community Project Coordinator in March 2008. Mpho works with communities outside St Lucia doing HIV Education, Homebased Care and helping at the day care centres and creches, among other projects. She enjoys getting different views from different people, especially good ideas which will improve her knowledge. Mpho is interested in playing netball and going to church.

Caryn was born and bred in Cape Town and has a Diploma in Office and Business Management. She has a great passion for animal rights and wildlife and is currently studying part time towards her LLB Law Degree, intending to specialise in environmental law. She feels honoured to be part of an organisation where she can contribute to the conservation of this beautiful planet and all its creatures!

Cara is originally from England and first came to Africa after gaining a degree in Animal Management and Welfare when she volunteered at Antelope Park in 2006. After falling in love with the continent she then returned in 2007 and became the Lions Manager for a year and a half before moving to Livingstone, Zambia to work with the volunteers and lions there. Cara is very passionate about wildlife especially the African Lion and understands how important this iconic animal is and is very proud to work so closely with the animals and people that have the same passion and love as her.

David first came to the Antelope Park programme in Zimbabwe in 2004 as a volunteer, with a general interest in big cats. Whilst there he came to understand the need for a rehabilitation programme like this, and truly believes that this programme will succeed in repopulating Africa’s national parks with Lions. David came back in 2005 and was asked to stay on and facilitate the Antelope Park volunteer programme. ‘To watch and work with small cubs as they grow into seasoned hunters is such a privilege and provides great satisfaction. It does not get better than this’. David has since expanded his horizons and is now heading up our release campaign and managing the ALERT trust.

Gift loves wildlife and has a wide range of experience as a Field Guide. He joined the African Impact team in 2007 and has completed a full Professional Theory Guides License. Previous experience includes guiding for Safari companies and he enjoys bird watching and horse riding - he is also a seasoned chef!

Greg first came to Africa in 2002 on a Gap year. After travelling East and Southern Africa, Greg fell in love with Africa's people and wildlife. He worked in South Africa in monitoring wild lions before joining African Impact in May 2003. Greg has since run several programs including the Antelope Park Lion Rehabilitation Program and our community projects in Livinsgtone and is now based in our UK office.

James joined African Impact as an Ecotourist Project Manager in 2007 and holds a higher Diploma in Forestry. He is passionate about wildlife and nature and has also completed a Collaborative Natural Resources Management Course. He has a wealth of experience in natural resources management and a great passion for environmental protection! Previous work experience includes working for a leading environmental watchdog-Environment Africa, Forestry Commission in forestry, entomology and pathology, Forester Biometrics as well as Station Manager and Administrator for Forestry Commission Research and Development Division.

Kirsty was born and bred in the beautiful city of Cape Town. She joined African Impact in October 2009, and having studied fashion design she is highly creative, something which has proven useful in an organisation where opportunities abound. Kirsty is of inquisitive nature, with a love for animals and a hunger for knowledge. Her passions in life lie in nature and history and she feels proud to be part of something so inspiring and consequential. “There is sufficiency in this world for mans need, but not for mans greed” – Mahatma Ghandi

Kylie was born and raised in Zimbabwe. In 2001 she went to work, travel and study in the United Kingdom until she decided to come back and live in Africa at the beginning of 2008. Kylie is really excited to be back in Africa and to be involved with all the wonderful African Impact community projects based in and around East Africa.

Laura joined African Impact in October 2008 as a Destination Manager for South Africa and Namibia and then moved into Agent Sales and Liaison a few months later, where she is enjoying getting to know and promote even more African Impact programmes. Laura has a Bachelor’s Degree in Media & Communication and Marketing and has previously worked in High School marketing. She finds people and travel fascinating and is proud that she can play a role in improving the lives of various African people and wildlife through her involvement with African Impact!

Leigh-Ann has a passion for wildlife and photography, strengthened by working for three years at Antelope Park in our DVD production unit. Now at our Hwange project she is working towards her Learners Guide License and Dart License. Leigh-Ann is responsible, down to earth and adventurous - great qualities for a project manager.

Les joined us at the beginning of 2007 with great enthusiasm for African Impacts innovative projects. She was born in Zimbabwe, and is married to Mike and has a 17 year old son, Ross. Les has loved rising to the challenges that African Impact has presented and enjoyed growing with the company. She has a great passion for all animals, and loves helping people experience the best of Africa.

Originally trained as a beauty and aromatherapist, Lucy travelled extensively before studying Business BA (Hons) at Manchester. Lucy then worked as a human resources manager, but still continued to work on numerous voluntary projects in Africa. After leaving the UK, Lucy worked for African Impact in South Africa and Zambia managing community projects. Lucy now manages the Happy Africa Foundation and is excited to work with the all the projects in eastern and southern Africa. She is enjoying the opportunity to help develop new initiatives in the local communities.

Lynsey joined our Cape Town projects in January 2009 from Toronto, Canada and loves sharing her experience, enthusiasm and passion with all the new volunteers. She has worked with young children as an Early Years Educator for over 6 years however this is her first official opportunity to work in the field of her more recent second degree, in International Development, which she is thrilled about. Lynsey volunteered on one of our Cape Town projects in 2008 and fell in love with it and all it had to offer, especially the children! As a staff member she now gets to work permanently alongside the community she so loves so much.

Michelle has always had a passion for conservation, travel, culture and photography, so decided to give up UK corporate life in 2007 to travel and volunteer around the world. Michelle, with her husband Andrew volunteered in South America, Asia and Africa. This included our Lion Conservation Project in Victoria Falls and Michelle found this a great way to see Africa through different eyes - you get a deeper experience than as a tourist. Michelle is very excited to be involved in such important projects helping volunteers make a difference each day and has been managing the St Lucia projects since January 2008.

Michelle is a 3rd generation Zimbabwean and grew up partly in Zimbabwe and partly in the UK. At 17 she left Zimbabwe to exprience the world and spent the next 13 years living & working in London, Greece, Portugal, America, Australia and South Africa as well as travelling extensively through Europe, Asia, Egypt & Southern Africa. She studied Archeology however her background is in high-end tourism, operations, marketing and sales and is excited to be part of the African Impact team!

Moono was born and bred in Zambia and he has lived in Livingstone for the last 25 years. He first got in to the tourism business in October 2003 as a guide for different safari companies. Moono has many ‘bush skills’ and can tell you many stories about his experiences in the African bush. He joined Lion Encounter last year and then became a Project Manager in Livingstone in July 2009. "I love my job because of exposure to so many things, especially the bush and the animals. I came to be part of the Lion Encounter team last year and have learnt about self-confidence and being a team player. My dream is to one day become a manager of a bush camp or lodge in Zambia."

Nathan worked at Antelope Park as Lion’s Manager for a year before joining our Hwange project. He has a strong passion for the bush and holds his Learners Guide License. Nathan enjoys wildlife, particularly snakes and hopes to get his full license soon.

Neale joined African Impact in March 2009 and was born and raised in South Africa. He has travelled extensively throughout Southern Africa, North America and the United Kingdom and previously ran an NGO and volunteer projects in Monkey Bay, Malawi. Neale has also got a Degree in Ecotourism Management and enjoys working with the local communities and making a real impact.

Niki volunteered in Vilanculos in 2008 and decided in her first week she wanted to stay! She returned in January 2009 as the Volunteer Co-ordinator; first port of call for all volunteers, making sure they are happy at camp and on projects. She also assists with teaching at the pre-school and English lessons, and is really excited to be part of the HIV Education project. Niki is from England but loves living in Africa, in particular Vilanculos where she feels lucky to have become part of such a special community.

Poppy’s first experience of volunteering was in Mozambique at the beginning of 2009. She found the whole experience life changing, with meeting fascinating people and seeing how volunteering really can make a difference. After many years as a personal assistant in London Poppy feels that her organization skills, dealing with people on all levels and a ‘can do’ attitude will help her to give as much as she can to these important projects.

Rachael is from England and now lives in Cape Town. She joined African Impact in April 2009 working as a Project Manager and a Destination Manager. She fell in love with the African continent on her first volunteering trip to Kenya in 2006 and it turned her life upside down. She has a genuine passion for African wildlife and its people and is proud to help others experience life changing moments. With a travel, marketing and photography background, Rachael is following her African Dream.

Rob is a passionate third generation Zimbabwean with a spirit for adventure. Born and raised in a farming family in the African bush, Rob has spent the better part his life exploring this diverse continent. Rob was educated in Zimbabwe and furthered his studies at the University of Cape Town where he obtained a bachelor of commerce with an Honours degree in Finance. Rob is extremely dedicated to his role in project development and operations and spends much of his time traveling between different African Impact projects.

Sam first came to St. Lucia as a volunteer in the spring of 2008. Having loved every aspect of her experience with African Impact, she returned to St. Lucia to serve as a volunteer coordinator, and now as a project manager. She has a degree in Economics from the University of Virginia, and has been happy to leave her desk job behind in the USA to work towards the betterment of the community she has come to know and love in South Africa.

Sarah is a 4th generation Zimbabwean, and is a Marketing and Social Science graduate of the University of Cape Town. She is involved with marketing and project development for African Impact. The continent of Africa and the study of languages are two of Sarah’s real passions. Getting sustainable and measurable results out of work based in Africa, and being able to travel to different intriguing destinations on a regular basis, makes her even more passionate about the work that African Impact is involved in.

Sean is a 5th Generation Zimbabwean, and a graduate of the University of Cape Town. Having spent the last 4 years living in Kenya and having traveled there extensively in the past, Sean’s local knowledge and passion for East Africa is unparalleled. Along with Sean, our team of staff in Nairobi are an asset to our work and expeditions in this amazing part of the continent.

Tesni was born and raised in South Africa and studied Occupational Therapy which has been a real asset in helping her with the set up and running of the African Impact Medical and Community project! She moved to Kenya with her husband in 2007and it has been quite an adventure and very exciting for her to be a part of the community there. She also spends a lot of time treating special needs children at various orphanages and loves Kenya and its people. She considers it a real priviledge to be involved in this work!

Theo is originally from Soweto, Johannesburg. With a background in sport coaching, adventure courses and peer education he makes a great addition to our team in Cape Town. Theo has a great passion for making a change in young people’s life and working with people from all cultures.

Valerie is a local Capetonian with experience working in the tourism industry. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree majoring in Law and Economics and is currently studying her postgraduate Bachelor of Laws degree in her own time. Continuing to learn and one day travel the world are two of Valerie's passions, together with spending quality time with her fiancé, Waldo. Valerie finds the work that she is currently involved with fascinating and is enjoying being part of assisting and sustaining African communities. Learning more about the African continent is her goal each day and she hopes to make a meaningful difference through her involvement with African Impact.

Theo lives in St Lucia town as his second home but comes from the Western shores of the St Lucia Wetlands Park called Nkundusi village. He has a business management education and National Certificate in Tourism Guiding. Theo started with African Impact as he heard they help people in the communities of South and East Africa. His job as Project Co-ordinator includes guiding volunteers in the National Parks and Communities in the St Lucia area. Theo is interested in getting experience with other cultures, introducing people to South Africa, reading and swimming.