The countdown has begun to March 17th for our 2nd Southern African Mountain Conference (SAMC) taking place at the beautiful Champagne Sports Resort in Central Drakensberg.
This year’s theme, “Overcoming Barriers and Boundaries” brings together prominent academics, graduate and postgraduate students, business leaders, government representatives, and NGOs from across the SADC region and beyond. The conference will shine a much-needed spotlight on southern Africa’s often-overlooked mountain systems.
The event will feature keynote addresses, parallel sessions, workshops, poster presentations, and a prestigious Royal Mountain Indaba. Its core objective is to integrate science, policy, and practice to drive sustainable interventions in the region’s mountain landscapes.
Among the esteemed speakers is Dr. Steve Boyes, renowned explorer and conservation biologist, who will share insights from his Okavango Wilderness Project. His work focuses on exploring and protecting the Angolan highlands, a little-known wilderness that supplies over 95% of the water sustaining the Okavango Delta and the rich biodiversity of the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area.
Our very own intrepid naturalist and explorer, Steve Backshall has sent us a video message from the Southern African mountains wishing us all the best for the conference.