AWF Names 4 African Scholars as Charlotte Fellows for 1999-2000

AWF has named four Charlotte Conservation Fellows for 1999--2000. The fellows program was founded in 1996 in memory of Charlotte Kidder Ramsay, an AWF supporter who believed deeply in encouraging young African professionals to work in conservation. This year's Charlotte Fellows include:

Telly Eugene Muramira of Uganda, environmental and natural resource economist with the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) and lecturer at the Makerere University; Ph.D. in Environment and Natural Resource Management at Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda. Muramira has also worked for the Ugandan Ministry of Natural Resources and other AWF partner organizations, and was instrumental in bringing professionals together in the Environment Economics Association of Uganda. He will study how a liberalized market affects the biology and economics of the Lake Victoria fishery.

Ntombentsha Nkwentsha of South Africa, environmental officer, South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism; Master's in Conservation Biology at the University of Kent, United Kingdom. Nkwentsha has helped design strategies for community-based, natural-resource management. A former high school teacher, Nkwentsha will explore whether conservation-based community development is viable in South Africa in the absence of land tenure reform.

Berita Loibooki of Tanzania, senior park warden in charge of tourism, Tanzanian National Parks (TANAPA); Master's in Tourism Management at the Hosta Hotel and Tourism School, Switzerland. Loibooki has risen through the ranks of TANAPA, providing a role model for women in conservation careers. For seven years, she led the tourism department at Serengeti National Park, where she helped establish the impressive Serengeti Visitor Center. After her studies, Loibooki hopes to stay with TANAPA, combining her interests in tourism and the environment.

In addition, Grant Benn of South Africa, a scientist with the KwaZulu-Natal Nature Conservation Services, was awarded a second Charlotte Fellowship to pursue his Ph.D. in Landscape Ecology at the University of London, United Kingdom.