Dr Laurie Marker, Founder and Executive Director of the Otjiwarongo-based Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF), presented Namibia’s rangeland management and wildlife coexistence models as a global solution to desertification at the 17th United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17).
The international summit was held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from 17–28 August, under the theme “Restoring Land. Restoring Hope.”
Gathering world leaders, scientists, and agricultural experts, the conference addressed escalating global drought issues. Dr. Marker used the summit as an international platform to advocate for Namibia’s integrated approach to keeping wildlife on working agricultural landscapes.
“We can’t manage land, water, food production, livestock, wildlife, biodiversity, and people as separate systems,” Dr. Marker stated. “They’re all part of the same living ecosystem. Namibia has shown when we keep the land healthy, rural communities and wildlife thrive together.”
During the summit, the CCF introduced its flagship initiative, “Saving the Cheetah, Saving the Drylands,” positioning Namibia’s community-led conservation efforts as a scalable blueprint for protecting connected dryland ecosystems globally.
Because the majority of Namibia’s wild cheetahs live outside protected national reserves on communal and commercial farming lands, their survival relies on sustainable rangeland management, bush encroachment control, and community-based predator coexistence.
CCF emphasized to international delegates that the cheetah serves as a key biological indicator of soil health and grassland productivity. The organization noted that by adopting landscape restoration techniques developed in Namibia, other arid nations can simultaneously combat soil depletion, secure water resources, and stabilize local agricultural economies.
Founded in Namibia in 1990 by Dr Marker, the Otjiwarongo-headquartered Cheetah Conservation Fund is the world’s leading organization dedicated to wild cheetah conservation, running research, education, and economic programs to support local farming communities alongside native wildlife.
