As successful leaders in the tourism industry of southern Africa, Sunway Safaris is acutely aware of the need to reduce impacts on the environment and encourage sustainable tourism through the protection of eco-systems and communities.

PEN is a section 21 (not for profit) company that works to provide access to the basic needs of vulnerable children, adults and the elderly in the Tshwane / Pretoria community, Gauteng, South Africa.

“With a dedicated and committed team, PEN dreams of Igniting change, Healing communities and Nurturing togetherness. 175 full time staff-members, committed to the people who live and work in the city, builds loving relationships with the community which includes children, teens, elderly, parents, students, homeless people, sex workers, drug addicts and every person that cross our path” More information can be found by visiting www.pen.org.za

Sunway Safaris have chosen to partner with PEN to help them achieve their organisation’s goals. This twins with our ambition to foster interest in tourism & hospitality and more importantly, the concept and values of conservation.

We sponsor the entire trip for the students and leaders which consists of collecting the group in Tshwane, driving them to the Pilanesberg National Park, entry fees, camping fees and all meals.

The annual 2019 PEN trip transported 19 learners and 4 leaders from Pretoria’s inner city to Pilanesberg National Park in order to expose them to both tourism and conservation elements.

For all in our industry, these are the pillars in our sector and very significant in southern Africa. Certainly, the conservation side is the bedrock of eco-tourism and tourism is a rapidly growing sector that is fast gaining mainstream government attention. Yet, these sectors remain largely unnoticed by a massive majority of the South African population. Our aim is to expose these learners one tour at a time to these twin elements – in the hope that we inspire one or two students to join our profession and secondly to spark the passion for conservation of wildlife.

This year’s trip started with the exciting news that four past learners took such inspiration from their previous Sunway PEN trip, that it shaped their lives.

1. Kgotso Morena (PEN 2016 trip) was unsure of what he was going to study and was set to do a gap year until he heard Aubrey’s story (more about Aubrey, below), which inspired him to study marketing.
2. Bokang………. (PEN2016 trip) after the trip, went directly into studying Tourism
3. Dinah Tebele (PEN2016 trip) went to study Zoology following her trip
4. Itumeleng Matjila (PEN2017 trip) went into Film Making

Armed with this info, Wayne, Jacques, Sifiso and Cloud set about the orientation for this nervous group in the middle of Pretoria’s inner city and we were soon on our way, eating up the easy road to the North-West province. By lunch time we directed the students how to erect their tents while the rest of the guides prepared lunch.

The excitement of climbing back into the “Red Elephant” and really getting stuck into this brand-new experience was palpable and we set off in great spirits. Game viewing in this manner is a real luxury with the advantage of elevation and large windows all custom built for Sunway Safaris that meet and exceed South Africa’s stringent safety standards. Our group was treated to the reserve being in prime condition following periods of sustained rain and the animals did not disappoint. The size of elephants struck the group and the large vistas dedicated to animals was another apparent discovery. Our guides were kept busy with a volley of questions and slowly the importance of conservation areas dawned on this group.

This afternoon drive was followed by a healthy dose of great South African fare in the form of potjie-kos along with additional trimmings of fresh vegetables and salads, all kept cool in the hard-working fridges as standard equipment on each truck. The guides surprised us with tasty dessert too.
The second day dawned with eager students gathered around the tea and coffee station. Rusks were nibbled on and off we set to explore more of the Pilanesberg National Park. Birds of prey, relationships between animals and weather conditions were the order of the early morning drive. Our guides again being questioned on all aspects including the art of guiding.

Waiting for us on our return was Aubrey Mosetle, Food and Beverage Manager at Golden Leopards Resorts) a regular contributor to these Sunway SOS PEN excursions. Aubrey’s long and fascinating history held the group rapt as he connected with each student and showed the path to the tourism and hospitality sector. His inspirational story elicited a number of questions over his topics, which ranged from industry specific trials and tribulations to the essence of hard-work. After all, Aubrey’s normal day includes waking up at 1am to work on his qualification for a couple of hours before sleeping until 5am to get his kids off to school.

This is pure gold.

But it built up a fierce hunger!

The tantalizing brunch was ready and waiting as the guides had been busy behind the scenes and cooked up a storm beneath the acacias as the temperatures soared. The shady spot served as a super lunch spot before we all stormed the swimming pool for much needed respite from the heat.

Afternoon of day 2 was to expose this group to the role conservation plays in tourism and it was successful in ramming home some realities, such as the scourge of rhino poaching, its negative impact on eco-tourism and the resulting impact of losing a reason to travel to southern Africa – this translated to lost jobs, revenue as a result of potentially losing such a national asset. Many students were shocked at the state of play of conservation and seemed to develop a natural inclination to protect what they took ownership of…a great result.

The day ended with an excellent braai of steaks and boerewors, expertly prepared by the various guides. Much of the dinner time talk was spent discussing the plight of animals and then for conservation.

Sunday brought the end to a fantastic trip with some of the group shedding a few tears. Such is the impact of traveling in a small group – you start off as strangers but you often end up a close unit and farewells are often emotional, having experienced wildlife and cultural discoveries along the way.

Sunway Safaris is thrilled by this trip and relish the opportunity to expose those that would otherwise not ordinarily have the opportunities, to conservation. And rest assured, those that get bitten by the bug will be expected to leave a mark in their fields because they will be fuelled by passion.