Communities living alongside wildlife experience conservation differently. For farmers in and around Moreomaoto village, close proximity to wildlife brings persistent risk to livelihoods, food security and safety. The villages nearest Meno a Kwena fall within one of Botswana’s highest human–wildlife conflict zones, where expanding elephant movements increasingly intersect with communal farmland.
To address this, Natural Selection works in partnership with Elephants for Africa (EFA) to support a programme of community workshops and practical mitigation strategies. These workshops focus on understanding elephant behaviour, improving early warning responses, and introducing viable, elephant-deterrent farming practices, including chilli cultivation.
Alongside training, the programme supports the restructuring of communal farming areas through elephant-proof electrified fencing. Farm clusters have been consolidated from 63 farmers across 143.6 hectares to 10 committed farmers managing 47.33 hectares—allowing for improved fence maintenance, stronger collective responsibility and a measurable reduction in elephant incursions.
Situated adjacent to Makgadikgadi National Park, this landscape has experienced a recent increase in both migratory and resident wildlife. By combining behaviour-based education, practical infrastructure and community-led management, the programme aims to reduce conflict, improve livelihoods and support long-term coexistence between people and wildlife.
