57. The New Model to Defend Nature & Community: Empower Women with Damien Mander

You would never initially think that women would make some of the best game wardens in all of Africa and lead to complete social reform within the community! There is a lot to learn here, and today we’re going to dive head first into a world of social entrepreneurship with Damien Mander. &nbsp; Damien is an Iraq war veteran who served as a Naval clearance diver and special operations sniper for the Australian Defense Force. It was during his service, traveling through Africa, that he was inspired by the work of rangers as they defended the wildlife.&nbsp; &nbsp; The International Anti-Poaching Foundation (IAPF) was born soon after, to be the ‘last line of defense for nature.’ Since it started, the IAPF has trained and supported rangers resulting in the protection of over 4 million hectares of African wilderness! In 2017 IAPF founded ‘Akashinga (The Brave Ones) – Nature Protected by Women’, a program that has enabled the only group of nature reserves in the world to be protected by women. After giving women the opportunity to serve, the impact they’ve had on the community around them not only benefited the social structure, but even the economic structure.&nbsp; Let’s jump right into Damien’s incredible journey and learn a new model to defend nature and community - empowering women. &nbsp; [00:01 - 6:36] Opening Segment &nbsp; I introduce Damien Mander A reminder of the 5 characteristics of innovators’ recipe Damien’ s approach to tackling an issue Getting started and gaining momentum is the most important thing&nbsp; You can’t steer a stationary ship&nbsp; The importance of having a team around you to disagree with you&nbsp; Pushing through even without confidence or comfort&nbsp; Feeling most comfortable outside of your comfort zone [06:37 - 23:40] Jumping into the Middle of the Problem Damien talks about how he started into solving the issue he saw&nbsp; “I need to see it for myself”&nbsp; Jumping into the problem instead of waiting for it to come to you Starting without a plan and figuring out the direction after Filling the void in the world of conservation&nbsp; <li styl