WISCONSIN—It’s second nature for USDA Forest Service Eastern Region employees to connect with colleagues from across the nation. But their horizons expanded even further when they logged into the Oct. 27 session of FS Talks to meet members of a new conservation initiative in Africa.

Half a world apart, these groups found connections between their vastly different environmental and cultural contexts—from the crucial role of community in conservation, to work-life balance, to the resilience that grows from facing challenges.

The talk featured the Great Plains Foundation’s female ranger program, which trains and deploys women from rural communities near protected areas in Botswana and—soon—Zimbabwe. Through biodiversity monitoring and relationship building, these women play a critical role in protecting landscapes and wildlife. 

Speakers included members of the female ranger team as well as Great Plains founders Dereck and Beverly Joubert, National Geographic Explorers-at-Large, who have been documentary filmmakers and conservationists for more than 30 years.

The talk was moderated by Christina Henderson, supervisor on the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, and focused on the female rangers’ experience entering the male-dominated field of conservation. Henderson saw parallels with her early Forest Service experience on fire assignments with a largely white and male workforce, recalling her efforts to make sure her “voice was in the room and was being heard.”

Forest Service attendees also related to the need for community engagement to achieve conservation goals. Daphne Kadiwa, managing director of Great Plains Botswana, described an essential step in empowering the women rangers to do this work: “I go to the village elders to sell an idea to them first,” she said.

Another speaker was Beth Hahn from the Forest Service’s Office of International Programs, which has partners in 90 countries and works closely with governments and nongovernmental organizations to support sustainable forestry and biodiversity conservation. Hahn manages a portfolio that includes Botswana and Zimbabwe. While not currently a partner, Great Plains’ initiatives align with Forest Service work in these countries.

As a program manager, Hahn looks for gaps or needs that the Forest Service’s technical expertise can fill for international partners. With its multiple-use mandate here at home, the Forest Service brings the right perspective to this work by helping partners balance conservation goals with economic and social needs.

For Hahn, the discussion with Great Plains raised a key insight about working with underrepresented groups. Because many of the female rangers are mothers, Great Plains had to be open to new approaches that allow women to balance job and family demands. In this, Hahn saw a bigger lesson: “Don’t be afraid to try something new,” she said. 

Toward the end of the talk, the rangers shared stories of overcoming fear and finding resilience—most memorably, when they encountered elephants and rhinos in the wild. While that scenario was unfamiliar for Forest Service staff, the bigger lesson was close to home.

“As women, we should dare to lead by being brave in life,” said Kelebemang Elija, ranger-in-training.

To learn more about the Forest Service’s work overseas and how employees are involved, begin by visiting the International Programs web page.