The Cycle of Life team believe that the world's remaining wildernesses are a privilege that help to keep mankind's perspective. Wildlife reminds us of our own fragility and keeps us in touch with our place in the world.

The modern age, however, has enveloped mankind so quickly that our hunter-gatherer past will soon be forgotten. The problem is that it has not done so with equanimity – development has left behind pockets of poverty in which daily life is harder than ever due to the demands and activities of a modern world from which they are increasingly isolated.

Nowhere is the decline of the wilderness juxtaposed against the force of development more acutely than in Africa. Throughout rural Africa you can see the conflict as local people seek to keep pace with the commercial world by exploiting the only resources they have – the land and its wildlife.

The Cycle of Life team believe it is impossible to condemn such exploitation – it would be immoral to deny rural Africans the opportunity of progress simply because their development may herald the destruction of habitat and the loss of species. However, we do hope this isn't the only way...

The problem:

We cannot withhold development from rural people. But we need to ensure a future for the world's wildlife.

The solution:

Only if we can make a case for conservation as a path out of poverty will its value to the community be sufficient to outweigh depletive and exploitative land uses. We think that environmental protection can give a community financial security through eco-tourism and sustainable micro-commerce. To convince the communities of this it is our responsibility to:

1. Educate - we need to teach rural Africans about their environment, its uniqueness in the world, and the ways in which its value can be realised.
2. Demonstrate - we have to provide examples that sustainable use of wildlife and land resources is a more effective source of financial security than depletive agriculture.
3. Support - for communities to trust to conservation will take time and money. Long-term support is the only way to ensure that community-made conservation decisions have the chance to succeed.

The Cycle of Life does not pretend to provide the solution to rural Africa's problems. But we will raise awareness to the difficulties faced by communities and conservationists in those areas; as well as some of the money needed to address them.