An Epic Journey...on a Tuk Tuk?
A year and a half in lockdown has wreaked havoc all over the world. The travel and tourism sector that we cherish so much has been devastated by it. Africa hasn’t seen many tourists in this time, and so hasn’t met the revenue that it needs for conservation efforts to thrive. It’s estimated that the overall loss of earnings for tourism in all of Africa is about $250 billion.
In the absence of tourism, the horrors of poaching, logging and exploitation of natural resources have all risen dramatically. Rangers tasked with the near-impossible mission of preventing this, have seen a heavy increase in their workload, with their salaries and fundings slashed. They need help and they need it quickly.
In step four adventurers currently living in Kenya: Jasper, Josh, Ivo and Robbie. Conservation minded, they decided to raise awareness of this issue. And so their plan was formed: raise money for the rangers on the frontlines of the struggle by embarking on a bone-rattling odyssey - driving on the bumpy roads from Kenya to Cape Town in Tuk Tuks.
A big project still in the making, the Tuk South team is currently transforming regular old Tuk Tuks into vehicles capable of enduring 7,000 km of rocky roads. Like something out of Top Gear, everything from skid plates to fold out kitchens is being installed to ensure they’re safari ready.
It’s an incredible journey they have mapped out - starting from the equator and finishing at the southern tip of Africa, they’ll venture through 7 countries, passing by elephants and giraffes, mountains and jungles, deserts and lakes. Documenting it all on their social media accounts, they’ve amassed quite a following on their TikTok (@joshporters), sharing their passion for adventure and conservation with their viewers.
Everything that they record will culminate in a documentary, telling the stories of the rangers and showing the beauty of the reserve they hope to help. The backbone of the documentary is to highlight the devastation of Covid on conservation and the sustainability efforts that are going in to alleviate the strain. A trailer is available to watch now.
How can you help out?
- Sponsor the expedition on their site - $500 as a corporate sponsorship gets your logo sticker on their Tuk Tuk!
- Donate to help them raise $10,000 for the charity ‘For Rangers’
- Subscribe to their YouTube and TikTok and share their posts
