Stewards Of The Planet

Saving earth's last wild places is the mission of Steve Boyes, who has completed the first of his Great Spine of Africa series of expeditions in protection of humanity and wildlife through the support of the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative.

- YANNI TAN

Many of us have probably heard of the mighty Zambezi River, which is the fourth longest river in Africa, and home to big game and exotic birdlife familiar to us thanks to scores of documentaries. What's barely known, however, is that its drainage basin has never been scientifically documented. Rising in the heart of the continent within Zambia and flowing east into the Indian Ocean, the river is the source of life to over 20 million people in southern Africa and countless species of plants and animals.

Much of the Zambezi's winding journey, from its marshy origins to the salt waters rushing into the ocean, remains unknown to science. Learning more about its sources and unique ecosystems will help scientists and local communities to protect these areas and the river into the future, building resilience against climate change and human activity. Accomplishing that will be a tremendous undertaking, but there is one man who is up for the challenge: Steve Boyes.

FOR HUMANITY'S SAKE

A Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative partner, Boyes is a renowned South African ornithologist and conservation biologist, chairman of the Wild Bird Trust, a National Geographic Explorer and a senior TED fellow. Long inspired by Africa's breathtaking beauty and its creatures great and small, Boyes believes that conservation is the ultimate answer to the betterment of humanity, who rose from this cradle of life some 10,000 years ago. "It is our natural habitat too. We need these last wild places to reconnect with who we really are," he says.