A global authority on sustainable tourism, including the planning and design of eco-lodges in Africa, Hitesh Mehta wears Africa on his sleeve. He is also credited with creating environmental- and socialfriendly master plans for many national parks and protected areas on the continent.
This writer first met Mehta at a lecture, Africa–The First World, in Miami, Florida, where he spoke about the achievements of Africa and its inhabitants over the course of several millennia.
Mehta was born in Nairobi of Indian parents, and attended the University of Nairobi where he obtained a degree in architecture in 1985. After receiving the Aga Khan Scholarship, he attained a master’s degree in landscape architecture from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1989. Furthermore, he also represented East Africa and Kenya in firstclass cricket and played in three ICC World Cup tournaments in the late 1970s and 1980s as an all-rounder.
Mehta has consulted in 67 countries across six continents and is a recipient of multiple international awards for the physical planning of protected areas, for building design, site-planning, and landscape architecture. He shares more highlights in this interview with FORBES AFRICA:
Q. You have had an amazing career as a landscape architect especially working in Africa with national parks to create a sustainable tourism environment. How do you define landscape architecture?
A: Landscape architecture involves the planning, design, management and nurturing of built and natural environments in an eco-friendly manner. Everything outside a closed environment, for example, a building, is landscape architecture: plazas, gardens, campuses, national parks, and other protected areas.
Denne historien er fra February - March 2024-utgaven av Forbes Africa.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra February - March 2024-utgaven av Forbes Africa.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
TRACK, WATCH, BEFRIEND
IN THE PRISTINE WILDERNESS OF GABON ARE THE MAJESTIC AND GENTLE WESTERN LOWLAND GORILLAS. A FIRSTHAND REPORT FROM OUR TRAVEL WRITER ON WHAT GOES INTO HABITUATING THEM.
CHALLENGING BUT NECESSARY: THE AI BALANCING PROBLEM
Artificial intelligence (AI) continues transforming many industries, providing unprecedented opportunities for innovation and efficiency. However, these advancements bring complex challenges that necessitate a delicate balancing act.
BEYOND ACADEMIA: THE SOCIETAL IMPACT OF MULTILATERAL EDUCATIONAL COLLABORATIONS
The great poet William Butler Yeats once said, \"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.\"
The Business Of Dance: Embracing One's Individuality And Style
In the dynamic world of street dance, passion and perseverance pave the way for success. Living out this ethos is South African born B-girl turned businesswoman, Courtnaé Paul.
COMPASSION FATIGUE: THE DANGEROUS DESCENT FROM HELPING TO HURTING
It is a workplace reality that caring too much for your colleagues can hurt you.
IT HAS NEVER BEEN MORE CRITICAL TO FIND OUR NICHE
Have you found your niche? I received a lot of advice when I set up my company, but perhaps the most important consisted of just three words: Find Your Niche.
HOW TO MAKE AFRICA WIN OFF THE FIELD TOO
When all else fails, try sports. It's good for the soul.
BEAN THERE, DONE THAT
British author Roald Dahl tapped into every chocoholic's imagination when creating Willy Wonka's bizarre chocolate factory in his 1964 children's novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN WORKING WITH AL PACINO ON BROADWAY'
Arnold Vosloo Actor
BLENDED FINANCE: BRIDGING THE GAP IN EMERGING MARKETS IN SUPPORT OF THE SDGS
Amid the widespread global support for the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there was an underlying concern among economists and financial advisors in the emerging and frontier markets: public sector and donor funds were stalled, if not regressing, and the funding gap to realize the SDGs was increasing.
