Providing fresh organic food for the community and our guests, and finding ways to offset carbon emissions.
Tinolla Rodgers, Owner of African Monarch Lodges
The project re-purposes and re-invents all recyclable waste from African Monarch Lodges and the local community, turning it into exquisite saleable craft and art.
It’s also an organic permaculture nursery to supply food for locals and lodge guests (mitigating the miles that lodge food usually travels).
It’s an artisanal skills training centre, a free-range egg scheme, and an indigenous tree nursery that will soon allow guests to buy and plant a tree to offset their carbon footprint (the tree is looked after by a local ‘tree guardian’ to ensure a better chance of survival against nibbling antelope).
We are also keen to soon start a pottery workshop using clay from the mighty Kwando river.
We are very proud to have been honoured with the Meaningful Engagement Champion ATTA Award in 2024.
2024 – Sustainability in Numbers:
We would like to be as transparent as possible to showcase our efforts towards protecting our natural resources and its people. Upon booking any of our lodges a sustainability fee is billed that is transferred to The Sijwa Project on a monthly basis. The sustainability fee goes towards:
The Sijwa Project employs 30+ community members (each supporting up to 12 others in their village).
We invite guests to visit and engage with local culture and communities, while practicing artisan skills taught at the project.
12% of all our revenue, before costs and statutory deductions, goes to the local communities. This means that guests who choose to stay at African Monarch Lodges are giving back too, from the moment they book.
Providing fresh organic food for the community and our guests, and finding ways to offset carbon emissions.
From glass and aluminium to plastic and paper, we upcycle waste in clever, useful and beautiful ways.
Through collaborations with designers, our team creates an exquisite range of garments and accessories.
What began as a way to launch our Beehive Project has turned into a creative carpentry studio.
How we are helping combat human-elephant conflict in our area with an innovative beehive solution.
Some of our hopes and plans for the future include an innovative Beehive Project to combat the human-elephant conflict.
How can bees help? Well, elephants hate the buzz. When the swaying hives, which will be made at the project, are strung up all around the farm and are bashed by elephants intent on crop raiding, the bees come out to investigate and the elephants soon clear off. It’s a win-win for sustainable vegetable growing, pollination and honey production, while the elephants go back to the river and eat grass.
Chilli-bombs – which we already make at the project – are also used as a successful deterrent and consist of elephant dung infused with crushed chillies and set alight to smoke for hours. The elephants hate it!
We have been blessed with our place on this land. As such, we take our responsibility seriously, and go to great lengths to preserve and conserve not only the wildlife that roams throughout this very unique park, but also the local community and culture.
From adapting our lodge design to support the elephants’ migratory pathways and establishing an anti-poaching unit, to using solar power and developing recycling and upskilling initiatives through The Sijwa Project – our efforts to support and nurture run deep.
He gave his personal blessing at a gathering of dignitaries, international media and conservation role players on 17 November 2018 at Sijwa.
The Sijwa Project opened its doors to guests in January 2020, showcasing the Permaculture Centre and the Cultural Village. When Chief Mayuni visited in February 2021, he was astounded at what had been accomplished, especially during the Covid pandemic.
12% of all our revenue, before costs and statutory deductions, goes to the Mayuni Conservancy.
We would appreciate any form of support.
Simply booking a stay at African Monarch Lodges, visiting The Sijwa Project, or buying any of the products produced makes an enormous difference.
Should you have space in your luggage when travelling to us, may we ask that you consider packing sewing items (like needles, threads and scissors) for our sewing team, or school stationery and books for the vocational residency and residency library.
The escarpment of the community land bordering the Bwabwata National Park lays littered with paper, plastic, glass bottles, and tin cans.
This rural area still has no running water, no electricity, no flushing ablutions, and no formal waste management services.
African Monarch Lodges created The Sijwa Project for exactly this reason – to protect our immediate environment by not adding its own generated waste to non-existent landfills.
It is our dream to embark on a bold project which hopes to see the end of waste lying scattered across this precious land. Join our hands as we embark on what could be one of the greatest success stories for this region.
The way we care for our land and community is a reflection of the way we look after each other, our team, and our guests. We are family and we carry each other. We want our guests to feel part of the family too.
Today, African Monarch Lodges employ 93 members from our local community – many of whom had never worked before, and all of whom rely on our existence. So, it's with great care and passion that we continue to innovate and push for authentic excellence in all we do.
We believe this passion is felt by guests from the minute they step into our lodges. They are embraced and they are cared for – because it comes from our hearts.
