Botswana's UNESCO wetlands offer lessons for Australia

In one of the planet's most pristine wetlands a small boat weaves through floodwater.

Armed with binoculars, bird books and cameras, budding ecologists scour their surrounds, surveying for wildlife.

As they pass through the reeds they spot an array of iconic African animals who call Botswana's Okavango Delta home.

They pass a handful of elephants playing, then a pair of hippos, as dozens of black vultures circle overhead.

20-year-old Sophie Nguyen is on board.

"It feels magical being here, it's so wild," said the University of New South Wales student.

"This is such a unique classroom setting, I've really never experienced anything like this before."

She's one of more than 20 students from Australia, Botswana, the US and UK taking part in a week-long field course assessing river basin ecosystem management and understanding the challenges with conservation.

The delta spans more than two million hectares.

It's a vast inland mosaic of islands, woodlands and flood plains where the Okavango River empties into the Kalahari Desert instead of flowing into the ocean.

It's a special place for Okavango Research Institute director Mpaphi Casper Bonyongo.

"It's a very attractive ecosystem, it's very spectacular,"

he said.

"Lots of wildlife grazing. Different vegetation types, different birds, fish, everything. So, so much diversity."

The Delta is not only a tourism drawcard, but the lifeblood of communities up and down the system.

"Unlike many rivers of the world, this one is still pretty much free flowing," said UNSW's Professor Richard Kingsford.

"That means that the plants and animals … [are] still responding to that boom-and-bust ecology."

Most of the water from the delta starts off as rain in the highlands of Angola.

It then filters down through tributaries into Namibia before making its way to Botswana where it floods each winter.

Many issues here are the same present in Australia's Murray Darling Basin and the Lake Eyre Basin.

"Rivers all over the world are getting the same sort of pressures — over-extraction, climate change, pollution,"

Professor Kingsford said.

The delta, like the Murray Darling Basin, is managed across borders.

Instead of states it's countries, with Botswana, Namibia and Angola working together to manage its resources.

"There are real parallels in terms of their understanding of water management in big river systems and what we actually need [to do] to protect these for the future," Professor Kingsford said.

The ecology of the Okavango Delta and Lake Eyre Kati Thanda are similar in terms of water, inflows and vegetation.

Increasing issues such as climate change and over-extraction mirror those of the Murray-Darling Basin.

"The biggest threat is development upstream, in particular agriculture. Irrigated agriculture is cropping up at a very fast pace," said Mpaphi Casper Bonyongo.

"If you fly over this area … you notice that the magnitude of the floods has really declined over many years.

"You can still see some fossil rivers showing that this area used to flood but they are no longer flooding."

"And most probably that is due to factors associated with climate change."

The diversity of wildlife along with the size and scale of the flooding is another reason why groups of students travel here each year.

"They're experiencing this amazing part of the world, they're mixing with different cultures, but then they're understanding the fundamentals of governing and looking after big river basins," Professor Kingsford said.

"As well as teaching the next generation of water managers and wildlife managers."

Professor Dave White from Arizona State University agrees.

"Universities should be a force for social good," he said.

"While basic research is critical and important, we also need to be driving research toward positive impacts in fields like sustainability, health, security and defence.

"By combining the complementary strengths of these different universities we have the opportunity to drive impact at scale."

Over the course of a week, students are flown to Khwai Reserve deep in the heart of the delta.

Elephants, hippos, a leopard and a hyena were spotted in camp during the most recent course.

"There's all of the incredible wildlife experiences that you get here that you just don't get anywhere else," said UNSW student Isabella Drake.

The scientists also expose students to endangered animals like African wild dogs — of which only 7,000 remain.

"They have massive home ranges … about 750 square kilometres for one pack," said UNSW Associate Professor Neil Jordan.

Having spent more than a decade researching them, Dr Jordan said the Khaza region is home to more than a quarter of the remaining population.

"This is one of the few strongholds left for this species in Africa,"

he said.

For Ms Drake it's a privilege to be surrounded by different world-leading experts on African wild dogs, elephants, waterbirds and microorganisms.

"I feel very lucky to be here," she said.

I have learnt a lot and gained a lot of insight into larger-scale management."

Throughout the week, students collect data to help assess the health of the system.

Over the course of a decade different groups have noted large variations in the size of flooding and the number of animals living in this part of the delta.

For Arizona State University's Allison Froese the environment and cross-cultural connections have her rethinking her future.

She's considering changing from a career in medicine to veterinary science and conservation.

"I have discovered I want to be more out in tune with nature than the real world,"

she said.

"The real world is politics, social media, this new age of technology, and I'm not the biggest fan of technology."

It's not the first-time staff have seen this course shift perspectives.

"We hear stories repeatedly that many of those students have seen the course change the trajectory of their professional life," Professor White said.

Thato Mutumba is one of two Botswanan students in the program.

She already works as a wildlife researcher.

The knowledge she's learnt and the connections with students and experts leaves her walking away inspired.

"It makes me fall in love all over again with the art of wildlife research and conservation,"

she said.

"There are so many things in Australia and the US that could be adopted here. I'm picking up those strategies and thinking about how to implement them here in Botswana."

Tshwaragano Mazongo is studying giraffes as part of her masters in natural resource management.

She described the course as a "golden opportunity."

"I don't know how that can be done, but … more people should be given the opportunity to go on this trip," she said.

It's hoped the students will build a network of international connections leading to future collaboration.

"They are able to learn from one another, to share knowledge and resources," Professor White said.

By testing water, collecting data and monitoring animal populations, the students are able to better understand the impact of climate change and human development.

They are learning from this system to help inform environmental management here and abroad.

"Seeing how water is managed here has really made me think a lot about how water can be properly managed back home in Australia," said UNSW student Sophie Nguyen.

"Management strategies don't need to apply to just one place.

"If there's something good that's happening here we can obviously be using it in Australia."