Since starting two year ago, TEL has implemented the following projects:

The Cape Town Climate Smart Campaign - COP17 Durban (winner of the best green design stand and the best overal stand)

The Responsible Tourism Stand, City of Cape Town Tourism, Durban Tourism Indaba - May 2011

Srepok Wilderness Tented Camp, WWF Cambodia – Jan 2009

Mamre Donkey Trail, Mamre Western Cape, Claremont Rotary – June 2009

Rooisands Nature Reserve, Rooisands Western Cape, Arabella Sheraton Hotel and Cape Nature, Nov 2009

The City of Cape Town “Green Goal” exhibition, FIFA World Cup, Cape Town - June 2010

Jacob Zuma Walking Stick Project, Expanded Public Works Program, Nkandla, KwaZulu Natal - Aug 2010

Khoi-San / Biodiversity Garden, Cape Town – March 2010

 

Before founding TEL, Stephen held the following positions:

Hoerikwaggo Trails Project Manager - South African National Parks, Cape Town December 2004 – June 2008

Duties and responsibilities

• Management of Design and Construction teams, reporting to SANParks
• Management of initial design, upgrading, routing and re-routing, closure of all hiking trails and tracks along the Table Mountain  chain
• Design and construction of nine overnight facilities.  This has been done in accordance with a ‘Touching the Earth Lightly’ philosophy which minimizes the impact of building such facilities has on the natural environment.
• Establishment of all governance structure associated to decision making both within SANParks and the public arena/interest groups. Chairing of these meetings.
• Managing the procurement of all trail assets (vehicles, logistics equipment, office equipment, IT equipment ect), writing of formal tender documents and overseeing procurement of all outside services required (eg. Catering) from one-quote systems to formal tender evaluations depending on product. Spending of all funds allocated for the trails (Total budget R 24 mil)
• Human resources: compiling and presenting for approval all personnel requirements for new ventures, writing of job descriptions/KPA’s, interviewing, appointing and mentoring successful candidates to suitable levels.
• Media and external communication: responsible for all media liaison for the trails, including compilation of trail brochures, maps and promotional items.

 

Special achievements during this period:

• The 2007 SANParks National Kudu Award in the “Research, Creativity and Innovation” category for the design of the Orange Kloof and Silvermine tented campsites according to the principle of “Touching the Earth Lightly”.
• The 2007 Regional Award for “Touching the Earth Lightly” construction techniques employed in building the Hoerikwaggo Trails
• The Hoerikwaggo Award 2006 – “Enabling hiker to sleep in the City Wilderness” of Table Mountain National Parks
• Designed and constructed the first registered 5-star hiking trail product in SA ‘The Table Mountain Trail’ Dec 2005 – on top of Table Mountain
• Conceptualized, developed and established the first formal outreach hiking trail on Table Mountain for previously disadvantaged youth of Cape Town  – The Peoples Trail and overnight facility (June 16, 2005)
• First formal tourism infrastructure in SA (camps) built entirely from alien invasive vegetation (Dec 2005)
• Conceptualized and developed the Hiking Stick Project April 2007 – a labor intensive job creation project for woman living in Masiphumelele that markets the Hoerikwaggo Trail

 

Core skills developed

Project management, liaison with stakeholders/IAAP’s, creation of PPP’s, marketing and promotions, media liaison, alternative construction methods and integrated energy design, delivery of creative projects through a public administrations’ procurement system

 

Expanded Public Works Program Manager – South African National Parks, Cape Town (Dec 2003– June 2005)

 

• Planning the rebuilding of 350kms of degraded footpaths on the Table Mountain Chain through a process community based recruitment of PDI groups

• Creating training manuals and training videos
• Roll-out of project according to set deliverables, 350 km's footpaths in four years, 350 people to be employed
• Establishing the personnel structure for three year program (budget R14 million for 350 persons)
• Rationalization of over 980 kms of footpaths with TMNP staff.
• Execution of footpath building strategy.

 

Core skills developed

• Implementation of large-scale projects at grass roots level
• Project management skills: problem-solving, organizational and interpersonal communication skills; media liaison and marketing of project objectives to interest groups via press and radio; initiation and chairing of governance structures; communicating decisions to a wide group of stakeholders and conflict mediation and resolution.

 

Special Projects Manager - Ukuvuka, Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town (Jan 2000–Dec 2003)

 

Duties and responsibilities 

• Conceptualizing, presenting for funding and initiating with project partners - shack fire prevention programs
• Management of high profile projects/interventions in collaboration with funders, IAAPs and NGOs
• Monitoring and reporting on reduction of fires in informal settlements and on the TM Chain
• Establishing and managing job creation and poverty alleviation projects associated to fire prevention initiatives (alien clearing projects, volunteer fire-fighting teams in informal settlements, container roof-top food gardens high altitude alien clearing teams established within TMNP)
• Management of allocated project funds as directed by key business plan objectives.
• Liaising with key City of Cape officials regarding strategy; giving feedback in monthly reports; organizing strategic media events.

 

Core skills developed:

• Project management
• Communication and public relations
• Financial management.

 

Special achievements during this period:

• Initiated and managed in conjunction with the City of Cape Town Disaster Management Services, the first fire-mitigation plan for an informal settlement (Joe Slovo, Langa 2002) which reduced the fire incident rate in the first year by 89%.
• Initiated and institutionalized the ‘Learn not to Burn’ program in the Cape Town Fire Department which converted four old fire engines into mobile classrooms and trained 120 firemen to become teachers of fire preventative measures with specific focus on shack fires.  The program still operates successfully today.
• Initiated, tested (for the first time) and institutionalized aerial fire-fighting for shack fires. Still used as a standard operating procedure to combat shack fires in areas permitting.
• Received a formal commendation in the South African Parliament for the work done in reducing shack fires on the Cape Flats by Minister Ronnie Kasrils, 2001.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Global Learn is a non-profit organization that organizes expeditions in different countries which are followed in real-time on the internet by children in classrooms around the world. By interviewing the host children between the ages of 9-13 years living in these countries and focusing on geography, social sciences, history, cultures, languages, and culture - classroom text-books are replaced with ‘real’ information as a learning tool for remote learners.

 

Duties and responsibilities

• Responsible for the planning and running of the in-field reconnaissance trips (East and Central Africa) prior to each expedition until handing over the final product to the US Operations Team in Boston. They include setting the route and recruiting, interviewing and briefing host-children for “live” internet profiling by US Filed Team (5 persons)
• Documenting and detailing final route in-field with the use of satellite phone and advanced IT gear, cameras, maps and log-books.
• Integrating the route and host children to be interviewed with US School curriculum for curriculum writers based in Boston, MA. This following detailed briefings from curriculum writers prior to departure from US.

 

Core skills developed        

• IT and web-based technology as applicable to remote learning,
• Logistical planning skills, inter-personal communication and strategic planning skills
• On-site problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work alone and under pressure to tight deadlines in difficult and sometimes hostile Third World conditions.

 

Special achievements during this period:

• Planned and executed the first real-time web-based educational expedition through the African continent (two months) which was followed by tens of thousands of children in classrooms around the world (South African Expedition/Trans-Africa Expedition) – mainly US based.
• The trip was showcased at the G8 summit “Global Learning – the information age” in 1998.

 

Mountaineering Teams Project Manager - Working for Water Program (DWAF), Cape Town  (Sept 1996 – 1998)

 

Duties and responsibilities

• Recruiting and mentoring 125 + previously unemployed, unskilled men and woman from PDI groups in rural Western Cape communities to live and work in the mountains of the Western Cape for purposes of accessing alien vegetation using rope-work and outdoors survival skills. 60% of these trainees were women.
• Promoting job creation/poverty alleviation, increasing water run-off from rural catchments systems to rural farming communities.
• Promoting biodiversity conservation and fynbos restoration.
• Developing these teams into 12 SMME’s contracting to WFW/private landowners

 

Core skills developed:       

• Multi-cultural organizational and communication skills at all levels.
• Liaison with media local and international, local interest groups
• Submission of progress reports to funders, speech writing
• Management of allocated budgets (R6m+)
• Logistical planning, creative problem solving and initiation of innovative ideas for skills development advancing poverty alleviation within WFW context
• Building partnerships btw WFW and local municipal councils

 

Special achievements during this period:

• Initiated, sourced funding for and led the first South African Expedition of color to the highest point in Africa on the “Cape Argus - Kilimanjaro Olympic Bid Expedition”. The WFW team placed the South African and Olympic Bid Flag on Uhuru Peak. Handed over Letter of Goodwill from President Nelson Mandela to President of Tanzania. 
• Awarded Best Conservation Program -  Working for Water Program WWF 1996; Kader Asmal; Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry

 

Safari Guide – Kumuka Expeditions UK,  Nairobi, Kenya (Dec 1994 – 1996)

 

Duties and responsibilities

• Responsible for 10/12 week safaris for groups of 18 people throughout East Africa for UK owned safari company in based in Nairobi, Kenya.

 

Core skills developed

• Organizational, negotiation and inter-personal skills.
• Creative problem-solving and lateral thinking.
• Negotiation/mediation skills in pressured and sometimes hostile environments.
• Stringent financial management of funds.

 

Special achievements during this period:

• Youngest person to become a lead tour guide for Kumuka Expeditions.

 

River Rafting Guide – River Runners, River Rafters, Shearwater; Orange River Adventures, Aqua Trails                                                                    South Africa and Zimbabwe  (July 1992 – 1994)

 

Duties and responsibilities

Overall supervision and management of 4-6 day river rafting expeditions plus management of all trip funds.

 

Core skills developed

• Interpersonal communication skills.
• Leadership – styles, roles and functions.
• Decision making under pressure.

Doing what I loved doing...

 

Reconnaissance and Logistics Manager – www.Globalearn.com, Boston MA USA (June 1998 –  Dec 2000)

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