GAUTENG, SOUTH AFRICA—Adrian Gardiner, well-known conservationist, entrepreneur and Founder and Chairman of the conservation-focused hotel group, the Mantis Collection, recently received a Global Humanitarian Award from American Humane—the United States’ first national humane organization, and the world’s largest certifier of animal welfare.
The Award is “in recognition of Gardiner’s dedication to wildlife conservation, to saving animals and their habitats that has laid a road map for other private entities to invest in conservation,” said American Humane CEO, Dr. Robin Ganzert. “He could apply his sharp business sense anywhere, yet he’s chosen to invest his talents in wildlife conservation. American Humane stands in awe of his accomplishments and is honored to recognize him with our National Humanitarian Medal.”
The Community Conservation Fund Africa (CCFA) is the official foundation of Mantis and Accor, and the ceremony took place at the home of the CCFA’s new legacy conservation project; a partnership with Nyosi Wildlife Reserve, a 2,500-hectare pocket of biodiversity in the urban metropolis of Nelson Mandela Bay.
“As I celebrate my 80th birthday, I am deeply honored to receive this award,” said Gardiner. “But I am equally humbled, the environment and conservation projects I have been fortunate to be involved in, are not about me. I have an amazing team, we would never have accomplished what we have without everyone’s incredible dedication, empathy, work ethic and love of nature and the environment.”
Shares Honor with Many Others
Gardiner added: “In South Africa we say it takes a village to raise a child. The same is true for conservation. Everyone from visionaries through to environmentalists, local communities, tourists, and volunteers play an important role in spreading the message. Our philosophy has also been to ensure inclusivity to help man, beast and the natural world live in harmony.”
Prior to founding the Mantis Collection, Gardiner spent decades dedicated to the conservation and protection of Africa’s wildlife, in partnership with both the Wilderness Foundation Africa and the Wilderness Foundation Global, where he serves as patron.
Gardiner founded Shamwari, the first private Big Five game reserve in the Eastern Cape which inspired him to expand this blueprint, restoring the land and protecting the animals who inhabit it. Now, through the CCFA’s legacy conservation project, a foundation of the Mantis Collection, he continues to work alongside dedicated conservationists and community members with the objective of each CCFA project to include participation by local communities for them to benefit from conservation and ecotourism, while creating a conservation and community legacy.
