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Brad Bestelink: A lifetime of natural history storytelling

In the wild: Bestelink grew up in the Delta PIC: THALEFANG CHARLES
In the wild: Bestelink grew up in the Delta PIC: THALEFANG CHARLES

Out in the Okavango wilderness, onboard a modified film truck, tracking leopards, the legendary filmmaker, Brad Bestelink, gives Mmegi Staff Writer, THALEFANG CHARLES, rare access. An exclusive wide-ranging interview about natural history storytelling, animated with interjections of stops while listening out for that bark of a primate, the snort of a herbivore, the high-pitched chirrup of a squirrel and screech of a francolin to lead us to predators

Brad Bestelink is a modern-day bushman. The Okavango Delta has been his home ever since he was born there 44 years ago. His parents were pioneers in the photographic safari industry, replacing their guns with cameras. Bestelink found his passion and calling while he was still a teenager. At 16, he became the youngest professional bush guide in Botswana, and that was when he realised his love and passion was for wildlife. He has never looked back since then.

“After finishing school, all I wanted to do was to be back in the Delta with wildlife and it turned from safaris to filming.

Editor's Comment
Students wellbeing is a priority

The research presented at the recent Botswana Secondary School Teachers Union symposium should serve as a wake-up call to us all.We are so focused on coding, artificial intelligence, and the jobs of tomorrow that we are neglecting the basic safety and emotional well-being of the children sitting in our classrooms today.Statistics are deeply worrying. One study revealed that 34% of secondary school learners in Gaborone meet the criteria for a...

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