Keeping the Old Ways alive in the Kalahari
What we do
The Ju|’hoansi San Bushmen
The Ju|’hoansi (also called the San or Bushmen) of Southern Africa, thrived very successfully as hunter gatherers for thousands of years until very recently, when their way of living was destroyed by more aggressive, colonising societies. They lived in sustainable, healthy and happy small communities based on mutual respect and mindfulness towards each other and the environment. Their ancestral communities are a huge contrast to the modern, western lifestyle that is dependent on money, food and imported goods, with constant competition with everyone in order to survive and thrive.
Looking deeper into the old way of the Ju|’hoansi, we find many customs we could learn from. For example, the way they treat children, other people, prizing equality, inclusion and fairness, mentally and physically healthy. They live in peace, conscious of the community’s well being, living sustainably on the land, in combination with a range of high level skills, like plant knowledge and use, hunting ways, tracking and many more.
As the Ju|’hoansi were relocated into towns like Tsumkwe, their old knowledge and skills began to rapidly disappear while poor health, TB, alcoholism and crime appeared. Nowadays, some of them have decided to reverse this trend, moving back into the Nyae Nyae wilderness, starting to eat healthily again, relying on what nature provides, and keeping community, provisioning and craft skills alive, for a better living and future.
Many people in modern societies are looking for more natural, healthy and sustainable ways of life in harmony with people and the natural environment. We are aware that nobody can return to fully hunter gatherer lifestyle any more, but some values of the old way are much better than the modern ones. For us in Europe, working directly with the Ju|’hoansi is a great opportunity. Our donor members could regularly visit them, learn from them and support them in many ways. To this end we are creating an international network of rewilding humans for a better and sustainable future.
Our projects are about teaching ancestral knowledge to preserve it and supporting a sustainable model for villages who chose to live traditional lives in the modern world. Find out much more about our projects below.
Discover Djamta!’ae Heritage Village and Di//xao#oha Heritage Village
The projects
Here are some of the projects that your donations are used to support.
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We use your donations to pay a teacher’s salary to the headman in each village so that they can teach the traditional skills such as tracking, hunting, foraging, blacksmithing and other crafts.
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We are specifically fundraising to build a simple community shelter to provide shade and protection from the elements. These spaces will be used to teach children and adults when they aren’t in the bush, for people to make crafts which they sell to support themselves, and as a focus for village life.
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We are making a housing prototype for use in Djamta!’ae and Di//xao#oha based on the traditional Ju}’hoansi hut but that is resistant to termites and supports the transition from a nomadic life to a permanent location.
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We are supporting their Indigenous ‘bush garden’ projects to supply villagers with a regular source of indigenous food crops, including leafy vegetables, tubers, berries, beans, etc. to provide resilience and keep traditional foods in their diet.
Donate to become a member
We are asking you to give a small amount every month, as a membership subscription, so that there is a regular income to support the projects in these heritage villages. For example, we wish to pay a teacher’s salary in each village to support the tracking schools.
As a contributing member you will be welcomed to stay in the villages and each member will be provided with free accommodation during your visits to either Djamta!’ae or Di//xao#oha.
Take this opportunity to give directly to the projects that these gentle, talented people need to transit mindfully and sustainably to this new world they find themselves in. With your help they can avoid the traps of poverty and dependence and make their new villages self-sustaining.
Who we are
Heritage Village Foundation Ltd is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee (not by shares) and registered with Companies House in the UK, who have approved it as a foundation. Our not-for-profit status means that all funds are administered entirely for the benefit of the Ju|’hoansi villagers, and money is not used to pay directors’ salaries, bonuses and dividends.
Click below to find out about our team and how we administer the project.
Contact Us
Interested in volunteering or visiting Namibia as a member? Fill out some info and we will be in touch shortly. We can’t wait to hear from you!
