Amplifying African Voices in Conservation: Survivor Nyasulu

Our friend of the month is Survivor Nyasulu, a conservation storyteller, filmmaker, photojournalist, and culture photographer from Dete, Hwange in Zimbabwe. He currently serves as the marketing and communications assistant at Painted Dog Conservation. He has written conservation articles for Community Podium News, a non-profit participatory media organisation, with some of his stories reaching global audiences.          

Survivor Nyasulu presenting at the film screening of his documentary, 'Living in Harmony', at Soft Foot Alliance in Mabale, Zimbabwe

Please share a brief introduction.

I’m a qualified safari guide and a former ranger and dog-handler assistant, having served eight years on anti-poaching patrols. I host the weekly Nature Is Life radio talk show on SkyzMetro FM, a commercial station in Bulawayo, where listener tips have even helped recover two pangolins. I also teach camera basics at the Wilton Nsimango Children’s Bush Camp. My work has been featured by Wildlife Conservation Network and Space for Giants, and my painted-dog photo essay was published on LinkedIn by Conserve Zim. I hold a first-class BA in Film, Television, and Media Studies, with a final project that was itself a photo essay on painted dogs.

Tell us a bit about your upbringing and where your love for conservation began.

My love for conservation began at the Wilton Nsimango Children’s Bush Camp, where I first fell in love with wildlife and the natural world. Spending time there ignited my curiosity and passion for protecting animals. Influences like wildlife photographer Nicholas Dyer also inspired me to pick up the camera and see storytelling as a powerful tool for conservation.

K9 assistant Survivor Nyasulu helps train anti-poaching dogs as part of Painted Dog Conservation’s K9 Unit in Hwange, Zimbabwe. Photo credit: Nick Dyer

How have your years as a ranger, patrolling Hwange National Park, removing snares and confronting poaching firsthand, shaped the themes you choose to capture in your filmmaking?

Having served as a ranger for eight years, I witnessed firsthand how rangers and local communities are often overlooked despite their critical role. Those experiences guide my filmmaking: I focus on amplifying ranger voices and the stories of people living alongside wildlife, ensuring their struggles and dedication are seen and heard.

Could you share with us the experiences that prompted you to pursue wildlife storytelling?

Pursuing storytelling was about owning our stories and telling them from an African perspective. We live with these animals every day; it’s our duty to share those narratives. When locals tell the story, the community connects more deeply because it comes from someone they know and trust.

A mother elephant helps her young calf drink at a waterhole in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe — a tender moment of care and connection in the wild. Photo: Survivor Nyasulu / Painted Dog Conservation

Tell us more about your film, Living in Harmony.

Living in Harmony, sponsored by the European Union Zimbabwe and screened at Soft Foot Alliance in Mabale, amplifies local voices, highlighting people who share borders with wildlife and often bear the brunt of conflict. The film shows how, when communities are empowered and heard, they become the strongest protectors of wildlife.

As a local storyteller, you offer a perspective deeply rooted in cultural identity and lived truth. How do you believe telling these stories from an African lens changes the conservation narrative?

An African lens brings authenticity. It shifts conservation from a distant concept to a lived experience, ensuring the narrative reflects cultural realities and gives agency to the people who coexist with wildlife.

In the documentary process, you encountered compelling human–wildlife stories, conflicts, losses, and hope. Which of these stories best illustrates the possibility of coexistence?

One story that stands out is of a woman who lost a goat to a lion yet remains a committed conservation volunteer with Painted Dog Conservation. Traditional leaders also preach coexistence despite losses, showing resilience and a belief that humans and wildlife can thrive together.

Painted Dog Conservation Anti-Poaching Unit scouts (Survivor Nyasulu is third from the left) and K9 dog handlers pose for a photo

To emerging Zimbabwean filmmakers and conservationists, your path from bush camp to filmmaking is a powerful example. What advice would you give them to lift African voices in wildlife conservation?

Never give up. I waited seven years after high school before attending university. I learnt while working as a ranger, often under harsh conditions, and eventually transitioned to marketing and communications. Through perseverance, I graduated with a first-class degree. Where there is a will, there truly is a way. Believe in yourself and keep going.

Survivor with Tusk Wildlife Rangers

Looking ahead, what are your hopes for elephant conservation in Zimbabwe, and how do you plan to continue using your storytelling to help realise those hopes?

My next project is a photo essay on elephants, their lives, their contribution to the ecosystem, and the threats they face. I plan to exhibit this work to raise awareness and inspire collective action for their protection, while continuing to use storytelling to highlight their importance and the people safeguarding them.