00:00Amy Lee Visahi always dreamed of the stars, like her forefathers, the San people of Southern
00:06Africa. Now 24, she teaches local students and tourists about how indigenous people interpreted
00:15the night sky, working as an astro-guide.
00:22It's basically about how we can combine the indigenous stories, which the San people,
00:29I'm here to tell regarding the cosmos, and to see how we can make a tourism experience
00:36out of it.
00:37Amy Lee lives in the remote town of Carnarvon in the Karoo Desert. Its isolated location
00:43and dry, hot climate have created harsh living conditions for thousands of years. Yet these
00:49inhospitable conditions have also led to minimal light and electronic pollution, perfect for
00:55stargazing. So perfect in fact that the area has been chosen to build the world's largest
01:03radio telescope project, capable of detecting signals dating from the very beginnings of
01:09the universe. For this deprived area, the Square Kilometre Array, or SKA, is not only providing
01:19an economic boost. The SKA has the potential to revive the area's neglected ecosystem too,
01:27almost by chance. As part of South Africa's successful project bid, an area of 135,000 hectares
01:35surrounding the telescope site was declared the Meerkat National Park in 2020, located just
01:4290 kilometres from Carnarvon. The park was not meant for tourism, but to protect the sensitive
01:48astronomical instruments from interference. But this special status is allowing conservationists
01:54and researchers to begin to restore the fragile ecosystem and undo the damage caused by centuries
02:00of farming and overgrazing.
02:02Venad Khalitz is a botanist who's studying quiver tree populations in the park. These iconic succulents
02:09are indigenous to South Africa and Namibia. As the area of the Meerkat National Park used
02:15to be farmland, a lot of the trees have been damaged by animals.
02:18These leaves are very tasty to animals. So especially the young ones as they pop up, sheep, goats, things
02:26like that. Often times you'll have bark stripped away from how the animal scratched it to get to the
02:32moisture that's inside the asylum.
02:36To revive the ecosystem, the Environmental Observation Network, which Khalitz works for,
02:41is collaborating with SAN Parks, the public authority managing the park. The area was once
02:47inhabited by the black rhino and various antelope species.
02:54These days, few animals roam here. But Hendrik Malgas, the park manager, has ambitious plans.
03:00We are busy with vegetation monitoring at this moment to see what are the numbers we can put in.
03:06We are looking at reintroducing gemsbok, red artebis, sprungbok, then Jeland as well.
03:15That's what we could reintroduce as early as June, July, 2026.
03:20Since monitoring the vegetation and wildlife with video traps, Malgas has found that the
03:25kudu and springbok populations have increased, but also bird life has become more abundant,
03:31especially around the many little watering holes that provide relief in these arid surroundings.
03:37We have counted about 18 to 22 breeding pairs of black eagles in the park, which is quite
03:44a very high number. So that's a very positive thing for the birds and biodiversity in general.
03:52The karu was completely underwater about 200 million years ago. Now it struggles with decade-long
03:58droughts, making it even harder for life to exist. When white settlers started farming the area in the late 18th century,
04:04they planted alien trees that destabilised the water table for generations, furthering soil degradation
04:11and a loss in biodiversity. Hendrik Malgas and his team are therefore clearing the area of invasive species,
04:17which might take decades. But the conservationist believes that they can restore the ecosystem to close to what it was like before,
04:23also thanks to the SKA.
04:30We would not have had 135,000 hectares under protection if it wasn't for this project.
04:35And a relationship between development and biodiversity and conservation is needed.
04:42So the one can employ people and can boost the economy and stuff like that, and the other one can look after the environment.
04:49So it's a 50-50 relationship that works very well.
04:51Back to Carnarvon and Emilie Visahi, whose training was funded by Sereo, the public entity that runs the SKA project in South Africa.
05:02The astroguide says the SKA project is already transforming her community.
05:07Since operating in the area, there have been a lot of youngsters that the SKA helped to get out of town paying for their studies.
05:17And then some of those people actually came back after studying and are working on-site currently.
05:23As she cannot yet live from astroguiding,
05:29Emilie works as an assistant teacher at the local high school.
05:32Whenever she can, she takes students out into the field
05:35to teach them about the sand people's knowledge of medicinal plants
05:39and their special bond with nature.
05:41Now it's time to prepare a traditional supper for tonight's bonfire.
05:46Most of the kids, they come out of households.
05:50They don't always have everything at home, you see.
05:55So I think that some of them, they are grateful for the little meal that they get wherever, whenever.
06:07Here, under the stars, the community connects to the sand traditions again.
06:13Dancing and singing during a full or new moon was a way of seeking blessings from nature.
06:23I saw nature is something that they should look after and keep safe for themselves and also for the children.
06:31Amy Lee's vision for a brighter future comes alive as ancient culture and modern conservation efforts meet under the same stars.
06:44The caso is that, Afteraling actually.
06:45The foram by no matter in our moon was kindly enough.
06:47еще for two whories are not new built in the possible worshippers left foundation.
06:49preferences are going to be healthy for a Przykyимер where many of them remain,
06:51and after they become their family members, these people can travel for a long story
06:53after the festival thatyeongtshire piano has been aged for three days.
06:54At this time, if the 아니에요bility is named for one for those people,
06:55there is the purpose of the person that took their own experience in you to this in,
06:57the country but it isn'tnamed only in your family to pray for.
06:58So even this time, there will not simply be headlines.
07:00Alright, I mentioned, thank God, Joy橋 arsteath,
07:03but they have arrivated during the process of our friends
07:04We're doing well here on their online special time.
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