You would never initially think that women would make some of the best game wardens in all of Africa and lead to complete social reform within the community! There is a lot to learn here, and today we’re going to dive head first into a world of social entrepreneurship with Damien Mander.   Damien is an Iraq war veteran who served as a Naval clearance diver and special operations sniper for the Australian Defense Force. It was during his service, traveling through Africa, that he was inspired by the work of rangers as they defended the wildlife.    The International Anti-Poaching Foundation (IAPF) was born soon after, to be the ‘last line of defense for nature.’ Since it started, the IAPF has trained and supported rangers resulting in the protection of over 4 million hectares of African wilderness! In 2017 IAPF founded ‘Akashinga (The Brave Ones) – Nature Protected by Women’, a program that has enabled the only group of nature reserves in the world to be protected by women. After giving women the opportunity to serve, the impact they’ve had on the community around them not only benefited the social structure, but even the economic structure.  Let’s jump right into Damien’s incredible journey and learn a new model to defend nature and community - empowering women.   [00:01 - 6:36] Opening Segment   I introduce Damien Mander A reminder of the 5 characteristics of innovators’ recipe Damien’ s approach to tackling an issue Getting started and gaining momentum is the most important thing  You can’t steer a stationary ship  The importance of having a team around you to disagree with you  Pushing through even without confidence or comfort  Feeling most comfortable outside of your comfort zone [06:37 - 23:40] Jumping into the Middle of the Problem Damien talks about how he started into solving the issue he saw  “I need to see it for myself”  Jumping into the problem instead of waiting for it to come to you Starting without a plan and figuring out the direction after Filling the void in the world of conservation  Rapid militarization within the industry  The targeting of elephants and rhinos  Employing a short term solution first  The community needs to be involved for long term change  I share the parallels to the Hero’s Journey  Damien talks about getting to the heart of the real issues - Peeling the onion  Not analyzing but ‘eating your way through the onion’  From almost giving up to learning to scale the organization  It’s the pressure that pushes you to find a better solution  Positivity is just around the corner from a hardship The project of 2017    [23:41 -  56:03] The New Model to Defend Nature & Community: Empower Women   Seeing the need and benefit of getting more women on the front lines Getting left behind by industries using women on the front  An answer to the short term, ‘good guys with the gun’ mentality Why aren’t women given the opportunity?  Turning examples of other industries into a working model  There is no need to reinvent the wheel  Fit your narrative into a model - test and adjust Fighting through the criticism  Rebuilding the organization to fit the model There is a value to having critics  Dealing with conservation from a social issue standpoint  Getting the opposition to see the long term value of preserving wildlife Community development through women empowerment Why women at the forefront?  It changes the dynamics of society for the better  Not even a single case of corruption  The impact on strategic national parks  Finding an economic alternative to trophy hunting  Wildlife hunting: an equation to be solved  A breakdown of the economics behind conservation  Best gains are made from the social side  The challenge having to solve the largest issues with the least funding  How women help de-escalate tension  Investing in education and job creation A look into the health care Including stakeholders   A word about the Conspiracy of Goodness Summit