
My wife Sarah and I have recently returned from a holiday of a lifetime to Zambia. We spent a blissful week canoeing 160km down’ The Great Zambezi’ to the confluence where Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique rub their broad shoulders. We wild camped each night on it’s beautiful banks, backlit by the most magnificent sunsets I’ve ever seen. In short we were about as immersed in nature as it is possible to be. While in the closest vicinity to the wonders of the jungle, it was at once both treacherous and captivating, a truly thrilling and authentic experience that we will never forget.
However, what we found was not all pleasant and there is a serious side to our story which our first-hand experience has gifted us a unique licence to talk about (even as we wrestle with the guilt of our travel carbon footprint).
The terrible fact is climate change is already having a significant and lasting impact on the Southern African states, exacerbating the existing economic, environmental and social challenges.
Increasing temperatures and changing precipitation patterns are leading to more frequent and severe droughts and floods. This is affecting crop yields and livestock, leading to more widespread and desperate food insecurity.
Zambia is experiencing an intense drought which is playing havoc with its carefully balanced ecosystem and this is predicted to worsen still in the future.
What we witnessed on arrival was a much depleted Great Zambesi River. Based on our conversations with the lovely local people, the water level has never been so low triggered by an El Niño-induced dry spell and one of the worst ever droughts.
As we travelled down the river we were able to see first-hand the devastating effect on the ecosystem. Tributaries were bone dry and quite frequently we needed to climb out of our canoes mid-stream to drag them over partly exposed sandbanks. And this is the Great Zambezi!
The consequence is that huge quantities of wildlife now have to travel to, and congregate at, the limited water available. It was wonderful for a river tourist to experience the rich diversity of the region in one place but challenges arise in the form of two of Africa’s most dangerous creatures. Every few hundred yards Hippopotamuses in their large family groups spend the daylight hours submerged just below the surface and are aggressively territorial. Whilst infesting the waters surrounding them are crocodiles who lie in wait for their prey. Less river means much more danger for all who use the resource, man and beast alike. A first hand encounter with an angry hippo delivered a salutary message to our party and raised our heart rates way too much for comfort. This happened several times every day of our trip!
The reduced water levels have also severely impacted hydroelectric power generation at the Kariba Dam, which relies on the Zambezi River. This has led to widespread electricity blackouts across Zambia which we can vouch for as one was in full swing in Lusaka when we first arrived and was predicted to last for up to 16 hours.
The drought has also severely affected irrigation for agriculture, leading to food shortages and water scarcity because water pumps needed to draw water from reservoirs are failing. In consequence this encourages the proliferation of other existential threats like human conflict, hyper food inflation, and water borne disease.
There is little doubt that the effects of climate change and the resulting extreme drought has resulted in the drying up of wetlands and other adjacent ecosystems that are dependent on the river. The impact on biodiversity is on a grand scale but it is out of mind for most humans except those most directly affected and who lack a voice loud enough to shout out.
A report called The Living Planet 2024 by WWF, a comprehensive overview of the state of the natural world, reveals global wildlife populations have shrunk by an average of 73% in the past 50 years.
According to WWF UK head Tanya Steele, the loss of wild spaces is "putting many ecosystems on the brink", and many habitats, from the Amazon to coral reefs, are "on the edge of very dangerous tipping points".
I hope that knowing me as you do, and when you have read this personal testimony, the broad threat of climate change is made more real. Because it is.
In short, Zambia's struggle is a microcosm of the global climate crisis.
It is too easy to skim over headlines and become immune to well-meaning soundbites. To witness first-hand one of the treasures of our natural world damaged so acutely by climate change is truly humbling. We seemed to be the only party paddling down the Zambezi in the last week of September 2024. Perhaps the G20 and a contingent of other world leaders and UN representatives would care to take a turn. I am certain that they would be as blown away by the wildlife as we were. But I would sincerely hope that they would realise that climate chaos and it’s malignant impacts are happening right now, not in 2030, or at some other notional trigger point in the future.
As a sustainability advocate, acting through our businesses (below), I urge you to join the fight. It really is time to stop kicking (floating) the proverbial can down the road (river).
David Craft
Managing Partner of Good Karma Media Limited
(a social enterprise marketing and communications agency)
Founder of Greener Business Expert CIC
(a community interest company whose purpose is to assist SME businesses to adopt net zero strategies)
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