Beyond the Uniform: How Female Rangers Are Transforming Conservation in Zimbabwe

By Edith Mugabe

As dawn breaks over Zimbabwe’s wilderness, Sharai Viola Tunhira, a female ranger working with Akashinga, prepares for another day on patrol. Dressed in her uniform and equipped for the demands of the field, she is part of a growing force of women challenging long-held perceptions about who belongs on the frontlines of conservation.

Not long ago, the idea of women protecting wildlife in one of the world’s most demanding professions would have seemed unlikely. Conservation, particularly ranger work, has traditionally been dominated by men with women often confined to supporting roles.

Today, however, female rangers are not only protecting wildlife but are also reshaping communities, creating opportunities for other women and redefining leadership in conservation.

“My name is Sharai Viola Tunhira,and I am a female ranger at Akashinga, I joined Akashinga in 2021 as a field ranger, Becoming a ranger was a journey of transformation for me. I was deeply inspired by watching wildlife and nature documentaries on channels like National Geographic. Seeing how animals live on this planet, understanding their ecological systems and realizing how crucial it is to protect nature sparked something within me. So I wanted to be one of the people protecting wildlife from poaching and to promote ecological balance.”

As the world celebrates World Female Ranger Week from 23 to 30 June, attention is turning to the women who are quietly transforming conservation across the globe. This year’s commemorations recognise the vital role female rangers play in protecting wildlife, safeguarding ecosystems and strengthening communities, while also highlighting the barriers many continue to face in a profession historically dominated by men. In Zimbabwe, Akashinga’s all-female ranger force has emerged as a powerful example of how women are protecting nature.

Sharai explained how becoming a ranger was a decision her family found unacceptable but later began to appreciate it.

“At first my  family, especially my mother, was deeply worried. They viewed this job as a very dangerous profession that was traditionally reserved for men. However, I sat down with them and explained the nature of our training and my future dreams in conservation, that is when they later on started to support me,” said Sharai.

Sharai Viola Tunhira, an Akashinga female ranger, scans the Songo landscape with binoculars during a patrol. Once told that conservation was a man’s job, Sharai is now part of women protecting Zimbabwe’s wildlife and inspiring the next generation of female rangers. Picture: Ashrah Shereni.

Cultural expectations,  economic realities and lack of support from families, are some of the barriers to women participation in conservation.  Akashinga’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO ), Stacy Crevello highlighted barriers that continue to prevent women from entering conservation roles.

“This question is very personal for me. When I started out in this field, I was often the only woman in the room, in the field, at the table, in the decision-making spaces. I was fortunate to have mentors who believed in me. But I was always aware that not every woman had those opportunities, Cultural expectations and economic realities make it impossible to take on these demanding roles without proper support from families,”

“There are also institutional barriers, Recruitment processes, physical standards and workplace cultures which were largely designed with men in mind and have rarely been adapted to accommodate women,” said Crevello.

Amos Gwema, a community conservationist, said gender stereotypes, harsh working conditions and safety concerns remain some of the major barriers preventing women from entering or remaining in conservation roles.

“Female rangers are often doubted and told they cannot do the same work as male rangers, just because of their gender, many of them are looked down on by colleagues, communities, or suspects, this then reduces team morale and authority in the field,” said Gwema.

He added that working conditions in the field can be particularly challenging for women.

“Long patrols in remote areas with limited access to sanitation facilities, clean water and shelter make it harder for women to stay in the field for extended periods, few bases and camps have female-friendly toilets, safe sleeping areas, or access to menstrual hygiene products, which affects health and retention,”

“There are also safety concerns, female rangers face higher risks of harassment and gender-based violence, both from outsiders and sometimes within the sector,” he said.

While women continue to face significant obstacles in conservation, Akashinga has sought to challenge many of these barriers through intentional recruitment, training and support systems designed specifically for women.

“For too long, conservation was built on a model that looked a certain way and that model left women and communities out, not because women were absent from the land, they were the ones tending it, living closest to it, understanding it in ways that often did not make it into any official plan or strategy. My work throughout my career has centered on integration of women into all aspects of conservation,” said Crevello.

“Akashinga is important because it said something that needed to be said plainly: women are the future of conservation, when a model is built that genuinely centers women not as a program feature but as a conviction then everything changes. The land and ecosystems change. The community changes. And the women themselves step into a kind of leadership that ripples far beyond the work itself.

Conservation seeps into every aspect of their communities.

Through their elevation in society, conservation and its importance is naturally learned to their children, nieces, nephews, elders,” She said.

Despite these challenges, conservation experts argue that increasing women’s participation is not simply about gender equality, but about strengthening conservation itself.

Community conservationist Amos Gwema said female rangers bring unique strengths that make conservation efforts more effective.

“Women help ensure conservation work is carried out within the law. Human rights standards require female suspects to be searched by female officers, meaning female rangers are essential during law enforcement operations. Without them, some cases involving women and children can even collapse in court,” he said.

Gwema said women also strengthen relationships between conservation programmes and surrounding communities.

“Women often build trust more easily with local women, children and elders. Because of this, communities are often more willing to share information about poaching, snaring and illegal resource use. They also tend to approach conflict through communication first, reducing unnecessary confrontations during patrols.”

The impact of female rangers extends beyond conservation experts. For communities living alongside wildlife, their presence has changed both safety and perceptions about women’s role in conservation.

Community member Agnes Matiki, praised the work of Akashinga’s female rangers, saying their presence has brought a sense of safety to people living alongside wildlife.

“Whenever we report stray or troublesome wildlife, the Akashinga female rangers respond quickly. They come to our community, set up camp and monitor the animals’ movements until the threat has been dealt with. Their presence gives us confidence because we know they are there to protect both our community and the wildlife,” said Matiki.

She said the women have also become role models for young girls in the area.

“The resilience, courage and confidence shown by these female rangers inspire our daughters. They have proved that women are just as capable of doing this work, and they are changing the way our community views women in conservation.”

Amos Gwema said female ranger programmes are changing conservation beyond Zimbabwe.

“From Akashinga in Zimbabwe to the Black Mambas in South Africa, all-female ranger units have demonstrated that women can protect wildlife just as effectively as men while inspiring more girls and women to enter the profession. These programmes have attracted global attention and challenged the long-held belief that conservation is men’s work.”

Beyond improving conservation outcomes, women’s participation in the sector is also viewed as an issue of equality and economic justice.

Isheanesu Chirisa, Executive Director of Women and Law in Southern Africa said excluding women from conservation also means excluding people who possess invaluable environmental knowledge.

“Women are often the people collecting water, gathering fuelwood and managing natural resources within their communities. Because of these responsibilities, they understand ecosystems in ways that conservation policies often overlook. Protecting the environment and advancing women’s rights are interconnected goals.

Chirisa said initiatives such as Akashinga demonstrate lessons that extend beyond conservation.

“Female ranger programmes show that when women are intentionally invested in, they become leaders, strengthen their communities and inspire future generations. Representation changes social norms, while economic empowerment creates wider social impact.”

For Sharai, however, the biggest achievement is not simply wearing the ranger uniform. It is knowing that young girls now see conservation differently.

“Young girls now come to me asking how they can become rangers,” she said.

“To any girl who dreams of this career, I say start where you are. You don’t need to know everything about wildlife on your first day. Be curious about nature, work hard and never let anyone tell you that this is a man’s job,” said Sharai.

Sharai mentioned that World Female Ranger week is a week that applauds female rangers and remembers and acknowledges the work of those who lost their lives during their work.

“To me this week represents pride and responsibility, it is a powerful reminder to the world that women are also excellent rangers and highly capable not just background supporters. It is also an opportunity to honor and celebrate female rangers who lost their lives in the line of duty, and show the next generation of girls that this career is possible and the path is open for them,” said Sharai.

As World Female Ranger Week shines a spotlight on women protecting some of the world’s most threatened landscapes, Sharai’s journey reflects a broader shift taking place across Zimbabwe, one where conservation is no longer defined by gender, but by courage, commitment and the determination to protect the natural world.

World Female Ranger Week is a global awareness week that celebrates and supports female rangers around the world. It amplifies ranger voices, provides a platform for peer support, and recognises the role women play in protecting wildlife and conservation ecosystems globally.

Akashinga meaning ‘the Brave Ones’ in Shona is a women-led conservation organisation operating across Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, and Namibia. All Akashinga Rangers in Zimbabwe and Mozambique are women drawn from communities that have experienced poaching, poverty, and displacement. The organisation’s model centres on women’s leadership in conservation: not as an add-on, but as the core operational and strategic approach.

Akashinga protects over 500 000 hectares of former trophy hunting land in the Zambezi Valley which covers Pundundu and Songo areas, rehabilitating protected habitat and returning dignity to both people and wildlife.

The Mozambique operation Coutada-5 extends this model across the border, embedding women-led conservation in a second national context.

Crucially, most Akashinga Rangers continue to live in the communities they protect. This is not conservation imposed from outside. It is conservation led from within.