A piano teacher from Worcestershire is gearing up for an extraordinary conservation venture in East Africa.
Rachel Monger will travel to Tanzania at the end of April for a month-long stay to work on the Elephant and Bee Project.
The initiative, run in partnership with Emmanuel International Tanzania, aims to tackle the growing problem of conflict between elephants and local communities.
Ms Monger will be supporting efforts to construct a protective barrier made entirely of beehives around a village that borders the Ruaha National Park.
“It’s an incredible solution where everyone wins,” Ms Monger told the BBC.
“We are protecting the elephants, securing food for subsistence farmers and creating a sustainable economy through beekeeping.”
The project harnesses a simple natural phenomenon: elephants are known to steer clear of bees.
By positioning 600 hives along a six-kilometre stretch, the scheme creates a natural, non-violent deterrent that prevents the giant mammals from raiding crops on nearby farmland.
Rachel Monger will be preparing for the project
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Officials have reported elephants in the area have been destroying harvests and causing injuries to residents, making intervention essential.
The beehive fence offers a humane solution that protects both the agricultural livelihoods of subsistence farmers and the elephants themselves from potential retaliation by frustrated villagers.
Ms Monger visited the Mafuluto community last year to evaluate whether the project could be successfully implemented in the region.
She will now return to support the initial installation phase.
Rachel Monger alongside the Mafuluto community
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Each £25 donation contributes an additional hive to the protective barrier, with the overall fundraising target set at £15,000.
Beyond deterring elephants, the hives will produce honey and beeswax, creating a sustainable revenue stream for local residents.
The project will also train 60 local beekeepers and includes plans to plant more than 800 trees in the area.
Income generated from honey and beeswax sales will help support healthcare and education within the community, while the bees themselves will boost crop yields through pollination.
The natural barriers deter elephants
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Ms Monger brings considerable expertise to the venture, having spent a decade living in Tanzania where she trained as a beekeeper and assisted farmers in establishing their own beekeeping cooperatives.
She noted beekeeping has traditionally been a male-dominated activity in the country.
“For all the women I have worked with in beekeeping, this has been a novel and unique idea,” she said.
“They become part of a group with new valuable skills which gives them self confidence and mutual support.”
Women involved in the groups have been able to establish village savings and loans schemes, using their earnings to launch small businesses and better provide for their children.
Worcester Beekeepers has partnered with Ms Monger to support the fundraising campaign, with members planning visits to schools across the county.
The club will also host a dedicated display at the RHS Malvern Spring Festival, running from Thursday May 7 to Sunday May 10 at the Three Counties Showground.
The timing of the campaign coincides with World Bee Day on May 20, drawing attention to the vital role these pollinators play not only in British gardens but also in conservation efforts across Africa.