Jö is an educator at heart with a deep love for nature and conservation. She’s always loved teaching and working with children, and this led her to complete a degree in Intermediate Phase teaching at Stellenbosch University. Her studies ignited an interest in teaching particularly in the realm of Natural Sciences, and consequently she began exploring her options for marrying her two passions. 

Jö is a born and raised Capetonian, but her adoration for all things nature were sparked by regular visits to the Lowveld as a child. She realised early on that her career would have to be one with a purpose in animal conservation or rehabilitation. During her education degree, she pursued her dream of working in the latter by volunteering at Care for Wild, a rhino rehabilitation centre in Mpumalanga, as well as the Drakenstein Lion Park near Paarl. 

After her university degree, she moved to Limpopo to train for her FGASA guiding qualification at NJ MORE College. This valuable time in the bush was what made Jö realise that she still wanted to teach, but that it would have to be about what she loved – fauna, flora and the importance of our beautiful country’s biodiversity. That is how she came across environmental education, the perfect combination of the things she loved most. After completing a 6-month internship at Marataba Luxury Lodges in the Waterberg, she returned home to join the Cape Leopard Trust as the Boland Environmental Educator. Jö looks forward to sharing her passion in the best way she knows how – through teaching in and about nature.