RHINO PARADE

(Lauren Laing (Brand and Communications Manager) of Wildlands Conservation Trust, Dr Bandile Mkhize (CEO) of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, Shaun Pollock, Vahenee Heeramun (DUT student and designer of Shaun Pollock’s rhino), Pat Lambie, Bradley Bhramadu (DUT student and designer of Pat Lambie’s rhino), Colin Naidoo (Brand and Communications manager )of ACSA and Dr Andrew Venter (CEO) of Wildlands Conservation Trust. Photo: Emma Gatland)

A few days ago, a large group of people gathered at Newscafé at King Shaka Airport for a unique rhino unveiling event, to support two local sports celebrities, Pat Lambie and Shaun Pollock, as they pledged their commitment to the fight against rhino poaching. 

They were the first two celebrities to raise their hands to become involved in the Durban leg of the Wildlands’ Rhino Parade, an innovative fundraising campaign based on the internationally renowned Cow Parade concept. The initiative seeks to raise funding for the war on rhino poaching by getting South African Ambassadors to adopt and help design a three-quarter life size black rhino sculpture, which is then auctioned at a high profile Gala Dinner, set to be held on November 29 at Durban City Hall.  

The 2.5m long and 1.8m high rhino sculpture that is used to tell each celebrity’s individual story is made from a water-based resin, originated by Peter Hall, and then cast following a mould-making process by Kim Goodwin of the hugely respected Goodwin Foundry in Lidgetton.  

DUT (Durban University of Technology) enthusiastically agreed to support the Rhino Parade by tasking their third year Graphic Design students to turn the blank rhino sculptures into true works of art, which they did above and beyond. 

Vahenee Heeramun and Dean Irving are the bright young minds behind the Shaun Pollock rhino, in all its green and gold, patriotic beauty. Pat Lambie’s rhino, incorporating his passion for the environment and rugby, was the brain child of Bradley Bhramadu, with one element inspired by Justine Barry. The students got to meet and interact with some of the celebrities, and this formed part of the artistic process that ultimately inspired their designs, which the students also implemented. 

The Durban Rhino Parade includes four celebrity rhino, with the first two having been adopted by Pollock and Lambie and the second two by legendary musician Ray Phiri and Olympic Gold Medallist Chad le Clos. These rhino will ultimately help fund a number of conservation initiatives, with a vision to curb the poaching statistics.  

 “We are honoured to be a part of this campaign as part of our Corporate Social Investment and assist by hosting these beautiful rhino artworks,” explains Communications and Brand Manager at ACSA, Colin Naidoo. “The rhino poaching crisis is directly linked to the tourism and travel industry and is therefore obviously a concern for us, however I believe this is EVERY South African’s problem – we need to all value and protect our heritage, and hope that through this parade we can inspire people to do just that. We are very confident that by having the rhinos displayed at King Shaka International Airport we will be reaching out more to the public and that each rhino will fetch a decent price at the auction in November to ultimately contribute funding to Wildlands’ conservation efforts.”

For further information please contact Lauren Laing at laurenl@wildlands.co.za or 083 399 4665 or visit www.wildlands.co.za