To close off 2019 and prepare for the new decade, CCB’s staff went on a retreat before tackling the tasks of the annual planning meeting. On 2nd December, the full staff quotient descended upon Serowe to head to the Khama Rhino Sanctuary for a two-day retreat. Having opted for self-catering, some grocery shopping had to be done before heading to the reserve.
 
After settling in, the first activity was a night drive. The drive got off to a marvelous start with a leopard sighting in the first 15 minutes and within an hour the CCB staff had also seen a clan of spotted hyaenas — two species that are not regularly seen in the reserve. The team also got to see the usual suspects like zebra and rhino. Following the drive, there was a braai hosted by the reserve staff, and some games were played before turning in to sleep. The early birds of the group managed to make it to the morning game drive, which was animated by some bird watching activities.
 
Along with making French fries over a wood fire, some of the challenges the team faced included sharing chores and an impromptu walk to the village of Paje (which took a couple of hours.) While some people got to bask in the sun at the poolside, others were engaged in team meetings in preparation for the annual planning meeting set for Gaborone the following week.
 
Sanitas served as the venue for the annual planning meeting – the purpose of which is to do organization-wide reconsolidation and recalibration in preparation for a new year. Each of the department coordinators gave their progress updates and received feedback from their peers. Along with planning the 2020 calendar of activities, there was a crucial discussion regarding some issues affecting the communities CCB works with. The highlight of the meeting was an award ceremony where the executive management appreciated the efforts of some of the organisation’s staff. Boitumelo Mokgosi received the Director’s Award for exemplary diligence and contribution to the organisation, while Leanne Van der Weyde and Britz Malepe received the Exemplary Leadership and Outstanding Employee awards respectively.

​Cheetah Conservation Botswana is among one of the organisations which received United States Ambassador Self-Help Fund Grant in 2019. The grant is issued under the auspices of the US Ambassador to Botswana and is given to organsations which have a proven track record of impactful work, with the intention of bolstering their efforts.
 
The relationship between CCB and the US Embassy in Botswana is one that has been growing since their first successful grant application in 2015. The award ceremony to celebrate this latest grant, hosted by the Embassy in December, was a celebration of the grant recipients as well as an opportunity for local press to learn more about the various US government supported grants available in Botswana. CCB’s executive management members, Rebecca Klein and Douglas Thamage were in attendance, and represented CCB’s gratitude with beaming smiles.
 
Through the grant, CCB will continue to conduct training, as well as support community development activities in sustainable farming, livestock productivity practices, and human-wildlife conflict management. CCB is grateful to all our individual donors and institutions which strengthen our work through financial support. To learn more about how you can donate your time, skills or money to the organisation, visit our “Get Involved” page.