Project Manager: MAMMALMAP

Experience has taught Tali Hoffman that successful conservation endeavours depend on the fusion of strong science, community education and community involvement. To this end, she is project manager of MammalMAP, an Africa-wide wildlife conservation initiative that enlists the aid of “citizen scientists” to map the 21st-century distribution of mammals across the continent. The project relies on verifiable photographs of mammals in their natural habitat. Hoffman, a seasoned public speaker and postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pretoria’s Mammal Research Institute, regularly spreads the gospel of the power of citizen participation to diverse audiences. During her high school days at the National School of the Arts, Hoffman was committed to the idea of being an actor. The time she spent after school as a tour guide in the Serengeti, the Maasai Mara and the Okavango Delta, however, moulded her ultimate commitment to involving the people of Africa in the conservation of our wilderness and biodiversity.

— Taryn Mackay

Twitter: @MammalMAP Website: mammalmap.adu.org.za