The Story presents: Planet Hope - A million-hectare conservation vision in Namibia
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 15 November 2025
⏱️ 33 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This is Planet Hope, a podcast from The Times and The Sunday Times in paid partnership with Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative. Each episode is hosted by The Story released as a bonus weekly series on Saturdays.
Andreia Pawel is co-founder of the Orange River-Karoo Conservation Area, one of the world’s most ambitious rewilding projects. Spanning more than a million hectares in Namibia, and with the support of the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, it aims to restore lost ecosystems, reintroduce species and work with local Nama communities to build a new model for conservation. She tells Adam Vaughan how, with bold ambitions, we can breathe new life into the natural world.
Planet Hope is brought to you in paid partnership with Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative.
Guest: Andreia Pawel, conservationist and co-founder, Orange River-Karoo Conservation Area
Host: Adam Vaughan, environment editor, The Times
Series producer: Priyanka Deladia
Sound designer: David Crackles
This podcast is advertiser funded.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, it's Manveen. Today on the story, we're featuring another time's podcast, Planet Hope. |
| 0:06.1 | In it, the environment editor, Adam Vaughn, meets people changing our planet for the better, |
| 0:11.2 | from restoring sight with a smartphone app to rewilding in Namibia. |
| 0:17.3 | These are the stories of people turning challenges into solutions. |
| 0:22.3 | Here's an episode of Planet Hope. |
| 0:31.4 | Planet Hope is brought to you in paid partnership with Rolex and its perpetual Planet Initiative. |
| 0:39.3 | For nearly a century, Rolex has supported pioneering explorers, pushing the boundaries of |
| 0:45.0 | human endeavour to help them achieve countless historic feats. Over time, the companies |
| 0:51.0 | moved from championing exploration for the sake of discovery to protecting |
| 0:54.9 | the planet. Through the Perpetual Planet initiative, Rolex stands alongside explorers, scientists and |
| 1:04.9 | entrepreneurs supporting their work to build a better future for all life on Earth. |
| 1:19.9 | Whether it's by supporting coral restoration, rewilding ecosystems, or technological breakthroughs that can help people walk again, the Perpetual Planet Initiative is all about long-term |
| 1:24.6 | solutions and long-term commitment, as you'll find out in this episode. |
| 1:43.3 | Hello, I'm Adam Vaughn, Environment Editor at the Times, and this is Planet Hope. |
| 1:49.0 | Over the last nine episodes, we've travelled across continents and climates, |
| 1:54.3 | from Patagonian penguin colonies to the rivers of Botswana, |
| 1:58.5 | meeting scientists and explorers working hand in hand with local |
| 2:03.0 | communities to restore our natural world. Today we journey to Namibia, to one of the oldest |
| 2:13.9 | landscapes on Earth, and meet someone with a bold new vision for its future. |
| 2:20.3 | Andrea Powell is the co-founder of the Orange River Karoo Conservation Area, known as Orca. |
| 2:27.3 | We are building a Trans-Fonteer park with the aim of securing 1 million hectare reserve on the |
| 2:33.3 | Namibian and South African side of the Orange River |
... |
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