Janet Phiri

2019 Intern

Meet Janet Phiri. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication with a minor in development studies from the University of Zambia. She is passionate about telling stories and loves visiting new places.

Janet joined WWF as a Communications Intern and works closely with the Wildlife department.

We asked Janet a few questions about what inspires her, her role at WWF and how she is contributing to conserving the environment. Read more to find out what she said.

Who do you look to for inspiration?

My mother is my biggest inspiration, she taught me to go for greater heights and become the best that I can be.

What motivated you to join WWF?

I wanted to learn the value of conservation and the role we play in building an environment that can sustain us. I wanted to learn about nature, its wonders and values.

What environmental issue would you like to be part of addressing?

Climate Change and Wildlife Protection. We are facing a lot of issues and this is evident from the change of seasons. We had little rainfall this past season, that can be attributed to the cutting down of trees.

On wildlife protection, before joining WWF, and working with the Wildlife team, I did not know much about it. Through this Internship I was able to meet different communities and see how they depend on wildlife for their livelihoods, for example, through tourism, I knew I had a role to play in protecting wildlife.

What excites you the most about this Internship?

Coming from a non-conservation background, it has been interesting for me to see how people and organizations are putting effort to ensuring that our natural resources are conserved and wildlife populations are protected. It is also exciting to work with communities and see how protecting our natural resources can improve livelihoods, particularly. It has really opened my mind, and challenged me to not take wildlife for granted.

What role can your generation play in making the world a better place?

We have an important role to play in bettering our environment and the world we live in. We only have this world. As the saying goes, “we don’t own the world, we borrow it from our children”.

We engage at different levels with different people, so the little we can share about the importance of conservation, and natural resource management can go a long way. All this leads can lead to the greater goal of living in harmony. We can continue to enjoy the benefits of the environment for a long period of time.