Learn about medicinal & nutritional foraging in the Kalahari
When the Khoi San of the Western Kalahari in Botswana wake up every morning, their first thoughts as hunter-gatherer people relate to sourcing food. Having lived off their natural environment for generations, they have an intimate knowledge of where food can be found and at what times of years.
It is not just food that they forage for. There are many plants to be found which provide medicinal purposes as well, and a true expert in this field acts as a traditional pharmacist, using the provisions of the natural environment to treat all manner of conditions. When searching for food in the bush, the traditional apportioning of responsibilities is that the men source protein and fats in the form of hunted or trapped animals, and the women forage for carbohydrates in the form of vegetation, roots, and tubers; each accounting for approximately 30%:70% on nutritional intake respectively. Each morning when visiting these incredible people, we spend around 3-4 hours walking with them as a group through the bush, foraging for food for nutritional and medicinal application. We learn about what plants to spot to find various foodstuffs, as well as those to avoid due to poison or perhaps taboo. Tracking is always being done, and should any opportunity arise, there may be a hunt for a small mammal or bird for the group to share back in camp. After returning to camp from the morning's foraging, there is the opportunity to see how the collected foods are prepared, as well as the chance to taste them as well. Each month brings a new provision of foods to the table as different elements of the bush put forward their bounty. On one day it may be nuts and tubers; on another perhaps insects and fruits. Either way, each excursion leaves one realising the depth and breadth of the knowledge of these incredible people.
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Botswana: a conservation success story, Africa