In 2008 when she was 11, Olivia started becoming passionate about the environment, initially through an interest in birding and worries about the future of the bearded vulture in South Africa and what this represented about the degradation of our environment. She turned her passion into action and, by the time she was 13, Olivia had raised nearly R100 000 in funding for Ezemvelo Wildlife’s Bearded Vulture Project by presenting her concerns and fundraising proposal to senior businesspeople in Durban.

In 2012 at the age of 15, Olivia founded an environmental non-profit company, Four Elements Conservation NPC, of which she is the CEO (she was too young to be a director). Olivia’s website (www.fourelementsconservation.org) is supplemented by a vigorous social media strategy. Olivia has also appeared on TV promoting environmental conservation.

While enormously successful at raising donation funding, Olivia believes that environmentally responsible businesses will be far more receptive to supporting creative entrepreneurial concepts rather than making donations. Based on this, in 2013 Olivia initiated her first environmentally-oriented business concept.

In 2014, Four Elements Conservation NPC celebrated World Oceans Day with the Ocean Challenge, a gruelling swim in Durban, which was be the focal point of a short film that can be viewed here http://www.fourelementsconservation.org/ocean-challenge.php.

 

INTERESTS: Olivia is passionate about her brainchild, Four Elements Conservation NPC and much spare time is spent on this NPC. Olivia also has many sporting interests which include running, freediving, yoga and hockey. Music is another interest of hers – she plays the flute.