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Meet the Executive Team
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Dereck and Beverly Joubert
Dereck and Beverly Joubert are world-renowned filmmakers and conservationists who have worked in Africa's most remote and extraordinary wildlife strongholds for over 25 years. As five time Emmy-award winning filmmakers, their documentaries including Eye of the Leopard and Eternal Enemies have been watched by billions of people around the world. Further, their books and numerous magazine articles send news of Africa to international readers in over 150 countries. They are honored to have been recently appointed as National Geographic Society “Explorers in Residence”.
Their work and passions can be shared at: www.wildlifeconservationfilms.com
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Mark Read
Mark Read is the Chairman of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) South Africa as well as the Africa representative on the international Board of WWF in Switzerland. He is a well-respected African art expert and the owner of two prestigious art galleries in South Africa. As the director of the Institute of Human Evolution at the University of the Witwatersrand, and vice chairperson of the Paleontological Scientific Trust (PAST) in southern Africa, he has a significant passion for anthropology. Mark is also devoted and knowledgeable botanist.
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Paul Harris
Paul Harris is a top entrepreneur who has a genuine passion for wildlife, cultural heritage and the tourism industry. Paul was the CEO of one of South Africa’s largest banking groups and adds enormous value to Great Plains Conservation. He is also the owner of the prestigious Relais & Chateaux property, Ellerman House in Cape Town. As a Great Plains Conservation’s sister property, Ellerman House serves as the perfect companion for its style and elegance. Paul’s passion extends to art and Ellerman House exhibits one of the most extensive private collections of African Art in the world. He is an active partner in Great Plains.
Visit www.ellerman.co.za
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Dorian Hoy
Dorian was born in Cyprus and at a very early age moved to South Africa with his parents and siblings. Here he spent his early years in the Natal Midlands where he completed his schooling. Following this he went on to study at the Royal Agricultural College in the UK for three years and since then his career has mostly been in the tourism industry. He started off at Mala Mala Game Reserve and then went across to Dubai to set up the Al Maha Desert Reserve. He returned to South Africa after two years where he ran and guided horse safaris in the St Lucia Wetland Park. Following this Dorian spent a further 4 years in Abu Dhabi and Morocco working on separate wildlife projects.
Dorian lives in Kasane with his wife and 2 young sons and has been the Regional Managing Director for the Botswana arm of Great Plains since 2008.
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Meet Selinda's People
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Pete Unwin and Sharon Stevens manage the Selinda Reserve from their tented camp between Zarafa and Selinda Camps. With a propensity for the outdoors, Botswana lured them both. As a country with unspoiled beauty, true wilderness and dense wildlife, it was a natural fit. They began their Botswana adventure in 2003, working in the Okavango Delta for four and half years before migrating "north" to the Selinda Reserve. They feel extremely privileged and lucky to be able to do what they love while calling Botswana home.
Pete originates from Port Elizabeth, South Africa. He first moved to a private game reserve in the Eastern Cape, where he worked for five years honing his skills and passion for the "bush". Ready for a challenge, he looked north to Botswana to further his career. Now, after more than 10 years in the industry, his knowledge and expertise in field operations are unrivaled. Each year has further intensified his personal belief in how crucial a healthy environment is to our soul.
Sharon also hails from Port Elizabeth, South Africa. After finishing school in South Africa, she moved to the USA. The time she spent away from Africa accentuated her love and appreciation of its wild places, diverse cultures and found her even more eager to learn its nuances. Upon returning, she enrolled in a tourism course, and after graduation she moved to the bush. And so the love affair began, she's even more absorbed now in enhancing the natural habitats of her home.
Pete and Sharon, along with a superb team of people, have created an experience of which we are all proud. Together, Selinda Reserve is a leader in conservation tourism.
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Meet Mara's People
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 Richard Pye, born in Mombasa, Kenya, grew up speaking Kiswahili and learning the ropes from local fisherman. Throughout his life, Richard spent much time in the Chyulu Hills, where along side his uncle Richard Bonham, he developed and nurtured his love of wildlife and conservation. He began guiding at age 17, specializing in walking safaris. As a Kenya native, he’s educated on continent in Kenya & South Africa, where he graduated from the University of Cape Town with a BSc in Social Sciences, focused on Archaeology and Anthropology. His safari experience is extensive – managing camps across Kenya and Tanzania, operating a conservancy in the Tana Delta (Kenya), guiding a 3-month exclusive overland trip through East Africa, and tracking African wild dog on foot across Northern Kenya as a researcher. We are pleased to have a man of this diverse experience at the helm at Mara Plains.
Joining Richard is Lorna Buchanan-Jardine, hailing from Scotland, where her love of the outdoors was fostered by exploration of the surrounding highlands. She was first hooked on Africa & travel at the age of 14 when on safari in the Kruger, and she’s been on-the-go since. After school, Lorna immediately left for South America to hike the Inca Trail, then onward to drive the length of New Zealand and Australia, kayak Malaysia, and cycle across France. All of this bolstered her appetite for photography, which she later studied at the International Centre of Photography in New York and then at Newcastle College. Post-degree Lorna assisted well-renown London-based photographers, traveling intermittently to pursue personal photographic projects in India and to gather material for her exhibitions. In the following years as a freelancer, she landed in Kenya with her rucksack, an old manual Nikon and an intention of photographing the Digo tribe. But with the then elections and slightly associated chaos, she & Richard instead drove 15,000 kilometres around Southern Africa. After 2 years, she moved to Kenya full time and we are lucky to have her, and her immense talent – leading Mara Plains.
For anyone wishing to learn photography while on safari at Mara Plains, Lorna is more than happy to show you how to get the best results from your camera.
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Meet ol Donyo's People
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 Ray & Alyssa Wyatt - ol Donyo Lodge Managers
Ray grew up in a small fishing town on the South Coast of England. He knew at a very young age that he wanted to be a chef. By 15, Ray was already at Culinary and Hospitality school, and by 17 he’d begun working as a chef just outside of London. Using his career as an opportunity to travel he moved to Denmark and spent 6 years working his way to sous-chef at one of the top hotel restaurants in the country. Travel has always been a huge part of Ray’s life and the accomplishment of backpacking around the world twice left an inedible impression on him personally, and on his culinary practice. During one of his many trips, while working in Australia, Ray met his wife Alyssa. Soon enough, he found himself living in the US, Alyssa’s homeland, and stayed for 10 years. During this American stint, Ray worked as an executive chef, a hospitality and culinary instructor and even started a fine dining company with Alyssa.
While Ray’s successful career thrived in Alyssa’s hometown of St. Paul, Minnesota; Alyssa guided her career toward her number one passion of travel and tourism. Working as Business Development Manager for one of the largest provider of vacations in the US, she educated Travel Agents across the country on destinations all over the world. Come the spring of 2010, Ray and Alyssa’s feet were getting itchy, and feeling they had reached the height of their existing positions, they sought a new challenge. There was no better time to set off in a 1971 Volkswagen van with the license plate “DRM MKR”. And they have never looked back.
In the beginning of 2011 Ray and Alyssa took on a five-month consulting position in Tanzania. This ignited their love of East Africa - its people, beauty and culture – and developed into a pursuit to make it their home. And so they landed at “home” with us at ol Donyo Lodge in the captivating Chyulu Hills of Kenya. Meanwhile, Diva (1971 Volkswagen) is enjoying a well-earned rest at home in England.
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 Born and raised in Kenya, Paul credits the extensive holiday travel and hotel stays during his childhoold as the inspiration for him joining the hospitality industry. In 2005 he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Hotel and Tourism Management from the Hotelschool – The Hague, Amsterdam. Since then, Paul has worked in several countries including Spain, U.A.E., the Netherlands and Kenya, gathering experience in just about every aspect of hotel management from stewarding to finance to operations.
In 2010 he moved back to Kenya and worked at a coastal resort in Manda Island, part of the historic Lamu Archipelago. Paul joined oL Donyo Lodge in 2012 where he has brought his passion for hospitality and excellence in guest service. An outdoorsman who enjoys soccer, sailing and fly fishing among other pursuits, Paul has recently discovered a new hobby – horseback riding.
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