I was born and raised in Switzerland, where I spent the first 39 years of my life living what many would consider a typical, privileged Swiss lifestyle – a good job, a successful career, financial stability, and plenty of material comfort. But a few years ago, I came to a life-changing realisation: despite having everything I was "supposed" to want, I wasn’t truly happy. I felt something was missing – a sense of purpose and a life lived in alignment with my heart.
Nature and safaris had always been a passion of mine, so I decided to take a leap of faith and follow that inner calling. I took a year off and enrolled in a professional field guide course in South Africa, with placements in Botswana and Zambia. I worked with children and communities in conservation education, capacity building, and research – and absolutely loved it. When the course ended, I knew I couldn’t go back to my old life in Switzerland. I had found not only my purpose, but also the love of my life – and a deep connection to Africa.
By chance, I discovered an opportunity at Sensing Clues, and after speaking with Jan-Kees, I realised it was the perfect bridge between my past experience and future goals. Today, I’m working part-time as an Impact Facilitator at Sensing Clues, where I manage marketing, communications, community engagement, and partnerships. Alongside this, I also help co-manage Kusasa, a donor lodge run by the Wild Tomorrow Fund, located in the heart of the stunning Greater Ukuwela Nature Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa – where I’m now living.
I joined WildHub because I truly believe in collaboration. At Sensing Clues, we work closely with passionate individuals from around the world to co-create innovative, volunteer-driven solutions for conservation. I’m here to connect with like-minded people, exchange knowledge, and share work opportunities to create a bigger, longer-lasting impact – together and beyond the front lines. We’ll soon be launching free online events through Sensing Clues, and I’d love to share them with this community – so that passionate individuals can learn, contribute, and get involved in meaningful ways. I also hope to share the practical knowledge and insights I gained in the bush while training and working as a guide.
I’m always looking to grow, explore new ideas, and keep learning. True to my motto – "Driven by purpose, guided by heart" – I believe that a meaningful life begins with passion, purpose, and connection.
Stephanie Manka (formerly Schuttler)
Wildlife Biologist and Science Communicator, Fancy Scientist LLC
Wildlife biologist 🐘 Mentor 👩🎓 Your Biggest Career Cheerleader 📣 Communicator 👥 | Showing animal lovers how to get their dream job✨ | Connecting people with nature for conservation 🌿 and community 🏙️
I'm Liane, and I am a WildLearning Specialist at WildTeam! I'm looking forward to getting to know you all!
For the last few years, I've been working in Seychelles, focusing on island and marine conservation efforts, particularly coral restoration and turtle nesting monitoring. If you ask me questions about coral, be prepared for me to get very nerdy about it! Prior to that, I was managing a project in Northern Thailand, where I worked closely with a local community to set up ethical elephant experiences in their village.
In my free time, I love running and hiking, and being anywhere in nature. I have also learnt to freedive in the last few years and enjoy doing that when possible. I'm really interested in talking to different people and learning from them and their unique experiences.
My background is mainly in species conservation, education and capacity exchange. I researched mother-young interactions in gorillas and chimpanzees, in captivity and the wild. After that, I worked for three years in Indonesia, where I developed and implemented youth ambassador and community engagement programmes on local and regional scales. I co-founded WildHub, a community of nature conservation professionals, in 2020 and work as their Community Lead. I am furthermore on the Advisory Board of the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE) at the University of Kent where I obtained my PhD on capacity development for conservation in 2022.