Saba Douglas-Hamilton
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Saba Iassa Douglas-Hamilton (born 7 June 1970) is a
Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...
n wildlife conservationist and television presenter. She has worked for a variety of conservation charities, and has appeared in wildlife documentaries produced by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
and other broadcasters. She is currently the manager of Elephant Watch Camp in Kenya’s Samburu National Reserve and Special Projects Director for the charity ''
Save the Elephants Save the Elephants (STE) is a UK registered charity based in Kenya founded in September 1993 by Iain Douglas-Hamilton. Save the Elephants works to sustain elephant populations and preserve the habitats in which elephants are found, while at the ...
''.


Early life

Saba was born in Nairobi Hospital,
Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...
, to
zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...
Iain and Oria Douglas-Hamilton (''née'' Rocco). Saba means "seven" in the
Swahili language Swahili, also known by its local name , is the native language of the Swahili people, who are found primarily in Tanzania, Kenya and Mozambique (along the East African coast and adjacent litoral islands). It is a Bantu language, though Swahili ...
; she was named by
Maasai Maasai may refer to: * Maasai people *Maasai language * Maasai mythology * MAASAI (band) See also * Masai (disambiguation) * Massai Massai (also known as: Masai, Massey, Massi, Mah–sii, Massa, Wasse, Wassil or by the nickname "Big Foot" Mas ...
women because she was born on 7 June at 7pm, and was the seventh grandchild. Her first language was Swahili and she grew up playing with the local Kenyan children. Her father went to Africa as a young man to study and conserve elephant populations. Her white African ancestry comes from her mother who is the daughter of Italians who settled in Kenya in the 1920s. Her mother still farms at
Lake Naivasha Lake Naivasha is a freshwater lake in Kenya, outside the town of Naivasha in Nakuru County, which lies north west of Nairobi. It is part of the Great Rift Valley. The name derives from the local Maasai name ''Nai'posha'', meaning "rough wate ...
in the Great Rift Valley. She is a great-granddaughter of Alfred Douglas-Hamilton, the 13th Duke of Hamilton. Her sister Mara Moon Douglas-Hamilton, known as "Dudu" (which means "insect"), is a film producer.


Education

Saba did not start school in Kenya until she was seven, then went to Britain to an all-girls boarding school for three years which she later described as "like a prison". She went on to attend the
United World College of the Atlantic Atlantic College (formally the United World College of the Atlantic; alternatively styled UWC Atlantic College, UWCAC, or UWCA) is an independent boarding school in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. Founded in 1962, it was the first of th ...
in South
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
to study for the
International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB Dip ...
. She gained a place at
St Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...
in Scotland and was awarded a master's degree in
Social Anthropology Social anthropology is the study of patterns of behaviour in human societies and cultures. It is the dominant constituent of anthropology throughout the United Kingdom and much of Europe, where it is distinguished from cultural anthropology. In t ...
with a thesis on "Concepts of Love and Sexuality amongst the Bajuni People of Kiwaiyu Island, Kenya".


Snake bite

When she was 18, Saba was on a camel safari when she was bitten on her leg by a
venomous snake Venomous snakes are Species (biology), species of the Suborder (biology), suborder Snake, Serpentes that are capable of producing Snake venom, venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The v ...
. Though sometimes misreported as an asp, this was identified as a
carpet viper ''Echis'' (common names: saw-scaled vipers, carpet vipersSpawls S, Branch B. 1995. ''The Dangerous Snakes of Africa''. Dubai: Ralph Curtis Books. Oriental Press. 192 pp. .) is a genus of vipers found in the dry regions of Africa, the Middle Eas ...
. Friends made a pressure bandage and gave her electric shocks to keep her awake until they reached help.


Marriage and children

In February 2006, Saba married conservationist and journalist
Frank Pope Frank Pope (born 13 May 1973) is the chief executive officer for Save the Elephants (STE). After studying zoology at the University of Edinburgh he began his career in marine science before joining The Times newspaper as the world's only Ocea ...
in a traditional Kenyan ceremony. They live in a rustic house outside
Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...
that borders the famous Rothschild's Giraffe Sanctuary. They have three daughters: Selkie (born in March 2009) and younger twins Mayin and Luna.


Charity work

When she returned to Africa from her studies in the UK she worked for the ''
Save the Rhino Trust Save the Rhino International (SRI), a UK-based conservation charity, is Europe's largest single-species rhino charity, in terms of funds raised and grants made, and in terms of profile and positioning. It began fundraising for in situ rhino c ...
'' in Namibia, mentored by conservationist
Blythe Loutit Blythe Loutit née Pascoe (14 November 1940, in Natal, South Africa – 15 June 2005, in Namibia) was a founder member of thSave the Rhino Trust(SRT), an artist and a respected conservationist. Biography The youngest of four children, she grew up ...
. Douglas-Hamilton has served as a trustee of ''
Save the Elephants Save the Elephants (STE) is a UK registered charity based in Kenya founded in September 1993 by Iain Douglas-Hamilton. Save the Elephants works to sustain elephant populations and preserve the habitats in which elephants are found, while at the ...
'', a charity founded by her father. Based in
Samburu National Reserve The Samburu National Reserve is a game reserve on the banks of the Ewaso Ng'iro river in Kenya. On the other side of the river is the Buffalo Springs National Reserve. The park is 165 km² in size and is situated 350 kilometers from Nairobi. ...
in the
Great Rift Valley, Kenya The Great Rift Valley is part of an intra-continental ridge system that runs through Kenya from north to south. It is part of the Gregory Rift, the eastern branch of the East African Rift, which starts in Tanzania to the south and continues nor ...
, ''Save the Elephants'' carries out detailed long-term monitoring of the local elephant population, and deploys sophisticated elephant tracking techniques there and across the continent. Through the charity she has worked to support, protect and increase awareness of issues which threaten to erode African elephant populations and their habitats. In 2008 Saba supported Merlin (Medical Emergency Relief International), the UK medical aid agency, to raise money for emergency health services following post-election violence when some 500 people were killed and more than 300,000 Kenyans were left without homes or clean water. She is also host of the annual Future For Nature Awards in Burgers Zoo, and chair of Future For Nature's International Selection Committee.


Television career

Since 2000, Saba has appeared in wildlife documentaries produced by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
and others. Many of these have been set in Africa and have featured elephants – an animal with which she became very familiar during her childhood. From 2002, she co-presented the '' Big Cat Diary'' series with Jonathan Scott and Simon King. She has also appeared in wildlife programmes set in other countries and regions, such as
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, Lapland and in the
Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
, where she filmed
polar bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...
s. From 2004, Douglas-Hamilton presented short pieces on holiday destinations in the ''
BBC Holiday ''Holiday'' is a British television programme, which aired mainly on BBC One, and sometimes on BBC Two. It is the longest running travel review series on UK television, showing every year from 1969 until its demise in 2007. Overview The progr ...
'' series. In 2006, she appeared alongside
Nigel Marven Nigel Alan Marven (born 27 November 1960) is a British wildlife TV presenter, naturalist, conservationist, author, and television producer. He is best known as presenter of the BBC miniseries '' Chased by Dinosaurs'', its sequel, '' Sea Monsters ...
in an episode of ''
Prehistoric Park ''Prehistoric Park'' is a six-part nature docu-fiction television mini-series that premiered on ITV on 22 July 2006 and on Animal Planet on 29 October 2006. The programme was produced by Impossible Pictures, who also created ''Walking with Din ...
'' in which she travelled back 10,000 years to study
sabre-toothed cat Machairodontinae is an extinct subfamily of carnivoran mammals of the family Felidae (true cats). They were found in Asia, Africa, North America, South America, and Europe from the Miocene to the Pleistocene, living from about 16 million until ...
s. She produced and narrated a documentary, ''Heart of a Lioness'', about a wild lioness called Kamunyak, "the blessed one," which acted as a maternal guardian for the lion's natural prey: an antelope. In 2007 she presented the TV programme ''Saba and the rhino's secret'' on
black rhino The black rhinoceros, black rhino or hook-lipped rhinoceros (''Diceros bicornis'') is a species of rhinoceros, native to eastern and southern Africa including Angola, Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania ...
in Namibia, and in 2008 she produced and presented ''Rhino Nights'' for ''Animal Planet'', again using night-time cinematography to capture black rhino behaviour. The same year she presented a three part BBC documentary, ''Unknown Africa'', on the state of wildlife in
Comoros The Comoros,, ' officially the Union of the Comoros,; ar, الاتحاد القمري ' is an independent country made up of three islands in southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. It ...
,
Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...
and
Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...
. In 2009 Douglas-Hamilton presented a three part BBC documentary series, '' The Secret Life of Elephants'', with her father Iain. It explored the lives of elephants in Kenya's Samburu reserve and the work of the ''Save the Elephants'' research team. In 2014 the BBC Natural History Unit filmed a 10-part series, ''This Wild Life'', (with 2 extra episodes for international markets) on Douglas-Hamilton’s work and family life at Elephant Watch Camp in Samburu. The series was first broadcast in the UK in September 2015.


References


External links

Home page
page exists but (Feb 2014) is empty--> * {{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas-Hamilton, Saba 1970 births People educated at Atlantic College People educated at a United World College Alumni of the University of St Andrews
Saba Douglas-Hamilton Saba Iassa Douglas-Hamilton (born 7 June 1970) is a Kenyan wildlife conservationist and television presenter. She has worked for a variety of conservation charities, and has appeared in wildlife documentaries produced by the BBC and other br ...
Kenyan conservationists Kenyan people of English descent Kenyan people of Italian descent White Kenyan people Living people