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superhero who challenges evil and It’s not
fights crime, including rhino poaching.
In keeping with the youthful theme, WHO
the comics are illustrated by a young
creative, Unathi Dee Dyani, who you know,
came up through Boomtown’s Bayeza it’s
programme to nurture talent among
young creatives from disadvantaged WHAT
communities in the Eastern Cape.
you know.
Although the participants believe
a great deal has been achieved
since 2014 when the team from
Wilderness Foundation first met Bui,
the campaign has, in a sense, only
just begun. Some of the Vietnamese
campaign ambassadors have now
graduated from school but continue
to spread the ‘say no to rhino horn’
message – one student does so from
university in Canada. The next batch
of ambassadors will soon be identified.

“We’ll be back in Vietnam in October
to launch the next round of this
campaign and hopefully begin the
process all over again,” says Reynolds.
“We’re hoping to keep the programme
going for at least five years.”

It is too early to know just how
effective the Vietnam, Be My Hero
campaign is in terms of reducing
demand for rhino horn. But the team
is confident it is going to make a
difference. “The enthusiasm of the
ambassadors is remarkable,” observes
MacKenzie. “Time will tell just how
convincing they are, but we believe that
the impact of the campaign will become
evident soon.”

Penny Haw is a
Cape Town-based
freelance writer,
columnist, journalist
and editor who has
for many years written
extensively for South
Africa’s national daily
business newspaper, Business Day. She
has also had articles published in the
Financial Mail.

October 2016 – January 2017 strategicmarketing 35