BIOGRAPHY: LES CARLISLE andBeyond Group Conservation Manager Les Carlisle has been an intrinsic part of the &Beyond team for more than 20 years, providing invaluable conservation management across the group. His conservation successes in both Africa and India are ongoing. Les‟s long history with &Beyond started in February 1991 with the creation of &Beyond Phinda Private Game Reserve. He was instrumental in reintroducing predators and other species onto the Reserve and managing all game translocations required to transform it into the world-renowned reserve that it is today. He also established the initial community relationships and development committees for &Beyond‟s social development partner, Africa Foundation, and played an influential role in obtaining the legal and conservation permissions necessary for the establishment of a Big Five reserve on private land. He spent several years overseeing Phinda‟s regional development and as the company grew he investigated and embarked on new opportunities in other countries. As Group Conservation Manager, Les represents &Beyond on the Boards of two conservation areas and advises the company on the proper management of conservation areas. He assists the Public Relations‟ team with hosting media and is often invited to international conferences as a keynote speaker to talk about &Beyond‟s successful business model. He also writes a blog, Carlisle on Conservation, where he shares his work experiences (link: http://www.andbeyond.com/carlisle_on_conservation/). In 2012, Les was privileged to be involved in the historic reversal of a local extinction of gaur (Indian bison) in the Bandhavgarh National Park in India by applying his wildlife translocation experience. He successfully engineered and developed the protocol for mass translocation of animals by working with Indian vets and conservationists. The successful translocation of 50 gaur is testimony to the success of the training and advice that Les provided through &Beyond. Les is also heavily involved in sustainability initiatives, such as „Give More, Take Less‟ whereby he encourages &Beyond‟s 33 lodges to maximise their positive impact whilst minimising their negative footprint. He inspires the lodges to submit their Eco-Overheads, an in-house measurement tool, to give an overall picture of each lodge‟s contribution to conservation and look at ways to reduce their environmental footprint. He affectionately describes his education as “a doctorate from the University of Hard Knocks”. Despite his lack of formal training, Les was involved in professional game capture and wildlife management for several years before joining Phinda, and has successfully translocated more than 40,000 animals. An advanced scuba diver, Les has also sky dived and piloted aircraft. He has a basic practical experience in electrics, mechanics, welding and woodwork. He is a keen naturalist, avid birdwatcher and passionate about sport and flying. He flew a micro-light over Phinda for four years in the early days of the reserve and these remain some of his most treasured memories. Les lives with his wife Lynette and two sons, who were both raised at Phinda. Career Highlights:  Translocated 50 gaur to Bandhavgarh National Park, India  Pioneered giraffe darting and mass capture techniques  First ever reintroduction of lion and cheetah to the same park  Developed a technique for mixing lions from different parks pre-release  Participated in the first black rhino range expansion project  Participated in the largest white rhino translocation event - 21 rhinos in one day { 2013 | &Beyond Trading Terms apply } ISSUED BY: [email protected] T +27 11 809 4300 | F +27 11 809 4511 www.andBeyond.com ABOUT &BEYOND &Beyond is one of the world‟s leading luxury experiential travel companies, designing personalised luxury safaris in 15 African countries, as well as India, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The company also owns and operates 33 extraordinary lodges and camps in Africa and India‟s natural highspots. Established in 1991, &Beyond takes exceptional care of its guests in order to make a difference; its commitment to sustainable responsible travel and community empowerment is world renowned. Please note: We are legally required to use the font „trebuchet‟ when printing the ampersand in „&Beyond‟. If this is not possible, please kindly write it out in full, i.e. „andBeyond‟. The referring website in your article should be: www.andBeyond.com 2