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Some travel to Africa for the adventure and romance of a safari; others go with a more philanthropic itinerary. For those who want both, there’s Uncharted Outposts, a tour outfitter specializing in customized trips throughout Africa, Australia, New Zealand and the Americas. Owned by Sandy Cunningham, who grew up in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), and her husband, Chip, the highly acclaimed company uses a portfolio of small, stunning properties and gives a portion of all its African trip proceeds to TUSK, a Prince William-backed charity, which works to alleviate poverty and to protect local ecosystems. In the Masai Mara, where the typical means of economic advancement (through livestock farming) seems to collide with conservation efforts, TUSK set up the Koiyaki Guide School. Its various programs help integrate local Masai into the safari guide experience, enabling them to obtain an alternative, more environmentally sound source of income.

Below, Sandy Cunningham, a natural storyteller whose passion for people and Africa is palpable, talks about TUSK, Uncharted’s African trips and why it was a good thing that Helen Fielding, author of Bridget Jones’ Diary, lost her Chanel sunglasses on one of them.

Why is TUSK your charity of choice?

On a continent where even the smallest amount of money can go so far—just $300 can support a child’s education for a year—it’s frustrating to see how much money gets lost within the inner bureaucracies of larger charities. TUSK TRUST, the main office in England, only employs three people while TUSK USA is run by unpaid volunteers, all of whom have an intimate knowledge of Africa.

What are some of TUSK’s current projects?

One of TUSK’s projects in Kenya was to help educate the local people in the Masai Mara to become fully qualified Safari Guides. Eighty percent of the guides there are not from the Mara and very few of these have any real knowledge of guiding, conservation or safari etiquette; they are just brought in as contract drivers by the larger mass market companies. On the other hand, the pastoral traditions of cattle grazing in the Masai Mara are destructive to local ecosystems. In 2005, TUSK TRUST helped establish the Koiyaki Guide school, which trains young Masai men and women in conservation practices, wildlife tracking, visitor handling as well as natural history, camp management and cuisine. The inclusion of women at the school is quite extraordinary as most girls tend to stay at home in the villages. After graduation, the Masai then spend a year at a wildlife camp where they receive further instruction with college students and wildlife photographers before beginning to take groups out.

This is just one example, though, of how TUSK improves opportunities for local communities. Others include: working with the luxury safari lodges (many of which we use on our trips) and getting them to employ the villagers; setting up schools and funding the annual teacher fees, and training locals in anti-poaching. One of TUSK’s more recent conservation projects was the reintroduction of rhinos into the Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania, whose rhino population (once around 3,000) had been decimated due to rampant poaching.

Have you ever had any disasters in the bush?

We have a “touch wood” impeccable safety record – but trying to impress Helen Fielding (author of the Bridget Jones smash hit) was jinxed from the start. When my husband and I were running Ol Donyo Wuas lodge in Kenya Helen Fielding came out to write an article on our camp for Condé Nast Traveller. I think pretty much everything that could have possibly gone wrong on her trip went wrong. Soufflés refused to cooperate; she lost her Chanel sunglasses while horseback riding in the bush (she was good rider though) and she was chased by a lioness in the plains. All these mini-disasters, though, made her article so funny. . . and one of the best ever written on Africa. Her experience actually speaks to the continent in general. It’s not the land of cookie-cutter vacations—it’s far more interesting than that.

Do you have any advice for travelers interested in giving back?

Most of our clients are very interested in donating to a cause in Africa. We think the best way is to go out there, look around and then figure out what project you are most interested in, whether it be protecting wildlife, alleviating the poverty or HIV situation in Kenya or investing in education. We also lead various philanthropic trips so people can witness the progress TUSK has made in all these various endeavors; donations are then usually made to the project of one’s choice after people experience the sites firsthand. Doing research on the particular problems before visiting is also recommended. This actually applies to the whole safari experience in general.

To read Sandy’s suggestions for family safaris, click here.