Meat, Orphanages, and Rhino Hunting || Helix Program #6

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Meat, Orphanages, and Rhino Hunting"

The Origins Foundation Podcast | Helix Program #6
Date: June 16, 2026

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Overview

This episode of The Origins Foundation Podcast features an in-depth conversation with Ruan Marx, owner and operator of Inkulu Adventures, a hunting outfit in South Africa. The discussion candidly explores controversial and nuanced subjects such as rhino hunting, meat donations, and community involvement with orphanages. It delves into the realities of private wildlife management, the necessity of funding for conservation, and the complexities of sustainable use in the context of endangered species. The episode aims to challenge assumptions, highlight the links between hunting and local upliftment, and spark ongoing conversations about conservation ethics and community responsibility.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Origins of Inkulu Adventures and Ruan’s Philosophy

• Inkulu Adventures operates in the Northwest province of South Africa, offering hunting experiences, significant meat processing, and a strong community engagement component.
• Origins of the Name:
  • “Inkulu” is a Zulu term meaning “the greatest or superior.” (03:24)
  • Ruan aspires to deliver top-tier safari service but humbly refutes thinking of himself as “the greatest.” (03:34)
• Industry Experience:
  • Ruan has over 21 years in the hunting industry, launching his own company after identifying gaps in ethical and community-focused hunting operations. (03:58, 04:35)
  • He stresses learning both "how not to do things and how not to be" in hunting, emphasizing the importance of giving back rather than only profiting from the industry. (04:35–06:34)

“A closed hand will never receive... You will never achieve something spectacular if you're not willing to give back to communities.”
—Ruan Marx (05:10)

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The Economics and Ethics of Rhino Hunting

What Does It Take to Own and Hunt Rhinos?

• Financial Realities:
  • Hunting rhinos is costly, not just profitable.
    • Security, insurance, supplementary feed, and infrastructure cost tens of thousands of dollars annually. (11:14–14:39)
  • Example: Insurance on a huntable rhino is $7,500 for 6–12 months. Feeding can reach up to $40,000 annually. (12:42, 14:37)
• Private Ownership:
  • All wildlife, including rhinos in South Africa, is privately owned, and responsibility (and liability) falls on the private owner, not the government. (11:14)
  • The state assists only in permitting and ethical regulation, offering no direct support for food or security.

Addressing Public Perceptions & Controversy

• Misconceptions:
  • Many believe hunters and outfitters pocket all hunting fees. Ruan clarifies extensive hidden costs. (10:47, 14:39)
  • The process is legal, transparent, and strictly regulated, with DNA sampling and microchipping for accountability. (15:01)

“Everything we do is 100% legal... the whole process is captured and I see no reason why people want to hide that because it's part of what we do. It's part of the story, it's part of the reality.”
—Ruan Marx (15:01)

Conservation Impact and Hypothetical Ban

• If Rhino Hunting Was Banned:
  • Ruan would take a “financial beating,” but more importantly, he argues rhino conservation would be in jeopardy, as there would be no viable way to cover necessary expenses for their survival. (16:20–22:00)
  • The breeding process for rhinos is slow—one calf every nine years, with a bull only huntable after 15–18 years. (16:59–19:39)
  • Without hunting or legal horn trade, the species would "slowly but surely" disappear from private lands, as their upkeep would become unsustainable. (20:27–22:00)

“If it's not allowed to be hunted... it will slowly but surely be the end of the rhinos... there's no other way you can make money out of a rhino.”
—Ruan Marx (20:27)

• Commodification of Wildlife:
  • Ruan insists commodification isn't the end goal; funding is a necessity for protection, not profit. (22:12)
  • Hunting is selective and infrequent—very few people can or want to hunt a rhino. (23:08)

“Rhino is never a money thing. But... you need money to take care of something. Unfortunately.”
—Ruan Marx (22:12)

• Emotional Complexity:
  • Even among seasoned hunters, rhino hunting is emotionally challenging. (23:08–23:17)

Photographic Tourism Versus Hunting

• Ruan argues that photographic tourists do not provide funding levels comparable to what a single rhino hunt can accomplish. (23:18–24:25)

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Community Involvement: Meat Donation and Beyond

• Donating Meat:

  • Meat from legally hunted animals—including rhino—is donated to orphanages, special needs schools, and soup kitchens. (14:39, 24:56)
  • Ruan and his wife Marlise see this as a moral duty, not a marketing tactic or “feel good” project. (06:36, 24:58)

• Sustainable Skill Development:

  • Efforts go beyond meat donation—focus on skill-building and training to enable orphans to become future employable adults, including hiring them as staff at the hunting operation. (27:14– 29:04)

“You know, my biggest dream is to take a guy out of the orphanage and employ him and make him...one of my best trackers, you know, uplift him... I've done it...I did take a lady out of the orphanage... she's working with me.”
—Ruan Marx (28:02)

• Greenhouse Project:

  • In partnership with Tabang Orphanage, Inkulu Adventures set up an easy-to-operate greenhouse to improve self-sufficiency and provide surplus for donation. (30:09)

• Comprehensive Support:

  • Support extends to food, clothes, bedding, school fees, transportation, and sponsoring extracurricular activities. (32:12–34:40)
  • The schools and orphanages involved are often under-resourced and lack government support, relying heavily on such private sector and community initiatives.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On the real cost of rhino hunting:
  • “People think it always... it's just the outfit. They're making the money.” (10:47) —Roy, with Ruan clarifying hidden costs.
• On conservation through hunting:
  • “At the end of the day, we need a hunter to be able to preserve this species.” (24:18) —Ruan
• On community and giving back:
  • “It's not a feel good thing. It's just, I feel very strongly about it that if we have something that we can share with people, that is what you have to do.” (24:58) —Ruan
• On skills development for orphans:
  • “You can't be mad at someone that has zero skills development. So it's my responsibility to develop those skills with the people. And it's part of the donation part, creating an opportunity for someone like that.” (29:05) —Ruan

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Important Timestamps

• 03:24 — Meaning of “Inkulu”
• 04:35 — Ruan on learning from the industry, giving back
• 10:47 — Addressing public misconceptions about hunting profits
• 12:42–14:39 — Costs of rhino ownership (insurance, feed, fencing)
• 15:01 — Full transparency/legal compliance in rhino hunts
• 16:20–22:00 — The hypothetical impact of a hunting ban on rhino survival
• 23:08–24:25 — Emotional impact of rhino hunting & limits of photographic tourism
• 24:58 — Community engagement: meat donations, orphanage support
• 27:14–29:04 — Skills development and employment for orphans
• 30:09 — Greenhouse initiative for orphanage
• 32:12–34:40 — Additional supports: school fees, clothing, comprehensive care

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Additional Information

• Contact and Learn More:
  • Website: inkuluadventures.com (35:57)
  • All contact info, phone numbers, and emails available on the site.

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Closing Thoughts

This episode exemplifies the podcast’s mission to have “hard conversations” about conservation, sustainable use, and social responsibility. Ruan Marx’s pragmatic but passionate approach demonstrates the interconnectedness of ethical hunting, community upliftment, and wildlife conservation in South Africa. The discussion is as much about meat processing and feeding children as it is about preserving Africa’s megafauna, blurring the simplistic lines between conservation and commerce, emotion and economics, and personal responsibility and global policy.

Transcript

[FishingBooker Narrator]

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[Podcast Host]

Ruand Marx is the owner operator of Inculu Adventures in the Northwest province of South Africa, close to a small town called Taba Zimbi. Ruan has been a contract professional hunter since he was 21 years old and saw the things that he would do differently if he had his own outfit and place. That's now the experience that you get at it. Kulu Adventures myself and the cinematography team spent about a week with Ruan in a torrential downpours to learn more about his operation, the work he does with the local orphanage, the significant meat processing he does, and the supply of meat to the local orphanage and schools for daily meat provisions. Ruan also owns rhinos that he controversially hunts. It's strange to think about rhino conservation and hunting rhinos. Aren't they endangered? Those two things shouldn't go together. Well, we get into that and this podcast starts a much larger conversation that will come with several more podcasts about the value of rhinos and rhino conservation. So enjoy. So five years ago there was a reason why I started this movement and the truth then is the truth now that we need to champion our narrative. We need to champion the truth around what we do and who we are. There's a sweet spot with a gun, you know, too heavy and it's a burden to walk with. Too light and you whipping it. Why is the project so important to the hunting community?

[Interviewer (Roy)]

It's. It's a. I think it's not only important, I think it's. I think it's vital. I think it's, it's just in time.

[Podcast Host]

It's like snakes and ladders.

[Ruan Marx]

You guys are clay Climbing the ladder and then somebody does something stupid and

[Podcast Host]

you just slide down. That is such an amazing analogy. Snakes and ladders.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah.

[Podcast Host]

You know, ivory, in my opinion, was the plastic of its age. Okay.

[Ruan Marx]

The expenses were going up. It goes a long way with families. We have families that do need it.

[Podcast Host]

Let me close this door because I have a little wiener dog.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

What are you laughing?

[Podcast Host]

Because I said wiener.

[FishingBooker Narrator]

I'm really glad you finished the sentence out. I'm sorry the first happened we doing here today.

[Podcast Host]

You're telling the whole world.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

All right. In camp. In the inulu adventures camp. What does inulu mean?

[Ruan Marx]

It's the Zulu term that means the greatest or superior.

[Podcast Host]

Really?

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

That's nice. How did you come up with that? Because you're the greatest and the, the, the most.

[Ruan Marx]

That's the, that's the type of safaris and service I, I to. To present or offer. But I, I would like to think that about myself. But that's not, that's not the right way to think about it.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

We should ask that question of my lease.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

See what she says.

[Ruan Marx]

And no, no, that, that will definitely not be nkulu.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

That's right. That's right.

[Podcast Host]

How long you been in.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

In business, Ron?

[Ruan Marx]

I've been in the hunting industry in and out for the past 21 years. And the. The time came where I needed to do my own thing. So I started in Kulu five years ago and. But obviously I started hunting at the age of 21 professionally.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Okay.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah. So the time came, I had opportunities and I took it with both hands. And in a short time, we created something really special that we are very proud of.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

So in your. You've been hunting for 21 years, you've had your operation for five. Obviously in those 21 years, you've seen the good, bad and the ugly.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah. I mean, that's why I always hammer on it and say that the time was right when I did it. Because I learned a lot over the past 21 years. I learned a lot out of the industry before I started my own company. And when the opportunities came and when the time was right, I knew what I wanted to present or to give to the industry. I knew where there were spaces that was lacking. Like what now? I'm a very firm believer that a closed hand will never receive. And because I'm blessed with good clients through the hunting industry, I, I just learned out of it that you. You will never achieve something spectacular if you're not willing to give back to communities. And obviously through our industry, previous people that I hunted with hunted for what I saw. And what I've learned is wasn't what I was looking for out of the industry. So that's why I'm saying I learned a lot. And I teached myself how not to do things and how not to be. And because we have the sources, we know we have the meat, we have all these clients that hunt animals. It's already paid for. But why must we sell the meat and take that money to us also, instead of, you know, helping other people, giving it away, donating it, and through that, change people's lives? Because it's a given to us. You know, I feel if your company structure is right, you don't need that extra income from the meat.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Sure.

[Ruan Marx]

But you achieve way more. Not, and definitely not through marketing. I'm not doing what we do for a marketing perspective. I'm doing it because we want to do it. And Marlise is driving everything. But, I mean, obviously, me being the owner, we still have to, you know, approve everything. But I definitely learned what I'm doing now over the past 21 years is this is what I wanted to do one day if I have my own company.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

M. It's funny. One of the things that you've counted already is this idea. And I was on a text message string with friends last night, and we'll get into this, and we'll talk. We can talk about it right now. You know, we're here. We hunted a rhino. You hunt rhinos here? And I said, you know, client came in and paid $65,000 for a line for a. For a rhino.

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[Interviewer (Roy)]

And the response immediately was, oh, that went all straight into your pocket.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah, people think it always. It's just the outfit. They're making the money.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Lots of money.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah, lots of money. But people don't calculate the hidden costs. You know, there's so many things, and it's not just about the rhinos. You know, you must remember in South Africa, we Privately own everything. There is no free range, so there is no government owned animals. Everything that you see is owned by someone.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

So the only government control is over those cites, the species, right, the permits,

[Ruan Marx]

but the animal itself, it's, it stays ours and it stays our responsibility and liability. So it's ours. We don't get government funding for food, for security. Nature conservation don't help us with food or security. They split. They play a very integrate role in the permit system, in controlling the hunting and controlling ethical hunting, you know, assisting us with permit systems and quotas and stuff that they have in place. But there's so much stuff that's going on. Let's take this rhino hunt that we just had yesterday. You know, for us we don't, we, you, it's, it's almost impossible to have security like what guys have on, on, on a different level. You know, if you have 400 rhinos, I promise you it's, it's costing you millions, not just in food but in security. Because that's where the biggest issue is currently is security because of the biggest problem which is poaching. So, but the money that, that, that you, that you spent, you know, there's insurances on rhino, there's, we a lot of that.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

How do you insure a rhino?

[Ruan Marx]

There's a lot of things that can go wrong. You know, we ensure. I mainly insure rhinos for the main reason of the poaching because it's one of my security measurements that can't be cheap. No, no. So like that rhino we hunted yesterday, his insurance is about 7, $500 and it's over a six month period or a 12 month period, you can choose. Okay, but, but that's the one aspect then obviously we're living in an area here which is far from everything. So we invest heavily in road security systems.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

And it looks like you've also got double fences. I've never seen double fences before.

[Ruan Marx]

I do have double fences because especially on the main road side is to keep the rhinos away. So there's a kind of barrier that I create so people don't see the rhinos next to the fence because a

[Interviewer (Roy)]

lot of the times you avoid people driving down the. This is a government road out here. Yeah, well driving down and seeing the rhino up against the fence and calling someone saying hey, I see a rhino here.

[Ruan Marx]

Yes sir. So.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

And you don't dehorn your rhino, do you?

[Ruan Marx]

No, no, because remember I have some deont rhinos but all my rhinos that I have here is mainly for hunting Purposes if they get to the right age. So I'm at, I'm a outfitter that can provide a client with a trophy right now. But it's, it's, there's so much money that we spend towards, like I said earlier, you know, road security systems, insurances, fencing alone is costing you a fortune then the feet, you know. This year we are blessed with a lot of rain. They predicting next year is going to be a dry season. It for me it's easy with the rhinos and the stuff I have here on this ranch that to spend 30, $40,000 a year on just on feed, on supplementary feed.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Wow.

[Ruan Marx]

So I mean that's the stuff that people forget and they think that the money is only going to our pockets, you know, so. And then the other thing is now that rhino's meat is going to get processed and it's going to go to a better place again.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Yeah, I don't think anybody's thought about that. I guess I'd never thought about it because I've never seen it. I've never seen anybody show rhino meat. Yeah, yesterday I saw it.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah. And the thing is, you know, I want, I'm, I'm the guy from, for facts. I don't have to hide anything. Everything we do is 100% legal. You saw the permit systems that we use. You saw nature conservation yesterday, you saw the whole process. The guys were busy here with the DNA taking microchips. So. So the whole process is captured and I see no reason why people want to hide that because it's part of what we do. It's part of the story, it's part of the reality. If you don't do it, then that is the only way. There's no other way, you know, so, so I would say there's a lot of expenses going into rhino hunting especially. It's the same thing as, I mean it's an asset, you know, worth a lot of money. So you have to protect yourself, your client. And let's say for instance, our clients, you know, bought this rhino and it got struck by lightning. What do I have to do? You know, I have to refund that client.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Yeah.

[Ruan Marx]

Or they must get another rhino. But those things don't fall out of the sky.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Yeah.

[Ruan Marx]

So it's something that you have to have and it's just, it's the cost, the running cost on it is extremely high.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Let me ask this question, and I posed this to you yesterday, a little bit. What if you weren't allowed to hunt rhinos because some people would Say, I don't like you hunting an endangered species. And so let's make a hypothetical situation in which that dislike of that activity comes to reality from a policy and regulation perspective and becomes law. You're not allowed to hunt rhino anymore. Ron, what happens to you and the rhinos you have?

[Ruan Marx]

Well, for me, as an outfitter, obviously you will take a financial beating. Not that we are killing 100 rhinos a year. Also remember, it's a, it's a specific client that hunts it. It's a client that, that's able to afford it. And so my business will survive without it. But will the rhino survive? No. 100% no. Because at the end of the day, if you look at the bigger picture of a rhino and if you see how much money and time it really takes, the total investment. If you look at a bigger picture, a female gets ready to breed between six and seven years, then she has a gestation period, she gets a calf, and that calf will walk with her for another two to three years. In that time, she becomes pregnant again. So I would say more or less in a time frame of nine years, she will have one calf on the ground and one very close to the ground. If it's not on the ground. If that calf is a bull, you're probably gonna wait around about 15 to 18 years for it to get a huntable bull. Now, all these other rhinos that people hunt, some of them, yes, I would say genetically it's not there. We know a 20 inch rhino or something, but remember, those things never stop growing. So.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

And how long does that run

[Ruan Marx]

in? In. Yeah, by us, you know, you can see them starting. Most of the rhinos that we hunt, I would say, yeah. Is anything from 17 to 21 years old?

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Well, that's, I had no idea, actually. And I think that's what a lot of people may have the same perception I have, which is it's not, it's not like a two, three, four year process. Oh, there's a rhino, it's four years old or five years old. And it's not like your typical antelope species or even lions or leopards.

[Ruan Marx]

These things are, those things mature very fast, you know, and we had a conversation the other day is how old

[Interviewer (Roy)]

can a runner get?

[Ruan Marx]

Well, it depends how you look after him in captivity. About us, it can go old. You know, I think in open areas where there's natural, bigger natural hazards and if a drought comes, they don't get fed. What we've seen in some of the national parks close by or Game reserves that can create some severe issues. So it's difficult but I would say around about the 25 year mark.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Wow.

[Ruan Marx]

But you know, people think it's, it's, it's, it's a quick turnaround. It's not, you know, impala is three years, then you can hunt him, then it's a mature ram, but nothing else is fast. Wildebeest. Yeah. Three years. But if you look at kudu, look at eland, look at Buffalo, 10 years, then it's a mature animal. So that's why. And the same thing with rhino, same thing with buffaloes. It, it, you have to be very selective when you hunt and which animal you hunt because you can shoot a six year old buffalo and I promise you that client will never come back to you again.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

So if, if hunting of rhinos was banned, would you still just have rhinos?

[Ruan Marx]

Me as a person, me as an outfitter, me as a safari operator, I think I will have a couple just for the love of it and for the beauty of it. But you must remember now other animals is going to have to pay for the insurance, pay for the feed. So you have to hunt so much more other stuff to make it worth it, you know. So I think I will change my strategy on rhinos in the sense of what I keep what I have and it will be just a nice to have and I will have peace with that and it will be my responsibility to look after the ones I have. But I think globally or in the bigger picture of it, it will slowly be sure, slowly but surely it being the end of the rhinos if, if it's not allowed to be hunted because there's no other way that you can make money out of a rhino. The horns is out of the picture for now. Now if we, we had many conversations and that is the only way where you can make money out of a rhino is to dehorn it, to sell that horns legally, if it were legal and to be able to take that money and then that money can go towards security, feed, those kind of things.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Somebody would say we shouldn't be commodifying wildlife at all though. You shouldn't be thinking that way. You shouldn't be thinking about like a rhino is a money thing.

[Ruan Marx]

No, rhino is never a money thing. But remember the, or just wildlife. Yeah, but the thing is you need money to take care of something. Unfortunately. It's like we need money to be alive, we need money to live every day. You need money to be able to take care especially of a rhino because of the Security factor because of the feed bill that you're going to get because of fencing that you have to put up and make sure that your stuff is secure, you know, so. And you do not shoot enough rhinos. There isn't enough clients that has either the money or the, the, the urge to shoot a rhino. You know, it's not for everybody. There's trophy hunters that hunt buffalo year after year after year. And they always say it's the best thing ever. They say it's the best thing ever, but they have no desire to shoot a rhino.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

I'll tell you, yesterday was hard for me. Like I don't think I'll ever want to do it.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah, it's an emotional thing. You know, it's just different.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

It's different.

[Ruan Marx]

It's different and it's an emotional thing. And that's why, that's why outside people, that's non hunters have so much firing power against us. Um, because emotions take over. That's the same thing with the giraffe. You know, they have. People have this thing in their minds that it's a, it's, it's an animal that's there for photographic purposes, not for hunting purposes. And you have to respect that. There's place for everybody in this industry that we live in. But one thing that I'm standing very firm on, and we discussed this yesterday briefly, is I do not think that photographic people will pay this kind of money or help with this. Payments that will save the species. You know, no one is going to spend $65,000 to come to my lodge and take a picture of a rhino and go back to the country and say, I saw a rhino. That's not happening. So at the end of the day, we need a hunter to be able to preserve this species.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

The obviously, we talked about rhinos and you obviously hunt different animals here. But again, through that 21 years, obviously malice is a part of what you do here in Kulu. And you just talked about a closed hand is not the way that you operate from a business perspective. Talk to me about that element of things because obviously you've decided to donate your meat. You've also decided to get involved in, in your community, even though this is South Africa and South Africa is not typically set up that way. Right. You don't have a village.

[Ruan Marx]

No.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

That you're taking care of or whatnot.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah. No. So look, we, we decided that, well, with help of a client of housewife, they also want. Had the urge to give back to South Africa. They've always wanted to do it. They never had the opportunity. And we created the opportunity for them. And it's not a feel good thing. It's just, I feel very strongly about it that if we have something that we can share with people, that is what you have to do. So we identified a couple places that needs help. We live in a community. It's actually, I won't say it's a rich community, it's actually more on the bottom end of it. There's a lot of people that need help. And we decided, well, we have a product. If we can process this product, we can change people's lives. And obviously through with all the meat that we have, we process it and we donated it. We started the program with the Tabang orphanage and it was like a trial run for us in the beginning to see is it something that's really going to work? Is it something that is going to work for them? Because we're not really in control of where it's going, right? And we sat down, we had meetings with these guys and I mean after we did the first or second donation, I mean we took hands and we said, right, this is what we're going to do. We're in partnership. This is what we're going to do for forever, for as long as we do our business and as long as they need us. And there's some other people that also jumped on the bus. Obviously you can't help everybody. You don't have the ability to do that, you know, but we, we also, you know, spread it a little wider. We have a special needs school that we taken care of too. And then there's a, what they call it in town is a soup kitchen. So it's basically a bunch of kids that goes to a central place after school and we donate that meat to the people in charge of that. And those people make sure that those kids at least get one meal a day. So we process our meat.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

So you're not just handing them like a pine quarter.

[Ruan Marx]

Now look, people must understand that very clearly you're not achieving anything if you go to a school here in South Africa. Here in South Africa, remember we, I mean, and yet we have to make that very clear. Here in South Africa people are raised differently in the communities. Remember it's not like in Northern Africa where people are self sustainable. They have all, that's how they live. We must remember that here by us. I would, it's probably not the right word, but I said, I will use the term. It's a little bit more civilized. So you can't achieve anything. In South Africa, if you look after an orphanage and the range of the children's age is between 2 and 12 or 2 and 16, doesn't really matter. If you take a carcass and you put it in front of them on the ground with two bags of maize meal and you take a picture, you're definitely not achieving anything. You know, I would say the client or the donor standing there with a picture, it makes his heart feel good. But you're doing more damage than what you think. Because why don't rather take that meat, take the children and go and process it and educate them how to actually do that? Then you can teach them a skill. This whole thing is about skill development too. You know, my biggest dream is to take a guy out of the orphanage and employ him and make him, let him hunt with Sam and make him one of my best trackers, you know, give him a ph, uplift him, or even a ph. You know, I've done it with. I did take a lady out of the orphanage when she was 18 and I employed her for the past three years. She's working with me.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Nice.

[Ruan Marx]

So. And I move her around to all the aspects of the business. I started cleaning dishes. Now she's learning the laundry part because those guys come out of that place, they have no skills. Like zero. No. She probably broke 40 glasses the first year. But I knew what was going to happen. I was ready for it. You can't be mad at someone that has zero skills development. So it's my responsibility to develop those skills with the people. And it's part of the donation part, creating an opportunity for someone like that. Because if they leave that orphanage, that's the thing that's bothering me is the 18 years old, they have to leave the orphanage. So where do they go then? They would. If they had family, they wouldn't have been in the orphanage. Point one, point two is what's going to be, what's going to happen to them, you know, so create an opportunity. It's. It's not always necessary, you know, I don't need that. But I'm not going to lose anything by helping them with that.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

You know you've also got a greenhouse, right? With the.

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah, that's one of. That's the first project that we did with the foundation, with Tabang, with the orphanage is we set up a greenhouse, which. Which made it easy for us because we set this greenhouse up with clients and their family. We did it all ourselves with our staff. We took there. We took the Children there from that place, from Tabang. They even helped us to put this whole thing up and we made it a plug and play system. So we literally build a square box with inside boxes so that I can plant different items. And it's a, it's a normal greenhouse with the water system hangs inside and you just literally plug it in and you open it up. So it's easy for them to run it and to maintain it. And the kids can even, you know, it's easy to give someone an order and say, listen, just go and open the water for me. There's not a lot of moving parts so everybody can be part of it. And it's actually very successful. The guys are planting, they are, you know, providing a lot to the orphanage and giving away. And that's, that's so, so we can create an opportunity where even those guys in need have so much now that they can give away and help other people.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Yeah, brilliant man. Well, tell me as we finish this a little bit, tell me why it's important for you to invest in, in that community. I know you've touched on it a little bit already.

[Ruan Marx]

You know, it's just something that's close to us and I think it's easier for me to invest in a child because it's. The child is still developing. You know, there are communities around us that need stuff, but the children need it more. So that's why we stuck to that and we said we're gonna do this one project and we're gonna do it up to the point where they are

[Interviewer (Roy)]

good and you're not just doing the food. Right? It's food, it's clothes, it's space.

[Ruan Marx]

Look, we do bedding. We do. I mean we. They have a. Maybe we can still do it, but they have a band, a marimba band that plays this traditional know musical instruments. So they go on tours and they do competition. So we sponsor them on that. You know, there's. How it works at the orphanage is obviously not everybody has the ability to go to a normal school. A lot of them get schooled there at the orphanage. But there's five or there six children now that has the opportunity to. That got the opportunity and they were allowed to go to a government school. So we are funding that, you know, so we buy them the school clothes. We buy, pay for the school fees. We buy them the bus tickets every day to school. So it's not only giving them meat, once again, it comes back to creating opportunities. And luckily the school upliftment, that's the thing and the schools are very transparent to us, you know, and they help us in this thing because they know we are paying. So they will say, listen, let's give it a three month trial, see if the kid's going to make it and then they'll talk to us, they give us feedback. They say, no, listen, the children are doing very well. This one is struggling so we're going to give him another month or two. If not, we're going to take him out, we're going to move him back into the homeschooling system where he did a lot better than into the open school system. So that's nice. You know that they're not just there for the ride. Everybody's in it with us. Obviously now that we, now that we have the special needs school also that needs our help really. But Tabang is still our number one. But we will do the same for them. Obviously the special needs school children get schooled there. That's a situation on its own. They don't need us in that department but they need us a lot with food supplies because they 100% rely on donations. They have no government funding. They have, they have government funding for the teachers but it's not nearly enough. So we do a lot of events that we donate stuff for that goes towards that as well, you know, help funding some, creating some funds for just salaries.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Yeah, yeah, for sure.

[Ruan Marx]

Obviously it's always a battle when, when, when governments are involved, the money don't always go to the right channels but we try our best to support wherever we can.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Well, I appreciate the work that you're doing from a community perspective. Obviously the rhino work is controversial but also at the same time much, much needed. And yeah, I appreciate you guys being a Helix partner of ours.

[Ruan Marx]

No, no, thank you for what you guys also do for us. I think when we decided to take hands and go forward with this thing, it is, it always starts slow. But yeah, every year we come up with a new plan and a new, a new project. So I think wherever we can. And I'm looking forward to this year coming. Yeah, because we're gonna, we're gonna take hands and do something big and it, I mean it's one person can't change it. But, but every, if we get one guy with us on our side every day.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

That's right.

[Ruan Marx]

One of these days we'll be moving stuff around, I promise.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

If people want more information on Inulu, where can they get it?

[Ruan Marx]

Yeah, they can contact me on my cell phone number or just look inulu

[Interviewer (Roy)]

adventures.com in kulu adventures.com I n k

[Ruan Marx]

u l u yes.com and then all the information is right. All my contact information is there, websites there, phone numbers, emails. Everything is perfect.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Thanks Ron.

[Ruan Marx]

Thank you. Mr. Roy.

[Interviewer (Roy)]

Well, that's it for today. I appreciate you listening as always. Leave a review, share it with your

[Podcast Host]

friends and most importantly, do what's right

[Interviewer (Roy)]

to convey the truth around hunting.