About World Trackers Alex van den Heever and Renias Mhlongo

Over the past three decades, Renias and Alex have spoken internationally, founded the award-winning Tracker Academy, and built a successful safari business in the heart of Kruger National Park. These remarkable achievements were made possible through their unwavering collaboration.

Alex van den Heever

Alex spent his formative years growing up on a cattle farm in the Western Cape, South Africa.

After completing his studies in Marketing and Business Management, Alex van den Heever embarked on a remarkable journey at the world-renowned Londolozi Game Reserve in 1995, where he began as a game ranger. His roles evolved over the years to include Guide, Environmental Manager, Marketing, and Leader of Specialized Safaris. However, it was the traditional skills of wildlife tracking that captured Alex’s deepest passion.

Alex has devoted much of his life to mastering this ancient art, achieving a significant milestone in 2004 by becoming one of the youngest individuals to qualify as a Senior Tracker assessor. Over the past two decades, his expertise has taken him across the globe, from tracking jaguars in the Amazon jungle and bears in California to following grizzlies and wolves in Montana, pumas in Patagonia, and the legendary black-maned lions of the Kalahari.

Currently, Alex serves as the General Manager of the Tracker Academy, an NGO dedicated to training unemployed individuals in the traditional skills of tracking. He is also a Director and Shareholder of EcoTraining, Africa’s largest private guide training school, and a Co-founder of Wild Signs, which owns the Tracking Success corporate training programme.

Beyond his work in conservation, Alex has pioneered diversity training courses aimed at fostering better understanding and collaboration between black and white professionals in corporate South Africa.

As the Founder of Nhlayisa Nutrition Solutions, Alex has also made significant contributions to nutrition in Africa, producing fortified foods for rural communities and bulk feeding programmes. This company distributes over a million meals annually, providing essential vitamins to those in need.

Alex and his long-time collaborator, Renias Mhlongo, continue their work in the bushveld and extend their influence through motivational presentations both in South Africa and internationally. Their acclaimed presentation, The Power of Relationships, resonates with audiences across the globe.

Alex is also the co-author of two bestselling books, the Tracker Manual and Changing a Leopard’s Spots, which reflect his deep commitment to wildlife tracking and conservation.

Alex and Renias are co-shareholders in World Trackers, a company that co-owns the KrugerUntamed safari camps in Kruger National Park.

Renias Mhlongo

Renias Mhlongo was born in a mud hut in what is today the greater Kruger National Park.

Born into a family that lived in the greater Kruger National Park, Renias Mhlongo grew up immersed in the ancient traditions of a Shangaan hunter-gatherer. From a young age, he was entrusted with the responsibility of tending the family’s cattle herd, learning essential skills that would later define his life’s work.

During the forced removals under the Apartheid regime, Renias and his family were relocated to the settlement of Dixie. With no formal education, he sought employment at a game reserve, starting as a labourer. In 1984, Renias found his true calling as a tracker at Londolozi, where he could fully utilize his exceptional naturalist skills. Over the past 34 years, he has played a pivotal role in habituating the world-famous leopards of Londolozi.

Renias has shared his deep knowledge of traditional animal tracking through workshops in South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique, Zambia, Kenya, Brazil, and North America. Alongside his long-time collaborator, Alex van den Heever, he has tracked animals across the globe, bringing his expertise to diverse environments.

Renias has also applied his tracking skills to conduct small mammal surveys for game reserve owners throughout South Africa. In 2010, he became co-founder and principal trainer at the Tracker Academy, where he continues to pass on his invaluable knowledge to new generations of trackers.

A co-author of the Tracker Manual and Changing a Leopard’s Spots books, Renias has travelled internationally, sharing his profound understanding of African wildlife, culture, and philosophy. His natural storytelling ability, combined with the humour he imparted to Alex, shines through in their motivational presentation, The Power of Relationships. During these inspirational sessions, Renias offers personal insights into the importance of relationship building and the transformative power of diversity.

Renias and Alex are co-shareholders in World Trackers, a company that co-owns the KrugerUntamed safari camps in Kruger National Park.