A Teenager’s School Project Grows Into a Rhino Conservation Program With 197 Births

A school project created by a 15-year-old boy in Namibia has grown into a major private rhinoceros breeding program, producing 197 white rhino births over more than a decade.

The project began when Jaco Muller’s teenage son suggested breeding rhinos for a school assignment. In 2010, Muller transformed his family’s antelope-breeding operation in Namibia’s Kunene region into what became known as the Rhino Momma Project.

From a School Idea to a Conservation Project

Muller believed that increasing the number of protected white rhinos could help strengthen populations across Africa. The first calf was born in 2013, and the project gradually expanded into one of Namibia’s larger privately operated rhino-breeding programs.

By 2025, the project had recorded 197 births.

The animals are kept in protected areas where they can reproduce while security teams work to reduce the threat of poaching.

The Threat That Changed the Family’s Approach

Poaching has remained a major danger for rhinos in southern Africa. In 2022, 14 white rhinos were killed on private farms in Namibia within six weeks.

To reduce the incentive for poachers, Muller began having some of his rhinos’ horns removed. Although dehorning changes the animals’ appearance, the procedure was viewed as a way to reduce their immediate risk of being killed for their horns.

For Muller, protecting a living rhino was more important than preserving its horn.

Tourism Helps Pay for Protection

In 2018, Muller opened Kifaru Lodge, using tourism revenue to help cover the costs of caring for the rhinos and maintaining security around the animals.

The project also aimed to demonstrate that conservation can involve both wildlife protection and sustainable economic activity.

A Legacy That Began With a Classroom Assignment

The story took a tragic turn in September 2026 when Muller, 53, died after the gyrocopter he was using to monitor rhinos and wildfire activity crashed near Outjo.

By then, however, the idea that began as his son’s school assignment had become a herd of nearly 200 rhinos born through the program.

The project remains an example of how an idea from a teenager’s classroom can grow into a long-term conservation effort with an impact far beyond its original purpose.

Sources

• Mongabay — “Jaco Muller turned his 15-year-old son’s idea into 197 rhino births” — September 29, 2026.
• EnviroLink Network — “A Teen’s School Project Sparked a Rhino-Breeding Program That’s Produced 197 Calves” — September 29, 2026.
• Mongabay — “World Rhino Day: What does it take to save a species?” — September 22, 2026.