Three SCIONA students performed field work in Iona National Park during the month of October 2019. This included a vegetation survey in the mountainous area near Iona village. 46 plots were established in five different habitats: mountains, riverbeds, sand plains, hills and rocky areas. About 81 different plant species were recorded in the plots, from which 15 are endemic to the SCIONA study area. Unidentified plant species in the field were collected and taken to the “LUBA” herbarium in Lubango for identification and to be stored there.

A multidisciplinary SCIONA team travelled from Windhoek to Iona National Park in Angola during the second half of May 2019. Community workshops were held in and near the park: at Monte Negro near the border with Namibia, at Cambeno in the centre, and at Pediva just north of the park. The workshops aimed to engage local stakeholders in topics ranging from livelihoods to ecosystem management.

A community engagement took place from the 20th to the 22nd of February 2019 in Okapare village, Epupa conservancy, northern Kunene. The workshop was opened by the host, Chief Muniovimuaha Muniombara, and attended by about 50 persons. The Chief welcomed the Angolan delegation consisting of the administrator of Iona Mr. Aristides António Tumbo, the chief of the Ovahimba in Iona Mr. Tchiquenga Hepute, together with six Iona community members.