Nata Bird Sanctuary

The Nata Bird Sanctuary, the only protected reserve in the northeastern periphery of Sowa Pan in Botswana, is a community-managed project, with assistance from the Nata Conservation Committee and national and international organizations. Founded in 1988, it opened for operations in 1993; it encompasses an area of 230 square kilometres (89 sq mi), with the objective of conservation of wildlife. The community project is managed by a Trust titled the "Kalahari Conservation Society", which has members drawn from the four villages of Nata, Sepako, Maposa and Manxotae in the vicinity of the sanctuary.

The prominent wildlife species in the sanctuary are reported to number 165 bird species. The sanctuary is of international importance due to its population of 250,000 lesser flamingo (Phoenicopterus minor) and greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus), which visit the sanctuary every year during the winter period to breed, after the rainy season, when the water sources are full.

The community-initiated sanctuary received the coveted "Tourism for Tomorrow" award for the Southern Hemisphere in the first year it opened, in 1993.