Hailing from the beautiful little town of Kuruman in the Northern Cape, Esmeralda discovered early on in life that what she wanted more than anything was working in nature, with animals. She started helping out at the local animal welfare while in grade ten, and loved it so much that she joined the SPCA in Kimberley after finishing high school, and continued her work at the SPCA during her studies.
But Esmeralda also knew that she wanted to do more than just helping out. She wanted to make a difference, and make a real contribution to nature conservation. For the next few years, she set out on formal trainings, completed the Field Guide training at the Goodhope Nature Reserve Academy in 2013, and certified as an official Field, Marine, Fynbos Biome, Game Lodge Management and Wildlife Guide with the Field Guides Association of Southern Africa (FGASA). She has worked at the Good Hope Nature Reserve from 2014 to 2017, and started working at BK in 2017 as a game ranger and field guide.