REAL LIFE MOWGLI: THE GIRL WHO GREW UP IN
Tippi Degre was born in Africa in 1990. The desert of Namibia, to be exact. Her parents were French wildlife photographers and filmmakers. They had moved from France to Namibia to photograph that region. When they had Tippi, they didn’t think twice about their decision to raise her there and let her roam as freely as the animals of the Serengeti.
Tippi experienced a childhood worthy of Mowgli amongst the exotic animals and people of this captivating continent. Her playground was the hills and the harsh lands of southern Africa. She was roaming barefoot through the Namibian bush and desert. Tippi also developed strong ties with the Bushmen and Himba tribespeople of the Kalahari. The tribespeople adopted her as one of their own, taking her under their wings and teaching her their language, hunting skills, and how to forage for food like roots and berries. Along with her adventures, she befriended many wild animals and tribespeople.
After ten years, Tippi’s parents returned to France. It was a tough transition from the expanse of the African desert to the Parisian streets. For two years Tippi attended a local school in France. This was a big change for a girl who grew up with wild animals. Unfortunately, she had very little in common with her fellow pupils at the school she was sent to; therefore, her parents decided to home-school her.
Tippi has written a book about her adventures, “Tippi: My Book of Africa”. It takes the reader on her journey into Africa. In the book, you meet her other family: Leon the chameleon, Abu the elephant whom she calls ‘my brother’, and leopards, snakes, baboons, lions and ostriches. Inthe book Tippi says: “I speak to animals with my mind, or through my eyes, my heart or my soul, and I see that they understand and answer me.”
Although surrounded by city landscapes, Tippi still feels the call of the wild. In her teens, she returned to South Africa and made six nature documentaries with the Discovery Channel. She wants to develop the world’s understanding of the need to conserve and protect Africa. Tippi believes she is African and she wants to get a Namibian passport. She wants to be an ambassador for this country. It is like Mowgli’s story, but Tippi’s is true!