"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead, American anthropologist, 1901-1978
You see, bulldozers appeared without warning and started to clear one of Nigeria’s last remaining forests.
The Ekuri people rose up quickly – they have a lot of experience defending their forest against the exploitation of others.
The Ekuri people and Rainforest Rescue have developed a powerful coalition over the years.
They want to get the government of Cross River State to abandon its plans for a superhighway to nowhere.
If it were to be created, that superhighway would impact national parks, forest reserves – and 185 villages along its 270 kilometre route.Sixty Eco-Guards are being trained to protect the forest by Martins Ego and activities of the NGOs Ekuri Initiative and DevCon.
One of the species of wildlife who will be particularly affected if this highway goes ahead is the endangered Cross River Gorillas because the region is home to the Afi Wildlife Sanctuary.
Please help the Ekuri people defend their forest home and protect it for people and wildlife – especially the gorillas! Find out more and donate here
There’s some good news from the conservation world that I wanted to share with you today so here it is:The World Land Trust have had a very successful autumn.
I’m thrilled to say that they hit the required fundraising target of £100,000 in just a few weeks to protect vital gorilla habitat in Africa. The success of #FutureforGorillas means that there’s a safer future for Camaroon’s great ape population. The fundraiser kicked off on 4 September and hit its target, thanks to the kindness and generosity of donors in early November.
The World Land Trust’s partner, the Environmental and Rural Development Foundation (ERuDeF), now has the resources to start creating a forest corridor in eastern Cameroon.
The area is home to Western Lowland gorillas, chimpanzee, elephants, pangolins, hippos, leopards and other species as well. The creation and protection of forests will mean that species can keep their populations strong in number and have a future. Here’s the video about it:
Their Big Match Fortnight Appeal hit its target of £500,000 in a fortnight!
Donors from around the world joined together and made a difference to the incredible appeal to help the World Land Trust and its partner in Ecuador save the last 2% of the Chocó Forest.
The Appeal is still open so you can still donate (I’m writing this on 14 November 2020) which means that even more of the forest can be saved and protected for wildlife.Decades of logging have destroyed 98% of the Chocó forest.
And the World Land Trust’s partner, FJ, got the chance to save the remaining 2% of it – about 57,000 acres in all – from one firm.
Other organisations are involved but the support from World Land Trust donors means that 1,667 acres will be saved – that’s an expansion of the Canandé Reserve which links it to other areas that are protected in the region.
The area is so diverse that scientists took just 45 minutes to find a new species!In fact, 25% of its flora and 10% of its fauna can’t be found anywhere else on earth The Canandé Reserve is a botanical haven. It’s home to about 375 bird species and 135 reptile and amphibian species of whom 28 are globally threatened. Goodness knows how many other species live there!
The more support the appeal has, the more their forest home can be extended and protected.Support this appeal here
You could also support the #NottooLate Appeal Fund, enabling the World Land Trust to act quickly wherever conservation action is needed.
The majestic Asiatic lion once roamed across Asia and the Middle East and Asia. But, by the early 1900s, the species had suffered from hunting – so much so that only about 20 remained in Western India.
Today, numbers are increasing and now there are about 600 Asiatic lions in the Gir Forest. The problem is that they are very vulnerable to forest fires and to disease.
ZSL is working with the Wildlife Institute of India and the Gujarat Forest Department to ensure the wonderful Asiatic Lion has a future.
4 ways ZSL are helping Asiatic Lions in the Gir Forest
Conservation support including training wildlife rangers and training them in using the SMART tool, which was developed by conservation organisations to establish effective patrolling systems, monitor wildlife populations and movements and identify threats such as poaching or disease
Veterinary support – lions have got stuck down wells and come into conflict with people, and the ZSL staff have taught vets vital lifesaving techniques such as how to intubate anaesthetised lions to help them breathe
Working with the Sakkarbaug Zoo where about 40 Asiatic Lions live – some have been injured too much to return to the wild or for other good reasons they live at the zoo. ZSL and the staff at the zoo share best practice and knowledge about the Asiatic Lions.
Education is vital to engage local communities and help them appreciate the importance of lion conservation.
Can I mention also the Lion Trust (who are specialist fund managers) who sponsor ZSL’s Asiatic Lions Campaign. We need more businesses to get involved like this. Thank you to the Lion Trust.
The WWF Malaysia and Maybank are celebrating tigers from 29 July to 31 August 2020.
They are kicking the event off on Global Tiger Day (29th July) and finishes on Merdeka Day and the idea is to get us all to #KeepRoaring for the Malayan tiger.
There are now fewer 200 Malayan tigers left. And as WWF Malaysia point, out, we all need healthy forests - and forests need tigers.
#KeepRoaring to save Malayan tigers, save our forests, and save ourselves by taking action!
Pledge your support to make tigers a national priority so that decisions on policy, allocation of resources, enforcement and land management favourable for tiger conservation can be made and implemented.
This petition is to the Government of Queensland, and Care2.com's The Petition Site is running it.
The koala could go extinct within our lifetime, according to researchers. This is mainly because state governments have been much too lenient when it comes to clear-cutting in the koala's last remaining habitats.
For instance, between 2012 and 2016, five thousand koalas died becuase of habitat lost, and 94% of them died because of rural deforetation. Koalas in Queensland are losing ground to huge stores and skyscapers thanks to the threat of new developments.
Unfortunately, the previous premier rolled back tree-clearing laws.
The new premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk is thinking about introducing new measures which would put an end to endless destruction of the koalas habitat.
This petition is about speaking up for koalas, being their voice, and asking the Palaszcuk government to pass new tree-clearing restrictions today. The koalas can't speak up for themeslves - they have no voice. We need to be their voice instead.
