Wildlife Conservation NetworkThe spirit of innovation in conservation
 
Initiatives
Scholarship Program:
Investing in the next generation of conservation leaders
Nadia Mijiddorj, Sidney Byers Scholarship Recipient

WCN supports dedicated individuals who have demonstrated exceptional promise for lifelong leadership as wildlife conservationists.  The Sidney Byers Scholarship, Pat J. Miller Scholarship, and Handsel Scholarship provide grants for graduate education and applied training to students from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America who are committed to working on wildlife conservation in their home countries.  Scholarship candidates are nominated by WCN’s Partner conservationists and affiliates.  They expand upon the ground-breaking work of our Partners, while gaining the skills they will need to pioneer projects of their own in the future.  To date, WCN has awarded 48 scholarships to women and men working in Argentina, Bolivia, Botswana, Chile, China, Ethiopia, Gabon, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Laos, Mongolia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Russia, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

Emergency Response Fund:
Emergency Relief to Wildlife in Crisis
Administering rabies vaccine, Photo: Graham Hemson/WildCRU

When a crisis hits, the impact on endangered species can be devastating. WCN’s Emergency Response Fund was established to immediately channel resources to areas of the world where wildlife is in imminent danger. WCN’s Partner field-based projects run on very lean budgets and sometimes do not have extra funds at hand for unexpected emergencies. The Emergency Response Fund gives donors a unique way to support conservation and provides a critical source of funds that can be readily accessed and deployed to help in a crisis. In 2009, WCN and our donors responded with timely support to elephants suffering from severe drought in Mali and a deadly rabies outbreak among the Ethiopian wolves.

Solar Project:
Providing solar power systems to projects in the bush
Solar panels in Africa, Photo: Steve Gold

In 2006, WCN supporter Stephen Gold initiated a project to provide solar energy to conservation projects around the world. Meeting the great need for electricity in remote field stations, this innovative endeavor combines cutting-edge technology with wildlife conservation and sustainable environmental practices. With generous donations from corporations and individuals, Stephen designs and assembles new solar electricity systems and ships the equipment to the field. We have provided solar electricity to those protecting African wild dogs, cheetahs, elephants, lions, Ethiopian wolves and snow leopards. WCN is now launching a new program to supply conservationists with a complete “sustainability package,” which includes solar hot water, solar cookers, solar water pumps, water purification systems and super high efficiency lighting. Learn more at: www.wcnsolarproject.org

The Humanitarian Side of Solar and Renewables
Eric Wesoff, Greentech Media
March 22, 2011

Conservation Stations Get Solar Power
Nicole Wallace, The Chronicle of Philanthropy
October 15, 2009

Solar power for wildlife research
David R. Baker, San Francisco Chronicle
October 4, 2009

Solar for Elephants, Cheetahs and Lions
Eric Wesoff, Greentech Media
September 28, 2009

Solar powered conservation
Bhalin Singh, Mongabay
August 25, 2009

 

WCN Supports Two
Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders
The future looks brighter for wildlife thanks to the Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders (EWCL) program, which trains the next generation of conservation leaders. Each year WCN sponsors two participants from its international network to participate in EWCL. This April, two young men from Kenya, Peter Lalampaa of Grevy’s Zebra Trust and Jerenimo Lepirei of Save the Elephants, will travel to the U.S. to seize this opportunity. Following a highly competitive application process, EWCL brings together twenty new, emerging leaders in the wildlife conservation field for capacity-building and intense training. By nurturing future leaders, exchanging ideas, and generating tangible conservation products as part of a group campaign exercise, EWCL significantly benefits wildlife conservation around the world.
 
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