We are delighted to announce that Emmanuel Amoah, an alumnus from the Tropical Biology Association Tanzania 2017 field course, is one of the winners of this year’s prestigious Whitley Awards. These awards recognise grassroots conservationists, providing funding, training and profile.
Emmanuel Amoah of the Threatened Species Conservation Alliance in Ghana was given an award for his work safeguarding the last stronghold of West African slender-snouted crocodile. Emmanuel told us “I am a proud member of the TBA alumni group and always grateful for the support and training I received.” He is the Founder and Executive Director of the Threatened Species Conservation Alliance and the Whitley Award will help him
• Reduce vegetation loss on riverbanks where the slender-snouted crocodile nests by at least 40% in 4 communities
• Train 14 conservation champions across 4 communities to monitor threats and dovetail with awareness raising to halve illegal logging activities
• Replant 30 hectares of degraded nesting habitat to boost crocodile breeding success
We are also proud that Tropical Biology Association alumni David Kwarteng and Badru Mugerwa were on the shortlist of 15. It is a tremendous achievement, especially as the Whitley Fund say that this year they received 71 applications of an exceptionally high standard, representing a range of conservation approaches benefitting wildlife, landscapes and people across the Global South.
David Kwarteng of the Institute of Nature and Environmental Conservation in Ghana is scaling up pangolin conservation. David was on the TBA field course in Tanzania in 2011 and tells us “I appreciate the rare opportunity and unique platforms that TBA provides for conservation careers”. David gained an MPhil in Conservation Leadership from the University of Cambridge, UK, after his TBA course and founded the Institute of Nature and Environmental Conservation whose mission is “To protect critically vulnerable species and ecosystems, based on sound science and evidence, choosing app
roaches that are sustainable, and ensures the needs of communities are taken into account.”
Badru Mugerwa of Embaka in Uganda was shortlisted for Pigs, Smiles and Sounds: local community tools against poaching. Badru is about “Engaging local people to improve their lives whilst reducing threats to the African golden cat and other wildlife”. Badru was on the TBA course in Uganda in 2010 and was one of the organisers of the first TBA African Alumni Group conference in 2013. On being shortlisted he told us “TBA has been part of my journey from all the field courses, special training workshops, the networking and the TAAG. I am forever grateful.”
We also congratulate all the winners, whose awards are well deserved – more information can be found at https://whitleyaward.org/
We thank the Whitley Fund for its support of dedicated conservationists who are protecting our environment and its inhabitants.
