SAM SHANEE on WHY protect Biodiversity through THIS IS MY EARTH – PART 1/4
Neotropical Primate Conservation (NPC) is a registered charity dedicated to the conservation of primates and their habitats in South and Central America. NPC aims to promote conservation and protect biodiversity in the Neotropics by working in several ways. NPC uses monkeys as flagship species to spearhead conservation efforts, but their work doesn’t only benefit primates. In order for primates to survive in the wild, they need a thriving ecosystem, which means their efforts also go towards protecting all the other species of plants and animals that live alongside primates and call the rainforest their home. More significantly, NPC works with local communities as they believe conservation starts with people. Their projects ensure sustainable access to natural resources for local communities.
Hi Sam and thanks for talking to us. Can you tell us a little bit about what are you doing?
Hi all, I’m the founder and project director at an organization called the Neotropical Primate Conservation (NPC). We focus on conservation using primates and monkeys as flagship species for conservation because if you conserve just that one species you are also conserving the habitat where it lives, and therefore all the other species, including the plants that live in the same habitat, are also being protected.
Why have you chosen primates?
Primates are a very good flagship species for conservation because they are visible, people relate to them well, they are cute…
How does your conservation effort work?
Our conservation work focuses on 5 main areas, which are: Reforestation to recover habitats that have been lost, Habitat protection and creation of protected areas that protect the areas which exist, Environmental education for communities to ensure longevity in the projects, Developing sustainable incomes and social development projects to help the communities where the conservation work is being carried out and finally we have strong work against the illegal wildlife trade, because even though there are some wild areas with the intact forest you can see that some of them don’t have any monkeys left, and that is one of the big problems.
Learn more about WHY PROTECT BIODIVERSITY WITH THIS IS MY EARTH here.