Big Life Foundation Interview
Poaching is a widespread issue that affects many areas in Africa. With the rise of urbanization and increased tensions between farmers and large animals, it is vital to protect the wildlife as well as people’s livelihoods.
Big Life Foundation is an anti-poaching NGO based in Kenya and Northern Tanzania.
Find out how you can support African communities and help to conserve their ecosystems.
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March 18, 2021
Protecting the Wilderness for the Benefit of All
#155 Great.com Talks With... Big Life Foundation
Illegal poaching in Africa poses the biggest threat to endangered species such as elephants, rhinos and other majestic wildlife. If it were to continue at its current rates then we may lose these precious species within our lifetimes. In this episode, we spoke with Amy Baird from Big Life Foundation about their work to protect the Amboseli-Tsavo-Kilimanjaro ecosystem in East Africa. Through creating partnerships with the local communities and employing over 500 people, Big Life protects the wilderness for the benefit of all.
‘If conservation supports people, then people are more likely to support conservation.’
After their initial focus on poaching, Big Life have realized many other emerging issues throughout their years of operation. As the population grows and urbanization spreads, we see not only less space for animals to move and migrate, but also rising tensions between humans and animals who have to cohabit the land. Baird explains that one of Big Life’s programs focuses on compensating farmers who lose their livestock and crops due to wild animals competing for scarce resources. Big Life have currently erected 100km of crop-protecting fencing and employed 24 rangers specifically working to minimize human-elephant conflicts. The community and local governments are strongly in support of these measures, and Big Life sees progress towards the peaceful co-inhabiting of these once wild lands.
Listen to the whole interview to find out how you can support East Afrian communities and help to protect their ecosystems. You can also read more about the rangers Big Life employ and donate directly to their cause.
Want to learn more about Big Life Foundation? You can subscribe to their newsletter, checkout their news section and follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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