Wildlife Conservation Network

06/23/2026

The Kinabatangan is now a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. 🌏
The Kinabatangan floodplain is one of Southeast Asia’s last remaining lowland forest passages, but decades of logging and agricultural expansion have squeezed its wildlife into isolated fragments.
True conservation in this landscape doesn't mean keeping people out, it means bringing people in. WCN Partners Hutan and Seratu Aatai have spent years working alongside the indigenous Orang Sungai communities and local industries to foster human-wildlife coexistence for orangutans and Bornean elephants.
This collaborative, community-first approach was globally recognized when the region was designated as one of the world's newest UNESCO Biosphere Reserves.

👉 Read our latest blog to learn how this historic designation creates a blueprint for the future of coexistence: https://hubs.ly/Q04lP4js0

At dawn along the Kinabatangan River, the forest stirs before the day’s heat settles in. Proboscis monkeys leap between trees, elephants leave tracks along muddy banks, and fishing boats glide past villages that have depended on the river for generations. Conservationist Marc Ancrenaz knows this u...

06/18/2026

What does it take to protect an important population of fewer than 200 elephants facing constant threats? 🐘

Angola’s forest elephants live outside protected areas, in forests increasingly threatened by logging and agricultural expansion. They face poaching, road accidents, and conflict with nearby communities. Until recently, they had little to no protection.

The Elephant Crisis Fund - a joint initiative between Save the Elephants and the Wildlife Conservation Network - recently awarded its largest-ever grant: $1.2 million over three years to support Project Nzau. Led by the Kissama Foundation in partnership with BIOPOLIS, this ambitious initiative is working to protect Angola’s remaining forest elephants and to secure a future for this critically important population.

In this short film, discover the challenges these elephants face, the efforts underway to safeguard them, and why their survival matters.

Read more about Project Nzau here: https://bit.ly/3SgSUuO

🎥 Kissama Foundation

06/17/2026

From scientific studies on whales and dolphins, to engaging communities in ocean stewardship and policy, MareCet's approach to conservation is rooted in research. Learn about the remarkable work they are doing to protect marine mammals and their ocean habitats in Malaysia at our next Closer Look webinar!

June 22 8AM PDT🐬

Register here: https://hubs.ly/Q04k_W8p0

MareCet Marine Mammal Research & Conservation

06/12/2026

Following Day 1 of the induction, the newly inducted Conservation Sisters Fellows spent the day sharpening their leadership, teamwork, and communication skills at Lake Chivero Recreational Park. Through a dynamic team-building session, they challenged themselves, stepped out of their comfort zones, and faced some of their biggest fears, building trust and stronger connections along the way.

The experience not only strengthened their confidence but also highlighted the power of working together, supporting one another, and growing as a team. We hope they carry this fearless spirit forward as they begin their fellowship journey, ready to learn, lead, and make a meaningful and lasting impact in conservation.

06/12/2026

Coral reefs are built by living animals - tiny coral polyps working together to create underwater ecosystems that support thousands of marine species. But rising ocean temperatures, pollution, and overfishing are putting these fragile habitats at risk.

Around Misool Island in Indonesia, the Misool Foundation is helping protect and restore coral reefs through a 300,000-acre marine reserve, combining conservation, science, and community partnerships to safeguard the future of these ecosystems.

Learn more at norcalpublicmedia.org/wildlife

06/12/2026

Yesterday we announced our largest-ever grant of $1.2M over three years for Project Nzau, led by our partner, Kissama Foundation, in partnership with BIOPOLIS.

Here’s what it means for the elephants. 🐘🌳

Angola's forest elephants live mainly outside protected areas, in forests under pressure from logging and agricultural expansion. With ECF funding, the team will:

🐘 Scale conservation efforts from three to all eight Angolan provinces where forest elephants may still survive

🏡 Establish a new human–elephant coexistence field centre

🌾 Roll out community programmes to reduce crop-raiding conflict

📡 Deploy GPS tracking collars on elephants to map movement and conflict hotspots

🧬 Conduct genetic analysis to establish the first robust population baseline

📣 Run national awareness campaigns to shift attitudes toward elephants

This is not conservation in a national park, this is an ambitious attempt to save a fragmented and vulnerable population. It is a difficult, high-risk project in a landscape that has had little outside attention and it is exactly the kind of work the ECF exists to fund.

Angola's forest elephants are a reminder of what's still at stake and what becomes possible when the right support arrives in time. That's what our donors make possible.

Interested in supporting this project? Donate to the ECF here: https://bit.ly/4v2RNNS

The Elephant Crisis Fund is a joint initiative between Save the Elephants and the Wildlife Conservation Network.

📸 Kissama Foundation

06/11/2026

We are proud to announce that we have just approved our largest-ever single grant - $1.2M for a project that is working to bring a special population of forest elephants back from the brink. 🌳 🐘

The Elephant Crisis Fund is a joint initiative between Save the Elephants and the Wildlife Conservation Network.

The funds have been allocated to scaling up Project Nzau, an ambitious project led by the Fundação Kissama, in partnership with BIOPOLIS, to protect Angola’s forest elephants - the southernmost population in Africa.

Their plight only recently came to light - fewer than 200 elephants survive in fragmented forests here, with virtually no protection. They face mounting threats including deforestation, poaching, road accidents, and growing conflict with farming communities.

This funding will help Project Nzau attempt to save this vulnerable elephant population through science, community engagement, and conflict reduction.

Stay tuned for more on how this funding will help protect Angola's elephants.

📸 Afonso Vaz Pinto / Kissama Foundation

06/11/2026

What happens when a manatee is found stranded or injured? For a long time, there wasn't a clear answer. But thanks to Dr. Aristide Kamla and the team at the African Marine Conservation Organisation - AMCO —one of WCN's newer Partners—everything is about to change.

AMCO is officially creating Africa’s first manatee rehabilitation center in Cameroon’s Lake Ossa. Scheduled for completion in 2030, this center will provide emergency care and a second chance at life for injured or weakened manatees. Because these gentle giants are usually found in murky waters, the center will offer a unique space for local communities, students, and scientists to learn about and study them up close.

Read the full manatee rescue story: https://hubs.ly/Q04k-f9j0

06/08/2026

Today is World Oceans Day 💙 🌊

Here are 6 organizations making big impacts for marine ecosystems around the world.

MarAlliance
MareCet Marine Mammal Research & Conservation
Global Penguin Society
Misool

06/08/2026