NEWSLETTER

Category: Project news

  • Over 18,000 freshwater turtle eggs hatched in Guyana

    Over 18,000 freshwater turtle eggs hatched in Guyana

    Yellow-spotted river turtle hatchling. Photo by Luke McKenna/FAO

    May 2026 — Between 2021 and 2025, community-led conservation efforts in the Rumpununi region, Guyana, rescued and hatched more than 18,000 freshwater turtle eggs.

    This accomplishment is thanks to a partnership between the Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme, the South Rumpununi Conservation Conservation Society, Caiman House and 26 Indigenous communities.

    Since launching, the initiative has employed 123 rangers and engaged five local communities across 131 beaches.

    Why it matters

    The Rumpununi region in Guyana has experienced rapid declines in freshwater turtle populations due to climate impacts (flooding), the pet trade and overharvesting for wild meat. Several of the six turtle species are at increased risk of extinction, including the giant South American river turtle (Podocnemis expansa) and the yellow-spotted river turtle (Podocnemis unifilis).

    The community-led conservation efforts in Guyana give river turtles a fighting chance, protecting the eggs and caring for them until they hatch and can be released back into the wild. The team is also engaging in environmental education efforts to raise awareness with children and teens.

    Watch video

    What’s next for freshwater turtle conservation?

    In 2025, the SWM Programme published The Rupununi Freshwater Turtle Management Plan, which outlines six coordinated management options for local communities and other stakeholders: i) in situ nest protection; ii) next relocation and head-starting; iii) research; iv) environmental education, v) behaviour change and awareness raising; and vi) rules and guidelines.

    With the SWM Guyana ending this year, the partners hope that the efforts for turtle conservation will continue long into the future.

    Acknowledgements

    The SWM Programme in Guyana is implemented by the Guyana Wildlife Conservation and Management Commission in coordination with the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF).

    The SWM Programme is a major international initiative that aims to improve the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife in forest, savannah and wetland ecosystems. It is funded by the European Union, with co-funding from the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) and the French Development Agency (AFD). Projects are being piloted and tested with governments and communities in 16 participating countries. The initiative is coordinated by a dynamic consortium of four partners, led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).

  • Hunters, scientists and health workers unite to fight zoonotic disease transmission in Cameroon

    Hunters, scientists and health workers unite to fight zoonotic disease transmission in Cameroon

    A woman in Southern Cameroon prepares dinner with freshly hunted wild meat. Photo: Vivian Anogo/CIFOR-ICRAF

    Jun. 2026 — A new case study from southern Cameroon shows how working alongside communities can result in increased awareness of zoonotic diseases and safer wild meat handling practices.

    The projects’ One Health approach recognizes that human health is inseparable from the health of animals, plants and the wider ecosystem. By working with hunters and other community members to develop safer practices, scientists and health workers become allies for those who depend on wild meat for food and income.  

    Proof of concept

    Over a two-year period, researchers conducted surveys, interviews and focus groups to understand what communities knew about the risks of becoming sick from handling wild meat and how to avoid zoonotic disease transmission. The results from 2,400 people across 44 villages were alarming: fewer than 15% of households were concerned about catching diseases from infected animals and only 6% reported washing cutting surfaces with soap after cutting meat. 

    A hunger scans the canopy in southern Cameroon. Photo by Vivian Anogo/CIFOR-ICRAF
    A hunger scans the canopy in southern Cameroon. Photo by Vivian Anogo/CIFOR-ICRAF
    A hunter poses next to his traditional kinga. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    A hunter poses next to his traditional kinga. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF

    In response, scientists revisited communities to share their findings and organized a “co-creation” workshop with eight villages to develop safer wild-meat handling practices. Community members recommended: 

    • Raising awareness via local radio and community loudspeakers 
    • Creating printed ‘image boxes’ with captions that could visually communicate key messages 
    • Training teachers to educate students on safe practices 
    • Holding a kinga design contest with hunters, focusing on designs that could better protect against contact with animal blood and fluids while improving comfort for long distances. Winning designs are now being tested and refined. 
    Project partners followed up on communities' suggestions, helping to raise awareness for safe wild meat handling practices via local radio broadcasts and community loudspeakers. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    Project partners followed up on communities’ suggestions, helping to raise awareness for safe wild meat handling practices via local radio broadcasts and community loudspeakers. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    As part of the project, hunters and food handlers were recommended to wash their hands after any food manipulations. Photo byby Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    As part of the project, hunters and food handlers were recommended to wash their hands after any food manipulations. Photo byby Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    A hunter in the forest carries his booty on his kinga. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    A hunter in the forest carries his booty on his kinga. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    Printed visuals with captions were designed to effectively convey key messages. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF
    Printed visuals with captions were designed to effectively convey key messages. Photo by Vivian Anogo / CIFOR-ICRAF

    These actions had a positive effect: a follow-up survey showed concern about zoonotic disease transmission had increased from 7% to 46%, and handwashing after handling wild meat rose from 41% to 65%. 

    Researchers attributed this success to the One Health approach, which respected communities’ reliance on hunting, rather than trying to stop it.  

    The full case study, including group discussion questions, supplementary materials and further reading, is now available in the CABI Digital Library. 

    Case study
    Blog

    What’s next?

    For more information about our partners’ work with zoonotic disease risks and participatory approaches, check out these related projects: 

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    Acknowledgements

    The case study in this article comes from the project, Mitigating Risks of Disease Transmission in the Wild Meat Food Chain from Forest to Fork in Cameroon, which was funded by the German Agency for International Cooperation GmbH, Deutsche fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) as support to the International Alliance against Health Risks in Wildlife Trade. Additional funding was provided from United States Agency for International Development ‘s Forestry and Biodiversity Office. 

    Data are available upon request from Amy Ickowitz: a.ickowitz@cifor-icraf.org. 

  • New project links Philippine eagle’s habitat restoration with Indigenous rights and livelihoods

    New project links Philippine eagle’s habitat restoration with Indigenous rights and livelihoods

    Philippine eagle in its forest habitat. Photo by Aimee Valencia

    By Andréa Imbert

    This content was originally posted on Forests News

    The Philippines is home to one of the world’s largest and most powerful forest raptors: the Philippine eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi). However, over the past decades, the species has been edged closer to extinction. Through one of its newest projects in the Philippines, Landscape Alliance and its partners are reinforcing why biodiversity conservation requires seeing beyond a single species and its habitat and working with the people who live alongside them. 

    What makes the Philippine eagle valuable? 

    Endemic to the Philippines, the Philippine eagle is a rare bird species that lives in forests up to 2,000 metres above sea level, often in steep terrain. It usually builds its nests in large, towering native dipterocarp trees, such as white lauan (Shorea contorta). It can also sometimes be seen in secondary growth and riparian forests, though not in open-canopy forests, where the risk of conflict with people may be higher. Its usual prey include monitor lizards, snakes, bats, palm civets and monkeys, which are also commonly found in these forests.

    The raptor is also considered an ‘umbrella species’ because of its large habitat needs. Protecting the Philippine eagle also helps protect smaller, less-mobile species that share its habitat. As an apex predator, meaning it sits at the top of the food chain and has no natural predators of its own, it helps prevent some prey species from becoming too abundant, helping maintain balance in forest ecosystems. This makes the Philippine eagle a flagship species for biodiversity conservation in the Philippines.

    Conserving the Philippine eagle means protecting its habitat, including by rebuilding forests with native tree species. In return, healthy forests support more stable ecosystems.

    Officially declared the Philippines’ national bird under Proclamation No. 615, the Philippine eagle is valued for its ecological role and as part of the country’s cultural and biological heritage.

    Continue reading on Forests News

    Acknowledgements

    Nature’s Neighbours is a four-year project (2025–2029) funded by the United Kingdom Biodiversity Conservation Fund through the Darwin Initiative. Implemented by Landscape Alliance (formerly CIFOR-ICRAF) in partnership with Botanic Gardens Conservation International and the Philippine Eagle Foundation, the project supports sustainable coexistence between Indigenous Peoples and the Philippine eagle in San Fernando Municipality, Bukidnon Province, Philippines. For more information, visit https://www.cifor-icraf.org/project/naturesneighbors/.

  • “Petit Robert” shows how local knowledge strengthens wildlife conservation in Cameroon

    “Petit Robert” shows how local knowledge strengthens wildlife conservation in Cameroon

    Robert Okale, also known as ‘Petit Robert,’ addresses workshop participants. Photo by Laureanne Mefan / CIFOR-ICRAF

    By Julia E. Fa

    This content was originally posted on Forests News

    22 May 2026 — In the lush, biodiverse forests of southeastern Cameroon, conservation is not just a technical challenge — it is a cultural, ecological and historical negotiation. At the centre of this negotiation is local knowledge, passed down through generations of people whose lives are closely tied to the land and the animals it harbours. 

    The  Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme in Cameroon works directly with these communities through a community-rights-based approach that brings together science, traditional knowledge and community rights, resulting in stronger natural resource management. At the heart of the programme’s operations is Robert Okale, the project’s field coordinator and long-time para-ecologist.

    “It’s very important to work with local communities because they are both the primary beneficiaries and, equally, the first victims of environmental challenges,” said Okale. “As researchers and technical experts, we bring scientific knowledge, but river communities hold practical and traditional knowledge. That’s why it’s essential to involve them in our work.” 

    Known affectionately by colleagues and community members as  Petit Robert — a nickname that belies both his physical stature and his outsized role in the project — Okale brings decades of field experience. His deep familiarity with the region’s flora and fauna is matched only by his enduring relationships with Bantu and Baka communities across the forest landscape. 

    Continue reading on Forests News

    Acknowledgements

    The SWM Programme is a major international initiative that aims to improve the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife in forest, savannah and wetland ecosystems. It is funded by the European Union, with co-funding from the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) and the French Development Agency (AFD). Projects are being piloted and tested with governments and communities in 16 participating countries. The initiative is coordinated by a dynamic consortium of four partners, led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with Landscape Alliance (formely known as the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF)), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). 

  • SWM Programme gives World Bank delegation a taste of community conservation in Zambia

    SWM Programme gives World Bank delegation a taste of community conservation in Zambia

    Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme, Lauren Coad (far right) interacting with Sianyongo Fish Farming Cooperative members in Southern Zambia. Photo: CIFOR-ICRAF/Zambia

    By Lydia Amanzi

    Apr. 2026 — A three-day field visit to Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme sites in Zambia offered a World Bank delegation more than presentations and meetings. From the fish ponds in Nyawa that are farmed by the Sianyongo Fish Farming Cooperative (SFFC) to the fresh, sweet honey harvests of the Lushomo Beekeeping Cooperative, participants saw firsthand how community conservation is creating livelihood opportunities in southern Zambia.

    The main purpose of the visit was the launch of the World-Bank funded Transforming Landscapes for Resilience and Development (TRALARD II) Project on 14 April 2026, which has identified Kazungula as a key area for upscaling community driven development initiatives. But beyond the official launch, the visit became an opportunity to showcase the growing work and impact of the SWM Programme.

    The journey kicked off at the SFFC in Nyawa Chiefdom where community members shared how fish farming is helping households improve nutrition and earn income. Around the ponds, conversations quickly turned from fish production to the bigger picture involving reducing pressure on wildlife and creating sustainable livelihood options.

    “Community-led enterprises are central to the long-term success of conservation,” said Lauren Coad, Principal Investigator for the SWM Programme at the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), during the visit. “When communities can generate income from sustainable activities such as fish farming and beekeeping, it reduces pressure on wildlife while strengthening local food systems.”

    Tour of the Sianyongo Fish Farming Cooperative site
    Tour of the Sianyongo Fish Farming Cooperative site. Photo: CIFOR-ICRAF/Zambia

    The delegation later made its way to the Lushomo Beekeeping Cooperative, where members proudly treated guests to freshly harvested honey. The relaxed stop gave the delegation a chance to hear from community members about how beekeeping is supporting household incomes while encouraging communities to protect forests and natural habitats.

    The SWM Programme promotes fish farming and beekeeping as alternatives to growing concerns over unsustainable hunting, which continues to threaten wildlife populations globally. For many rural households, these community conservation enterprises are becoming important sources of food, income, and resilience.

    “What we are seeing in Nyawa is proof that conservation and development can move together,” said Coad. “Healthy ecosystems support healthy livelihoods.”

    Fresh honey from Lushomo Beekeeping Cooperative, Zambia
    Freshly harvested honey from the Lushomo Beekeeping Cooperative. Photo: CIFOR-ICRAF/Zambia
    Tour of the Sianyongo Fish Farming Cooperative site. Photo: CIFOR-ICRAF/Zambia
    Tour of the Sianyongo Fish Farming Cooperative site. Photo: CIFOR-ICRAF/Zambia

    The visit also included technical coordination meetings led by SWM Programme Site Coordinator, Griffin Shanungu, Community Liason, Matthew Munsanda, and Social Safeguards Consultant, Daniel Phiri, who monitors ongoing programme activities with local cooperatives. Although limited time prevented the delegation from visiting the community spray race initiative, the team presented CIFOR-ICRAF’s broader work under the SWM Programme and COLANDS initiative in Livingstone at the end of the field visit.

    Throughout the three days, the CIFOR-ICRAF team distributed brochures, factsheets, and programme impact materials, ensuring stakeholders gained a deeper understanding of the programme’s footprint in Zambia.

    TRALARDII Team Leader Meets CIFOR-ICRAF Zambia Country Coordinator
    TRALARD II Team Leader Ambroise Brenier (left) and CIFOR-ICRAF Country Coordinator, Maimbo Malesu (right) during SFFC tour. Photo: CIFOR-ICRAF/Zambia

    Acknowledgements

    The SWM Programme is a major international initiative that aims to improve the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife in forest, savannah and wetland ecosystems. It is funded by the European Union, with co-funding from the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) and the French Development Agency (AFD). Projects are being piloted and tested with governments and communities in 16 participating countries. The initiative is coordinated by a dynamic consortium of four partners, led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).

  • Folktales are helping conserve Borneo’s orangutans

    Folktales are helping conserve Borneo’s orangutans

    Photo: An orangutan mother and her baby. Terry Sunderland / CIFOR-ICRAF

    15 May 2026 – When researchers from the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF) and local NGO Riak Bumi began surveying Bornean orangutan [Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus] populations in Kapuas Hulu, West Kalimantan, in the early 2010s, they came across something “rather strange”, says CIFOR-ICRAF scientist Linda Yuliani.

    Two forest areas, both in good condition by standard measures, showed dramatically different results. One had high densities of orangutan nests (the proxy the scientists used to determine population sizes for the notoriously elusive animals). The other had none.

    The biologists on the team were befuddled. But their anthropologist colleagues had a hypothesis. “They told us that in the forest with a lot of orangutan nests — in the Iban Dayak [local Indigenous group] area — there was a strong traditional knowledge system applied by the local communities,” says Yuliani.

    “They have a number of very well-known folktales that encourage people to protect the animals, and support strong norms and taboos about not disturbing orangutans.” 

    Read full story on Forests News

    Acknowledgements

    For more information on this project, please contact Linda Yuliani: L.Yuliani@cifor-icraf.org

  • How smarter biodiversity monitoring is helping protect the ecosystems people rely on

    How smarter biodiversity monitoring is helping protect the ecosystems people rely on

    Photo: A researcher collects water samples for eDNA analysis, one of the six monitoring methods being tested. Luke McKenna/FAO.

    1 May 2026 – A partnership between the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF) and Map of Life Solutions has identified over 740 species in Guyana so far through mixed-method biodiversity monitoring.

    Researchers involved in the partnership collect and analyze data from Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme sites in five countries: Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Guyana, Papua New Guinea (PNG), and Zambia.

    By combining data from camera traps, environmental DNA (eDNA), soundscapes, bird counts, fish stock assessments and Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) with AI-assisted analysis, researchers can accurately identify more species and develop a better understanding of biodiversity-rich ecosystems. This in turn helps governments and resource managers make more informed decisions about how to sustainably manage their natural resources through policies, markets, and national frameworks.

    “Biodiversity is in crisis, and decision-makers have been flying blind – lacking the reliable, standardized data they need to act across scales,” said Chrissy Durkin, CEO for Map of Life Solutions.

    “This partnership is changing that. By combining cutting-edge monitoring methods with the knowledge of local communities and indigenous peoples on the ground, and feeding all of it into models that are relevant and decision-ready across time and space, we’re producing biodiversity intelligence that is rigorous enough to shape national policy and trustworthy enough to support nature finance.”

    Full press release

    Acknowledgements

    Map of Life Solutions is powered by the science of the Center for Biodiversity and Global Change at Yale University. Their partnership with CIFOR-ICRAF is funded by the European Commission (EC) and facilitated through the Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme. Acoustic monitoring, camera trap monitoring, and AI analysis are provided through Wildmon, while Map of Life Solutions facilitates the eDNA sampling, lab processing, and data integration to produce species distribution models that power standardized metrics. 

    The SWM Programme is a major international initiative that aims to improve the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife in forest, savannah and wetland ecosystems. It is funded by the European Union, with co-funding from the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) and the French Development Agency (AFD). Projects are being piloted and tested with governments and communities in 16 participating countries. The initiative is coordinated by a dynamic consortium of four partners, led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).

  • More people are eating wild meat across Central Africa, raising urgency for sustainable wildlife management

    More people are eating wild meat across Central Africa, raising urgency for sustainable wildlife management

    Photo: Bushmeat cooking in Yaselia Village, Tshopo Province – DRC. Axel Fassio/CIFOR-ICRAF

    30 April 2026 – A study in Nature provides the first quantitative spatial and temporal analysis of wild meat consumption in Central Africa, revealing a sharp increase in demand that is largely driven by urban populations.

    The total annual biomass of wild meat consumed across Central Africa has increased from an estimated 0.73 million tonnes in 2000 to 1.10 million tonnes in 2022. This increase is threatening wildlife populations and raising concerns about long-term nutritional security in rural areas.

    Full press release

    Acknowledgements

    These findings are the result of a collaboration between the Centre for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE) at University of Kent, the University of Stirling, the Centre for Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour (CASCB) at University of Konstanz, and the Institute for Research on Tropical Ecology (IRET) in Gabon.

    Analysis for this study was supported by the EU-funded Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme, which is currently piloting field projects in 16 countries. The initiative is implemented by a dynamic consortium of four partners, led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). Data was collected through the WILDMEAT project (www.wildmeat.org), which has been supported by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), US Agency for International Development (USAID) and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

  • Malawi: Why conservation and food security are inseparable

    Malawi: Why conservation and food security are inseparable

    Photo: A farmer works in a field in central Malawi. CIFOR-ICRAF

    29 April 2026 — A blog on Forests News interviewed Lessah Mandaloma, researcher at the University of Oxford, to discuss how the expansion of conservation areas in Malawi often conflicts with people’s needs for food security and economic development.

    Her recent publication in Conservation Science and Practice explores how communities around Kasungu National Park believe future scenarios for conservation and agricultural policies — including fertilizer subsidies and farmer compensation schemes for crops that are damaged by wildlife — could shape outcomes.

    The study concluded that conservation priorities can only be met if policies meaningfully engage local communities and fairly address their needs.

    “In this landscape, conservation decisions often prioritize ecological outcomes,” said Mandoloma. “Often, they don’t fully account for local livelihoods, governance realities or social outcomes, even though these ultimately determine whether conservation succeeds or fails.”

    Read full blog

    Acknowledgements

    The study behind this blog was supported by the Government of Malawi, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), CIFOR-ICRAF, and the Biology Department, University of Oxford with additional funding from the UK Research and Innovation’s Global Challenges Research Fund (UKRI GCRF) Trade, Development and the Environment Hub project and the Research England International Science Partnership Fund (ISPF) Institutional Support (ODA).

  • Coming soon: Wild Meat Dialogues for Asia and the Pacific

    Coming soon: Wild Meat Dialogues for Asia and the Pacific

    Photo: Traditional hunter in Papua New Guinea. FAO

    28 Apr. 2026 – The Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme is launching a new webinar series in May 2026 in collaboration with the Sustainable Use of Wild Species Transformative Partnership Platform (SU-TPP).  

    The SWM Wild Meat Dialogues will examine research gaps at the intersection of wild meat use and consumption, food security, livelihoods, biodiversity conservation, and zoonotic disease risks across Asia and the Pacific. 

    Why it matters

    Wild meat use and consumption in Asia and the Pacific are critically under-researched, despite their contributions to food security, income, and cultural identity.  

    The SWM Programme has been actively working to address these gaps through diagnostic studies, support for community-based surveillance, and the first comprehensive regional analysis of wild meat consumption and hunting data.  

    But there is an ongoing need for a dedicated platform that can facilitate connections, knowledge exchange and collaboration. The new webinar series answers that need, bringing together researchers, practitioners and policy makers to share what they know, identify research priorities and inform policies that scale up sustainable wildlife management across the region. 

    What’s next?

    Stay informed about upcoming webinars through the mailing list and be part of the regional community. 

    Register for the Wild Meat Dialogues
    Structure of the Wild Meat Dialogues, connecting evidence to policy. FAO.
    Structure of the Wild Meat Dialogues, connecting evidence to policy. FAO.

    Acknowledgements

    The Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme is funded by the European Union with co-funding from the French Facility for Global Environment and the French Development Agency. The initiative is coordinated by a dynamic consortium of four partners, led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).