In January 2017, Rainforest Trust and our local partner, led by Umesh Srinivasan, protected 4,200 acres of unique and threatened habitat across the eastern Himalayas of India. This project safeguards a wide variety of species, including the Bugun Liocichla, Red Panda, Asian Elephant, Clouded Leopard and Asiatic Black Bear.

The protected area is rooted in the local community– upon designation, it was named Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve in order to honor the dedicated group of individuals who are ultimately responsible for maintaining the site.

Umesh recently sent us a video showing the incredible dedication of this community to the conservation of the reserve. They have employed community forest guards who monitor the entire acreage of the reserve to protect the resident species from outside threats of poaching and the habitat from deforestation for timber extraction. They have also developed expansion initiatives and ecotourism activities to share the beauty of the reserve with the world.

The core of Rainforest Trust’s work is to motivate local communities to engage in conservation– they are the reason our projects succeed. We look forward to continuing our work with communities like these across the globe, to create a healthier planet for future generations.

For more information about this project, check out the project page.