Design Criteria

• All Snow Leopard Conservancy project interventions or activities are developed according to a set of “Best Practices” criteria and guidelines.
• The agreed-to actions must be environmentally sound, economically sustainable, and socially responsible. We will not support actions that undermine conservation of the snow leopard, its prey or habitat.
• All supported actions must comply with national park regulations, and should not lead to further overstocking of livestock or rangeland degradation; rather, the action should improve the snow leopard’s natural prey base and lead to no overall reduction in predator numbers.
• The preferred action must be cost-effective and contain cost-sharing mechanisms that are capable of being sustained with minimal outside cost and technical input. We prefer low-tech, locally adapted appropriate solutions for reducing loss of livestock or eliminating retributive killing of the snow leopard.
• We favor conservation measures that build upon proven traditional customs and sound animal husbandry practices, such as strengthening the Buddhist precept against the killing of wildlife. Our goal is to assist communities to build upon existing values and customs that are environmentally friendly or unique to their culture.
• Finally, we work with communities to develop a mutually-agreeable Action Plan which clearly specifies the available budget along with the responsibilities, contributions and obligations of each partner. The work plan specifies details such as: where (location); who (responsible party); what (inputs/activities); how much (quantity); when (scheduling); how implemented (method) and how the success of activities and outcomes will be monitored (indicator and process to be used).

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