Join the Snow Leopard Conservancy in observing International Snow Leopard Day.
International Snow Leopard Day marks the anniversary of the signing of the Bishkek Declaration by the 12 snow leopard range countries in October of 2013 at the first Global Forum on the Conservation of the Snow Leopard, held in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic.
Hosts for the celebration are Marcia Sivek, founder & owner of BeProvided Conservation Radio, and SLC Outreach Manager Shavaun Kidd. The virtual program celebrates the snow leopard and explores what conservationists are doing to save this iconic species.
Journalist Anil Adhikari, editor of the Snow Leopard Magazine and author of conservation education textbooks written for schoolchildren of Nepal, and Rinzen Phunjok Lama, 2021 Rolex Award recipient for his role in promoting local initiatives for biodiversity conservation in Nepal’s trans-Himalayan region, participate in the discussion. Learn about their work with local communities to conserve the biodiversity of the high Asian mountains. Also joining the conservation is Wendy Lama, owner of KarmaQuest Ecotourism and Adventure Travel.
Selections from the Conservancy’s 2023 Art & Poetry Contest and readings from the book Searching for the Snow Leopard, Guardian of the High Mountains are presented as well as photography and camera trap images and video from Tashi R. Ghale of Nepal, Claudio Augugliaro/Wildlife Initiative, who is doing snow leopard conservation work in Mongolia, and the Baltistan Wildlife Conservation and Development Organization (BWCDO) of Pakistan.
The program also includes a short biographical film describing the work of Indigenous Cultural Practitioner and founding member of the Land of Snow Leopard Network Zhaparkul Raimbekov of the Kyrgyz Republic. In addition, a video reflecting the experience of two of SLC’s team members, Executive Director Ashleigh Lutz-Nelson and Program Manager Charleen Gavette, as they go in search of the snow leopard while taking part in a KarmaQuest “Wintertime Quest for the Snow Leopard” trek to Ladakh, India.
