Since its inception in 2006, Panthera's stated and practical ambition is ultimately nothing less than to save all wild cat species across their ranges, and to do so in a scientifically rigorous and sustainable manner. If indeed, as Marcus Aurelius once wrote to himself, "one’s worth is no greater than their ambitions", Panthera has made its true worth quite evident. In addition to becoming the largest dedicated funder of wild cat conservation globally, Panthera has established the most ambitious and comprehensive species-survival programs in the wild cat field, including those for the protection of tigers, having created the cutting-edge Tigers Forever program in partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Society, as well as the Himalayan Tiger Corridor; the African Lion Corridor, via our Project Leonardo, which encompasses the first undertaking to staunch the precipitous decline of lions across the entirety of their range; the Jaguar Corridor, a program jointly funded with the US Department of State that is working to connect jaguar habitats from the Mexican-American border through Mesoamerica all the way to Northern Argentina; and the Snow Leopard Initiative, which was launched in Beijing in 2008 with the participation of a dozen range state governments as the first comprehensive project to identify and tackle the major threats facing this elusive species. Additionally, we have launched two new initiatives for pumas in the Western United States; entered into collaborations with Flora and Fauna International and Kenya’s Northern Rangelands Trust in relation to lions and leopards; and supported the historic work of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Zoological Society of London with regard to Asiatic cheetahs. Most recently, the Small Cat Action Fund (SCAF), a grants program established by Panthera, with the oversight of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group, was established to study and protect the world's smaller wild cats. Dovetailing with this single-minded approach, Panthera has created a joint-venture with the American Museum of Natural History in New York to create the Global Felid Genetics Program as an adjunct to our efforts to devise optimal genetic corridors worldwide.
While employing a broad brush with regard to cat conservation, such that "no species is left behind", we have also made a conscious decision not to leave any of the equally key issues of sustainability to chance. Thus, Panthera has moved to initiate programs across the broadest arc, touching - even redefining - nearly all aspects of felid conservation. Not content to fund field work and coalition-building, we have been willing to act unilaterally to secure key ecosystems when the opportunity has presented itself. Our Strategic Lands Initiative, one of the largest private efforts of its kind, has already secured vast stretches of critical habitat connecting protected areas in the Brazilian and Paraguayan Pantanal. While Sandra Cavalcanti is leading cutting edge jaguar on our properties, we are simultaneously merging this effort with Joaquim Proenca’s local ranching expertise and the best practices in carnivore/cattle conflict developed by one of the field’s most noted authorities, Rafael Hoogesteijn. In so doing, all realms of eco-friendly animal husbandry are being addressed and model ranches are being created on these properties which will serve as new paradigms for puma and jaguar-friendly approaches to cattle management.
Another arena in which we have changed the game is in education and training. Confident in the belief that we are helping to reinvigorate a field that has been burdened with discouragement over the last several decades, Panthera is investing aggressively in the human capital required for felid conservation. Having independently created the first global scholarship program for post-graduate research in wild cat studies, an initiative which began with one recipient, Guy Balme, in 2005 and which has now encompassed 37 recipients in 28 countries, we are now the largest funder of felid-related education in the world. Furthermore, we have expanded our range of activities further to capture the entire chain of career development from training entry-level field wardens through to post-doctoral research grants. A symbol of this commitment is the unique strategic alliance that has been created with Oxford University's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU). Over the course of the past year, it is fair to say that Panthera, working in partnership with David MacDonald of WildCRU, has created a number of fully-funded initiatives which together comprise the most comprehensive suite felid-related education programs to be found at any academic institution in the world. Capping off this philosophy of both nurturing and rewarding superior effort, Panthera has established Next Generation and Lifetime Achievement awards for excellence that has raised the profile of cat conservation globally.
Perhaps the best proof of Panthera's catalytic impact is the caliber of the people it has attracted to its banner. Beginning with Nicole Williams who has coordinated our scholarship program, to Jessica Craig and Andrea Heydlauff, who joined us to manage our London and New York operations respectively, we have been blessed with a staff that is as dedicated as it is talented. This level of passionate commitment met its fullest expression in 2008 with the ascension of the incomparable Dr. Alan Rabinowitz to his position of President and CEO, and his being joined by Dr. Luke Hunter as Executive Director. Having devised and executed many of the programs in our portfolio, to describe their levels of expertise as being “perfect” for the task would be a vast understatement. Their enthusiasm in coming aboard has been met with equal gusto from their peers, as shown by the arrival of Dr. Tom McCarthy, the world’s leading authority on snow leopards, to run our species-survival program for snow leopards, and Dr. Howard Quigley, one of the Americas’ greatest cat specialists, to direct our operations in the Western Hemisphere. At flank speed, Panthera's cadre of professionals and advisors has grown to encompass an unparalleled concentration of accomplishment and experience. This momentum was reinforced by the move to full-time staff status of our Vice-President, Dr. George Schaller, an iconic figure of global conservation. His acceptance of this hands-on position, as well as his serving as Chairman of Panthera’s Cat Advisory Council with Alan and Luke as Co-Chairmen, is a major milestone in felid conservation. The Council itself is an honor roll of many of the world's senior cat conservationists, men and women whose legendary cat-like independence of spirit has coalesced into a common ambition that speaks volumes not just for their collective goodwill but for the importance which they attach to Panthera's vision...and their desire to play a meaningful role in realizing it.
While one of conservation’s newer names, Panthera’s genuine progress to date has been extraordinary, reinforcing a growing perception that our organization represents one of the boldest and most exciting forces to emerge in wild cat conservation. The joy that I have been given in working with my colleagues to build this movement is one of the greatest privileges of my life…and participation in Panthera’s mission is a opportunity that I would urge upon anyone so inclined to make a real impact on saving not only the world’s cats, but the vast ecosystems that support them. It is said that to do a good deed for a wild animal is twice-blessed, for the beneficiary has no means of expressing its gratitude. To those who have always wondered how they might best serve the wider world, wildlife conservation is, at its core, one of the purest forms of giving. If you can, join us. At the end of the day, as my colleagues and I have found to our own immense satisfaction, Churchill put it best: ‘We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give'.
Thomas S. Kaplan
October 2008
