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Contents Chairman’s Note 02 Trustees and President 04 Advisory Board Members 05 India’s Biodiversity 07 The Environmental Crisis 08 WCT’s Reach 09 The 360° Approach 10 Conservation Strategy 11 Equipping Patrolling Camps 13 Rapid Response Units 14 Improving Mobility of Forest Staff 15 Wildlife Crime Prevention Training for Frontline Forest Staff 17 Wildlife Crime Prevention Training for Senior Officials 18 Law Enforcement Monitoring 19 Site Security 21 Canine-Assisted Wildlife Investigation Programme 23 Connectivity Conservation 25 Wildlife Population Estimation 27 Understanding Tiger Dispersal Using Genetics 30 Radio-Telemetry 31 Human-Wildlife Interface Management 33 Human Death Investigation 35 Wildlife Health Monitoring 36 Rediscovery of Eurasian Otter 37 Conservation through Citizen Science 38 Mitigating the Impact of Linear Infrastructure 39 Conservation Behaviour 41 Village Social Transformation Programme (VSTP) 43 Livelihoods 45 Preventive Health Check-up of Frontline Forest Staff 47 Trauma Management Training 49 Improving Access to Healthcare for Frontline Forest Staff 51 Education 54 Cluster Resource Centres (CRCs) and Block Resource Centres (BRCs) 55 Influencing Policies 57 WCT Small Grants (WCT-SG) 59 Other Projects 61 Donors & Partners 71 Photo Credits 74 President’s Note 76 The Wildlife Conservation Trust (WCT) was founded to safeguard India’s life-giving ‘ecosystems in a holistic, sustainable manner. Recognising the interconnectedness between people and ecosystems, WCT uses a 360° approach to conservation by placing equal emphasis on both forest and wildlife conservation and community development. We work closely with forest departments across the country to fortify on-ground protection by training and equipping frontline forest staff. Through partnerships with NGOs, the Trust is attempting to strengthen public education systems, provide alternative livelihood options to rural youth and make healthcare accessible to people living in and around India’s forests. The idea is simple—secure key wildernesses to safeguard wildlife, people and rivers, and mitigate climate change. I invite you to join us in our mission to create a healthier, more prosperous India. Hemendra Kothari Founder and Chairman 01 | Wildlife Conservation Trust Wildlife Conservation Trust | 02 Trustees Mr. Hemendra Kothari Chairman, DSP Investment Managers Pvt. Ltd; Founder, Chairman and Trustee, The Hemendra Kothari Foundation; Member, State Boards of Wildlife, Rajasthan and Maharashtra; Member, National Tiger Conservation Authority; Member, Advisory Council, Global Tiger Forum; India Chairman, The Nature Conservancy. Mr. Bittu Sahgal Founder and Editor, Sanctuary Asia Magazine and Sanctuary Nature Foundation; leading conservationist; Founder, Kids for Tigers, a nation-wide conservation education programme. Ms. Aditi Kothari Executive Vice President and Director, DSP Investment Managers Pvt. Ltd. Member of the Advisory Board of Dasra and DSP CSR committees. A Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School and an MBA from the Harvard Business School. Ms. Shuchi Kothari A Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School and an MBA from the Harvard Business School. She is a director of Health & Glow Retailing Pvt. Ltd.. President Dr. Anish Andheria Large Carnivore biologist, specialises in prey-predator relationships; Carl Ziess Conservation Awardee (2008); UAA-ICT Distinguished Alumnus Awardee (2017); Member, State Board of Wildlife, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh; Member, Madhya Pradesh Tiger Conservation Foundation. 03 | Wildlife Conservation Trust Wildlife Conservation Trust | 04 Advisory Board Members Mr. Subramaniam Ramodarai Ms. Naina Lal Kidwai Former Chairman, NSDA and NSDC; Chairperson-Governing Board, TISS; Chairman, Max Financial Services; serves on the Board of Nestle SA; Chairman, IIT-Guwahati; Former CEO and MD, TCS (1996 to 2009); Fellow, Non-executive Director, CIPLA Ltd.; Chair, FICCI’s Sustainability Council and Indian National Acamdemy of Engineering; Fellow, IEEE, Member, National Water Mission and Chair, India Sanitation Coalition. Council, CIL. Mr. Anshu Jain Mr. Dereck Joubert Former Co-CEO, Deutsche Bank; Honorary Fellow, London Business School Award-winning filmmaker; National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence; (2014); Honorary Doctorate, TERI University (2014); Economic Times Global Founder of the National Geographic Big Cats Initiative and a wildlife Indian (2012) and Risk Management Lifetime Achievement Awardee conservationist; recipient of 2008 World Ecology Award; recipient of (2010). Presidential Order of Merit in Botswana. Dr. Thomas Kaplan Mr. Amit Chandra Chairman and Chief Investment Officer, Electrum Group LLC; Executive Managing Director, Bain Capital; World Economic Forum Young Global Chairman, Panthera Corporation; Member, Order of the Légion d’Honneur Leader (2007); listed by Forbes under Asia’s Heroes of Philanthropy (2016); of France (2014). Member of the Board of Directors of Tata Sons Limited, Genpact, L&T Finance, and Emcure Pharmaceuticals; Trustee of the Tata Trusts; Founder/Board Member of Ashoka University. Mr. Prashant Trivedi Mr. Alok Kshirsagar CIO, Multi-Act Family Office; Chairman Indian, Card Clothing Co. Ltd.; Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company; leads McKinsey’s Risk Management Founder and Chairman, Multi-Act Trading and Investments (Pvt.) Ltd.; Practice in Asia; Honorary President of the National Association for the Blind, Director, Great Plains Holdings (Kenya) Ltd. Karnataka; serves on the board of PRS Legislative Research and the Next Gen Leaders board of the Indian School of Business; named “Young Global Leader” by the World Economic Forum. 05 | Wildlife Conservation Trust Wildlife Conservation Trust | 06 India’s Biodiversity The Environmental Crisis Water supports all life on earth. The destruction of forests and the subsequent impact on the hydrological cycle is devastating communities across the world. Anthropogenic climate 1,300+ change is exacerbating the crisis. Species of birds Water Climate About 71% of earth’s surface is covered with Studies show that there has been a rapid rise water, but only a small fraction of this water is in global temperatures post the industrial era. available for human consumption. Since 1880s, the average temperatures have increased by 0.8° Celsius. The impact of rising 1,500+ temperatures will be devastating and has Species of butterflies caused: 0.008% of all water is surface water, available for human consumption Falling crop yields in many areas, particularly 400+ developing regions Species of mammals 1.7% of all water is locked in glaciers/ice Significant decreases in water availability in many areas 1.75% 300+ of all water is Species of snakes underground and out of reach Sea level rise, threatening major cities 96.5% 15 of all water Species of wild cats is in the oceans Rising intensity of storms, forest fires, droughts, flooding and heat waves Interconnectedness between forests, tigers and climate change: The Stern Review indicates that economic costs of climate change will lead to a loss of 5-20% of global GDP every year. A yearly investment of just 1% of global GDP per annum in renewable 25,000+ energy and forest conservation will help avoid the adverse effects of climate change. Species of flowering plants By supporting natural regeneration of tiger forests, we can effectively mitigate climate change, in addition to conserving biodiversity and riverine ecosystems. 07 | Wildlife Conservation Trust Wildlife Conservation Trust | 08 WCT’s Reach The 360° Approach Nearly 600 rivers originate from, or are fed by, the tiger-bearing forests of India. These tiger habitats are crucial for the water and food security of the country. WCT plays a catalytic role in the landscapes it operates in. Our focus is on strengthening Several million people live in and around forests. Thus, one cannot talk about conservation sustainable ecosystems that will continue to serve wildlife and communities in the long-term. To without community participation. In view of this fact, WCT has adopted a 360° approach to achieve this, we work closely with government bodies and local NGOs, providing funding, conservation by focusing equally on wildlife protection and community development. Our technical support and consultancy. The solutions we create are rooted in hard science and are mission is to secure vital wildlife habitats and catalyse the upliftment of marginalised easily replicable. communities. Conservation Health Research Law Enforcement Education Training Conservation Behaviour Livelihoods 09 | Wildlife Conservation Trust Wildlife Conservation Trust | 10 Conservation Strategy Enhance livelihood Understand the Train frontline Strengthen the rural options for local correlation forest staff in education system - Train frontline forest Train frontline commuities to reduce between human wildlife law Teacher training; staff in trauma forest staff in their dependence on behavior and Developing learning management wildlife monitoring forests conservation aids; School imperatives infrastructure Strengthen support human-wildlife Train frontline forest interface staff in systematic management to patrolling mitigate future Help strategise Help monitor Provide veterinary conflict Train the staff of and implement human disturbance Provide essential support in mitigating territorial forest Help improve the anti-poaching and animal equipment for human-wildlife divisions in wildlife law enforcement operations distribution inside forest