Southern Palawan in the Philippines is home to the Mount Mantalingahan Protected Landscape, the headwater of 33 watersheds and the habitat of newly discovered plants and of wildlife unique to the Palawan faunal region.
Illegal mining, poaching, unbridled agricultural growth, and forest overexploitation pose very real threats to the landscape, a major contributor to the world’s biodiversity.
In 2017, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Philippines’ Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) sought to address these threats through an initiative called Protect Wildlife.
Protect Wildlife used all stages of the Conservation Standards to facilitate collaboration among civil society organizations, five municipal governments, and the landscape’s management board. This collaboration led to an updated protected area plan and land use plans for forests in the buffer area, strengthening the capacity of landscape stewards to enforce rules and undertake activities that keep the ecosystem safe.
USAID and DAI Staff. Photo Credit: USAID/Protect Wildlife
Protect Wildlife has also helped strengthen capacity for more proactive wildlife law enforcement (e.g., through training for the DENR and local governments) and supported small-scale, conservation-friendly livelihood activities (e.g. seaweed production, yam production).
You can learn more about Protect Wildlife’s work, including other activities and lessons learned by checking out these documents.
