Borderlands Conservation Initiative

Poachers, drawn in by the sky-high price of ivory are killing an estimated 96 elephants everyday in Africa – bringing elephants ever closer to the brink of extinction. Although the prospects are dire, we along with our progressive community partners are having success in slowing and in some cases stopping the slaughter in parts of Kenya and Tanzania. In collaboration with NGOs and government anti-poaching forces, we work to increase community conservation capacity, train new scouts, build new scout stations, identify emerging crises, and develop rapid response units to quickly activate game scouts and Kenya Wildlife Service staff. These cooperative efforts have resulted in a significant reduction of elephant poaching. Meanwhile, lions have reappeared in areas where they have not been seen in 10 years.

Elephants (Loxodonta africana) and lions (Panthera leo) are the largest herbivore and carnivore in Africa, are highly threatened and share a flagship role in conservation. Both species play key roles in the ecosystem, are major tourist attractions, and are most often in conflict with farmers and herders. Conserving elephants and lions combats poaching, bolsters tourism, generates income for local communities, and maintains the diversity and integrity of ecosystems.

Contributing to the lack of rangeland for wide-ranging herbivores and carnivores, pastoralists—eager to secure formal titles to ward off land grabbers—are carving up the areas around and between parks. This wave of subdivision is hastening the loss of wildlife and the isolation of parks. Meanwhile, the illegal slaughter of wildlife has escalated in northern Tanzania and Kenya. Although wildlife protection agencies in both countries have reacted to this threat in protected areas, most of the community lands in this region have little or no protection. BCI changes that by working with communities to strengthen their conservation capacity and by generating jobs and income.