Today, July 24, 2025, we celebrate International Self Care Day, a day dedicated to promoting self-care practices and their numerous benefits for physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Self-care encompasses a wide range of activities and strategies aimed at maintaining and enhancing our overall health. On this day, individuals and communities across the globe come together… The post International Self Care Day appeared first on America's Charities.

Media Advisory: International Tiger Day

Project Lifecycle: Building Partner Capacity to Support Conservation and Increase Impact

For Munkhtenger, snow leopard conservation is a family matter, and his award honors his late brother’s legacy and his father’s guidance. His older brother was a bright, young and energetic researcher and conservationist working in the Gobi Desert – far away from where they both grew up in Khusvgul, near Mongolia’s largest lake. When asked how his brother went from the largest body of water in the country to one of the driest regions in the world, Munktenger replied, “People stay where they have given their hearts”.  Their father, Tumursukh, is the Director of Ulaan Taiga strictly protected area and. Despite going to college for accounting, Munkhtenger followed in the footsteps of his family. “I have been brought up by my father’s teachings and guidance since I was a kid”. Munktenger strongly emphasized family as the backbone of his growth as a conservationist. Click to view slideshow. During his acceptance speech, Munkhtenger mentioned, “My life is entwined with this organization (SLCF)”, and with over a decade of experience, his time spent away from home and patrolling Mongolia’s wilderness is staggering. Rangers typically spend 200-280 days of the year patrolling their respective areas. Munkhtenger himself spent 221 days last year patrolling the Khuvsgul forests. During this time, he detected, prevented or interfered with over 170 violations. He was awarded Best of the Best ranger for detecting illegal hunting of moose, a regionally endangered species, and preventing illegal fishing.  When asked about his future plans, Munkhtenger said, “It is probably on the minds of everyone working in conservation, to pass on their protected area to future generations as it was, with its wildlife and plants intact”. This family of conservationists has, with great commitment and sacrifice, worked tirelessly to preserve Mongolia’s natural beauty, keeping it intact and thriving. World Ranger Day on July 31 recognizes the dedicated men and women who put their lives on the line to protect the planet’s natural resources and cultural heritage. These brave individuals are the proud guardians of wildlife treasures worldwide, including the elusive snow leopard. We celebrate these frontline defenders for their vital role in conservation and honor the sacrifices they make with annual award ceremonies that have, with your help, recently expanded from Kyrgyzstan to Mongolia and Pakistan. You can help rangers like Munkhtenger working on the frontlines of snow leopard conservation by giving them the vital resources they need. Donate today. Photo credits: SLCF-Mongolia The post A Wildlife Ranger Honors His Family Legacy appeared first on Snow Leopard Trust.

Hiring is about more than filling roles—it’s about shaping the future of your company. Every new team member contributes to the culture you’re building, and aligning your hiring process with your organization’s values is more important than ever. Candidates understand the importance of company culture, too; research shows that 77% of job seekers consider company… The post How to Align Your Company’s Values with Your Hiring Process appeared first on America's Charities.

Payroll giving donors are some of the most consistent and committed supporters nonprofits have, but they’re often overlooked in day-to-day fundraising strategies. These donors contribute through employer-sponsored workplace giving programs, with regular donations automatically deducted from their paychecks. While the individual donations may be modest, the long-term impact of this steady support is significant. Recent… The post Nurturing Payroll Giving Donors: 5 Tips to Deepen Engagement appeared first on America's Charities.

Notes from the Field: Community-led Conservation in the Philippines

World Elephant Day

North American Environmental Commission Confirms Mexico’s Role in Imperiling Vaquita aalberg Tue, 08/19/2025 - 18:02 photo by Semarnat August 19, 2025 Montreal—A commission under the United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA) released a report yesterday confirming that Mexico’s unwillingness to enforce its own wildlife protection, trade, and fisheries laws is driving the extinction of the critically endangered vaquita porpoise.In its prepared “factual record,” the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC), which investigates nations’ environmental enforcement under the USMCA, details how illegal gillnet fishing and totoaba trafficking continue unabated in the porpoise’s Upper Gulf of California refuge.“This report confirms a heartbreaking reality. Illegal gillnet fishing is squeezing the last breaths out of the poor vaquita,” said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Mexico needs to shut down all gillnet fishing immediately and start round the clock enforcement throughout the vaquita’s habitat to give these little porpoises even a sliver of hope.”The CEC Secretariat’s factual record found that Mexico’s claims that it is taking enforcement actions are undermined or not supported by on-the-ground observations. For example, despite Mexico’s ban on certain fishing gear since 2020, interviews and eyewitness accounts confirmed that “fishing activities continue at the similar levels and with the same [gear] as before the restrictions,” the report said.The Secretariat also found that fishermen “elude” fishing bans in the vaquita habitat by sending their illegal catch to processors in other regions. Mexico has failed to provide sufficient information, the report said, leaving central enforcement questions unanswered.Fewer than 10 vaquita remain, according to a 2024 survey. Earlier this summer, hydroacoustic devices used in the porpoise’s habitat recorded 41 acoustic encounters with vaquita, proving that the species continues to survive in its core habitat, called the “zero tolerance area,” as well as in the larger vaquita refuge. While efforts to prevent illegal fishing in the zero tolerance area have been successful in recent years, gillnet fishing remains rampant outside the area.The use of illegal gillnets to catch shrimp and totoaba has caused the vaquita’s decline. Totoaba are large fish whose swim bladder, or maw, is in high demand in Asia due to its purported medicinal value.“The commission’s report documents how insatiable demand for totoaba maw incentivizes the illegal take of this endangered species,” said DJ Schubert, senior wildlife biologist at the Animal Welfare Institute. “Transnational criminal networks engaged in the trafficking of totoaba parts won’t stop until Mexico and its trade partners step up enforcement and prosecute the kingpins.”Under a Compliance Action Plan imposed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Mexico was required, among other tasks, to strengthen and expand inspections of vessels entering the Upper Gulf, install monitoring systems on all vessels using the area, and develop alternative gear to replace gillnets. Little progress has been made, however, despite a CITES directive that all changes be implemented by 2023. As of June, for example, Mexican officials had fitted only 10 of the 850 promised satellite trackers to monitor small boats, or pangas, fishing in the Upper Gulf.In 2021, the Animal Welfare Institute, Center for Biological Diversity, Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Environmental Investigation Agency petitioned the USMCA commission to investigate Mexico’s failure to enforce its fishing and trade laws; the CEC Secretariat called for the development of a factual record in 2022. Yet political wrangling among Mexico, the United States and Canada delayed the report’s completion for three years.“This report makes painfully clear what we’ve known for years—Mexico’s failure to enforce its own laws is driving the world’s rarest marine mammal to extinction,” said Michael Jasny, director of the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Marine Mammal Protection Project. “There’s no time left for half measures. The US must use every tool under the USMCA to hold Mexico accountable and stop the illegal fishing that’s pushing the vaquita over the edge.”“Stronger actions through the USMCA remain our last chance at giving the near-extinct vaquita any glimmer of hope at survival,” added CT Harry, senior ocean policy analyst for the Environmental Investigation Agency. “With the Mexican government’s continued failure to prevent illegal gillnet operations, time is running out before these unique animals take their final breaths.”Now that the report is public, the United States, through its Office of the US Trade Representative, can use the information to further press Mexico to combat illegal fishing in ongoing USMCA consultations. If those negotiations stall, the office can escalate to a dispute panel, which can authorize import penalties until Mexico fully enforces the gillnet ban in vaquita habitat. Media Contact Information Marjorie Fishman, Animal Welfare Institutemargie@awionline.org, (202) 446-2128Sarah Uhlemann, Center for Biological Diversitysuhlemann@biologicaldiversity.org, (206) 327-2344Holly Koch, Environmental Investigation Agencyhkoch@eia-global.org, (805) 868-8623 Andrew Scibetta, Natural Resources Defense Councilascibetta@nrdc.org, (202) 289-2421 The Animal Welfare Institute (awionline.org) is a nonprofit charitable organization founded in 1951 and dedicated to alleviating animal suffering caused by people. We seek to improve the welfare of animals everywhere: in agriculture, in commerce, in our homes and communities, in research, and in the wild. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Bluesky, and LinkedIn for updates and other important animal protection news.The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.8 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.The Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) is an international campaigning organization committed to investigating and exposing environmental crime and campaigning to protect endangered species and the natural world. Visit us at eia-international.org and follow us on Twitter @EIA_News.NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Established in 1970, NRDC uses science, policy, law, and people power to confront the climate crisis, protect public health, and safeguard nature. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Beijing, and Delhi (an office of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd).

Last month, we turned our spotlight on the underappreciated ungulates of Asia’s high mountains and their significance beyond being mere prey for snow leopards. Unfortunately for ungulates, this month we are discussing the ideal meal for snow leopards: ibex. Specifically, fully grown ibex males in the prime of their lives.  This preference for large prey is unusual behavior for large cats, who tend to prefer and hunt prey typically smaller or similar in size to them. For perspective, a fully grown male ibex can exceed 100 kg, more than twice the body mass of an average snow leopard. Unlike most big cats, male and female snow leopards are similar in size, showing minimal sexual dimorphism.  Our study shows that snow leopards prefer large male ibex, while female ibex, which are much closer in size to snow leopards, were selected less frequently than their relative population abundance would suggest. Similarly, young male ibex under six years old and yearlings between one and two years were also hunted by snow leopards at unexpectedly low rates. Prey selection by predators is influenced by many variables, including seasonality. We tracked prey selection across the four seasons and still found that adult ibex males were selected at higher than expected rates. Spring saw the only significant change in this selection, when male snow leopards hunted female ibex and female snow leopards hunted ibex kids at higher rates. This shows that snow leopards are dynamic hunters, adjusting their prey selection based on seasonal vulnerability in ibex. “Young ibex kids haven’t yet developed the agility and speed needed to escape, while adult females lose much of their agility in late pregnancy, making them both easier targets,” says Dr. Örjan Johansson, SLT’s Senior Scientist and lead author of the paper. http://snowleopard.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Untitled-design-3.mp4 But why male ibex? We expect predators to select prey that will give them the most bang for their buck – or, in scientific terms, the highest energy gain. Yet, in our study, we found that younger males, which have the second-highest biomass of all ibex age-sex classes, were hunted at lower rates than their relative population abundance would suggest. This implies that snow leopards were choosing the older male ibex for reasons other than their large biomass. Are older ibex perhaps more vulnerable to snow leopard hunting strategies? Ibex horns continue to grow as they age, with older males typically having the largest horns. While this gives them some advantages (we’ll get to that soon), it is not a great boon while being chased down a mountain by an ambushing snow leopard. The big bodies and large horns of the mature male ibex seem to make them more vulnerable to predation in the crags and crannies of their mountainous habitat. This “handicap” is, oddly enough, a great boon for many other potential prey species, whose “weapons” (horns, in this case) and large size would make them safer from predators. You might ask, then, why does nature select for big bodies and horns, if it makes ibex more vulnerable to predation? Well, mating. Ibex establish dominance during their rutting, where big bodies and horns generally come out on top. It’s an interesting tradeoff for the ibex males. What makes them more likely to mate – large body and large horns – also makes them more vulnerable to being eaten. “Their size and horns make them more dominant in the competition for females, but also increase their risk of being caught by snow leopards. This could be an example of a sexually selected handicap – where traits that improve mating success come with a cost,” says Örjan. So bigger is better, until it’s not. http://snowleopard.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Fighting-ibex-Credit-Orjan-Johansson-for-Snow-Leopard-Trust.m4v   These findings document unusual hunting behavior by snow leopards and further our understanding of their prey selection and how they utilize rocky terrain to their advantage. It calls into question the viability of “trophy hunting” of ungulates as a conservation tool, as it appears both snow leopards and trophy hunters value the same prize, which could put pressure on ibex populations. The study itself is also unusual, because it gives us rare, detailed insights into snow leopard prey selection.  Our scientists achieved something remarkable by studying 150 kill sites and tracking nearly 4,000 ibex over different seasons, allowing them to understand not just what these elusive cats hunt, but specifically which ages and sexes they select depending on the season. DID YOU KNOW? This study was able to gauge the ages of ibex based on their horns. Like tree trunks, ibex horns grow larger each year, and a new ring indicates a new year! Read the full paper here Photo credits: Prasenjeet Yadav, Örjan Johansson for Snow Leopard Trust/SLCF-Mongolia Acknowledgments: This long-term ecological study is in collaboration with Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation in Mongolia and Snow Leopard Trust, with special thanks to the Ministry of Nature, Environment and Tourism, the Government of Mongolia, and the Mongolian Academy of Sciences for their support. We would also like to acknowledge: Acton Family Giving, Bioparc Zoo de Doue la Fontaine, David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, Idaho Falls Zoo at Tautphaus Park, John Ball Zoo, Kolmårdens Zoo, Korkeasaari Zoo, National Geographic Society, Nordens Ark, Parco Zoo Punta Verde, Play for Nature, Tierpark Berlin, The Big Cat Sanctuary/Wildlife Heritage Foundation, Tulsa Zoo, Whitley Fund for Nature, Zoo Basel, Zoo Dresden, Zoo New England and the many incredible partners who have supported programs like our Long-term Ecological Study and research in Mongolia since it began in 2008. We could not do this work without you. The post Size Matters: Study Reveals Snow Leopards Hunt Like No Other Big Cat appeared first on Snow Leopard Trust.