WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY 2016 one that benefitted some local residents .
However , it soon became clear that a lack of buy-in by the local community would put the future of the project at risk . Neighbors had to see the wildlife conservation next door as something that could change their lives in positive ways . By making them partners , they would be more likely to assist in the protection of the conservancy .
To accomplish this , the conservancy offered much needed education and health care services and ensured that they saw some of the economic benefits like protection of their livestock by the anti-poaching teams .
Inspired by conservation benefits reaped by their neighbours bordering private conservancies , local communities offered their land for settling up of community conservancies with support from the Northern Rangelands Trust – founded by Lewa . Their socio-economic status has improved , with previously unavailable social services like water , security and healthcare now available . The community conservancies have also created many employment opportunities for the locals .
This approach has paid dividends , with a decline in poaching cases as community members , who view wildlife as a source of livelihood , provide intelligence to the conservancy ’ s rangers , the Kenya Wildlife Service and Kenya police regarding suspected poachers .
“ Lewa is the only conservancy in Kenya to have not lost a rhino to poaching since 2013 ,” said John Pameri , Head of Security at the conservancy . “ Community members have helped identify people involved in poaching including two of our former rangers resulting in arrests .”
Stand with the United Nations and Angola , Global Host for World Environment Day 2016 , by pledging your support and joining the global fight against the illegal trade in wildlife
On 5 June 2016 , people from across the globe will celebrate World Environment Day ( WED ) by taking part in environmental action and becoming agents of change for positive impacts on the planet .
This year ’ s theme is on the illegal trade in wildlife , which is eroding Earth ’ s precious biodiversity , robbing us of our natural heritage and driving species to the brink of extinction .
Wildlife crime endangers iconic species such as elephants , rhinos , tigers , gorillas and sea turtles . In 2011 , a subspecies of Javan rhino was declared extinct in Vietnam , while the last western black rhinos vanished from Cameroon in the same year . Great apes have disappeared from Gambia , Burkina Faso , Benin and Togo , and other countries could quickly follow . Lesserknown victims include helmeted hornbills and pangolins as well as wild orchids and timbers like rosewood – yes , flowers and timber are also considered wildlife ! The illegal trade is also undermining economies and ecosystems , fuelling organized crime , and feeding corruption and insecurity across the globe .
In a worldwide call to action to Make Wildlife Personal and to support the global effort against the illegal trade in wildlife , people all over the world are joined by star studded ambassadors in the UN ’ s unprecedented
# WildforLife campaign that aims to mobilize millions of people to make commitments and take action .
As celebrations take place all over the world , celebrities are giving their name to change the game for these threatened species . Campaign Leaders include : UNEP Goodwill Ambassadors , Lebanese singer song-writer Ragheb Alama for helmeted hornbills ; Chinese actress Li Bingbing and four-time African Footballer of the Year Yaya Touré ( Manchester City , Ivory Coast ) for elephants ; Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen for sea turtles ; GRASP Ambassador and Indonesian model Nadya Hutagalung for orangutans ; and actor Ian Somerhalder ( Vampire Diaries , Lost ) for pangolins .
They are being joined by major celebrities including , Bollywood star Jacqueline Fernandez for tigers , Vietnamese singer Thu Minh for rhinos and North American actress Nikki Reed for Rosewood .
Brazilian footballer Neymar Jr . has also thrown his weight behind the campaign to support Gisele and has garnered over half a million likes for the campaign in 48 hours . All are calling for citizen support to end the demand that is driving the illegal trade .
There are many activities you can take part in to celebrate WED 2016 , whether this be through arts and
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