More than a day at the beach: Piping plover volunteers work to save a species

After a conservation biologist noticed that the number of birds in her Indian village dwindled over the years, she knew she had to take action. Purnima Devi Barman started to help educate her community about the historical significance and importance of the greater adjutant storks, and formed the “Hargila Army,” a volunteer crew of 400 women who help protect the birds. Thanks to their efforts over the last 13 years, they’ve been able to increase the endangered species’ numbers from just 27 in to more than 210.

The Akassa Development Foundation’s sea turtle club educates coastal communities in Bayelsa about the importance of sea turtles to prevent locals from killing them for meat or poaching their eggs. The club members also rescue turtles from their captors and accept turtles surrendered by fishers to release them back into the ocean.

In fishing communities, it isn't uncommon for fishermen to accidentally entrap endangered sea turtles. A non-profit in Kenya, however, has figured out a way to not only help raise awareness about the importance of releasing the turtles, but also to build trust with the fishermen and incentivize the releases.

A group of conservationists created Techo de Agua to engage communities in Colombia with conservation efforts for endangered species like the black-and-chestnut speckled eagles and spectacled bears. The nonprofit educates locals about the importance of these animals and reduces human-wildlife conflict with individualized solutions.

Two conservation organizations are helping communities in Kyrgyzstan diversify their sources of income from livestock to include beekeeping, agroecology, ecotourism, and crafts. These efforts are preventing conflicts with snow leopards to conserve the local population. And some of the money made from the program goes towards funding environmental projects chosen by the community.

A family of former fishers created the Kino Bay Turtle Group to monitor sea turtles in Mexico’s La Cruz Lagoon. The conservationists work to rescue and tag turtles entangled in fishing gear, track the population, and educate the public about their importance.

Clean Ocean Sailing is a volunteer-based organization that boats to largely inaccessible parts of Cornwall’s coasts to pull plastic pollution out of the ocean and off the beaches using kayaks, rowboats, and physical labor.

Thanks to efforts by the Society for the Protection of Turtles and a band of international volunteers, green and loggerhead turtle numbers in North Cyprus are rebounding. Last year, there were more than 2,400 nests counted, a 10-fold increase since their first survey in 1988. There are still challenges in saving these species due to plastic waste, but more locals are recognizing the importance of turtle conservation.

Pennsylvania’s Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy has built a grassroots base of volunteers that help clean up the local environment. Through education at schools and summer workshops, outreach projects, and asking volunteers to recruit new people, the Conservancy saw over 1,000 volunteers at its annual stream cleanup event. While the organization is still trying to figure out how to retain volunteers for long-term projects, the response to immediate projects has been overwhelming.

In the North Luangwa National Park in Zambia, a conservation team worked with local communities to bring the rate of elephant poaching in the area down to zero in 2018. Poaching had surged in the Luangwa Valley in 2014, and since then the group has protected the elephants by placing the decision-making and benefit-reaping in the hands of the community members. They use financial incentives to stir the economy without depending on poaching money, work with the government to revise policies that redirect any income for the area to benefit the residents, and they patrol the park for any poachers.