Raising awareness and promoting the binturong
Education and outreach in France
2015 - today
Everywhere across France
Through public interventions, we wish to promote the knowledge of this species and raise awareness among the general public.
# DONE
- Creating World Binturong Day in 2015.
- Creating educational tools.
- Launching the training course “Raising public awareness about the protection of binturongs” for professionals and the general public. First session in January 2020.
- Since 2014:
- Leading 7 webinars and classroom courses for zookeeping degree students, on various themes related to binturongs and the protection of natural environments.
- Presenting 6 talks in conferences for the general public and professionals, on the binturong and the various actions led by ABConservation.
- Organizing 29 educational interventions for the general public during environmental and zoo-based events.
# ONGOING
- Creating a new activity for children.
- Creating new educational panels.
# UPCOMING
- 14 educational intervention days are already planned for 2020.
- General Meeting of the association.
- 2020 World Binturong Day.
- Anniversary of ABConservation, in July 2020.
The challenge: a very little known animal
The binturong is a mammal dwelling in Southeast Asian forests. It is very little known in France, but also in the area it is native to. Indeed, it is an arboreal animal that usually roams in tree tops, up to 40 meters high. In addition, it is mostly nocturnal. These two features make it very hard to observe this animal in its natural habitat. Since it was discovered 200 years ago, only a few scientific studies have focused on it (mostly in captive settings), so the species remains quite mysterious for most of us, although it plays a vital role in forest regeneration. But this is about to change, thanks to outreach activities and World Binturong Day, all organized by ABConservation for the general public! If you want to know more about this nocturnal mammal right now, you can check our page dedicated to the binturong.
Binturong in the trees – Ménagerie du Jardin des plantes de Paris, France. Credit E. Baril
Goals: raising awareness among the general public
Intervention in 2019 – Zoo de Trégomeur, France. Credit AG. Perio
To raise awareness among the general public, ABConservation has set up various activities on the theme of binturongs, in order to achieve the following goals:
- promoting the image of the binturong (maybe one day it will be as popular as the panda, who knows?).
- sharing the knowledge we gained on the binturong, demonstrating why it matters to protect it and what role it has in the balance of South Asian ecosystems.
- describing the threats it is facing and what we can do to mitigate them.
Our action: awareness activities and World Binturong Day
In order to make binturongs better known to the general public, ABConservation uses different strategies:
Educational activities for the general public
World Binturong Day 2019 – Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes de Paris, France. Credit E. Baril
We also organize outreach events in schools for pupils and students. Moreover, we hold conferences and training sessions for adults, in particular animal care professionals, as well as those working in education and endangered species conservation.
Thanks to all the participants in the various events and World Binturong Days, more and more people are getting to know the binturong every year. This means there will be a growing awareness of the threats faced by Asian forests and the direct effects of our consumption of resources (food, cosmetics, fuel). Our actions are paying off and this motivates us all the more to continue our efforts!
Our educational material is available for free on our documentation page.
“Nature Festival” in 2016 – Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle de Paris, France. Credit E. Baril
Social media outreach
Do you want us to intervene in your institution?
Talk for the members of SECAS – Paris, France. Credit E. Baril
Stakeholders on the ground: Volunteers and members are our strength!
Our actions are mainly organized by the president of the association, Pauline Kayser, but would never actually happen without the invaluable help of our volunteers and members. It is thanks to them we can lead so many activities and promote the binturong!
If you wish to help us during one of the events as a volunteer, you can check our volunteer page where you will find all the necessary information. There are all kinds of missions, so you will definitely find one that suits you!
World Binturong Day 2017 – La ménagerie / Zoo du Jardin des Plantes, Paris, France. Credit E. Baril
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