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ELEPHANT ecologist Dr Nurzhafarina Othman has won a UK-based charity award for her work to save the last 300 Bornean elephants in Sabah amid shrinking habitat for the world’s smallest elephant.
Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) charity patron Princess Anne, the younger sister of King Charles, presented the Whitley Award in London on April 30.
Farina, as she’s known in her circle, read out a letter to the elephants at the award ceremony.
The founder and director of nonprofit Seratu Aatai which means “solidarity,” Farina is addressing a rise in human-elephant conflict with palm oil stakeholders in Lower Kinabatangan.
The elephant biologist is supporting companies and smallholders in implementing an “elephant friendly” approach to promote coexistence with the goal of creating a protected corridor network, according to a statement released by WFN.
There are fewer than 1,000 Bornean elephants left in the wild in three population ranges across Sabah. A subspecies of the Asian elephant, they have lost 60% of their forest habitat in the last 40 years, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, driven by logging and cultivation of palm oil.
The extensive fragmentation and connectivity loss has significantly restricted elephant movement. The IUCN listed them on its Red List as Endangered for the first time last year, the statement added.
Farina is focused on a stronghold in the Lower Kinabatangan where much of the original forest has been altered for economic development. As elephants navigate this changing landscape, their presence can pose challenges for farmers working to protect their livelihoods.
Seratu Aatai, which Farina created in 2018, is well known among local communities, and is the only conservation organisation in Sabah dedicated uniquely to the conservation of the Bornean elephant. Genetically distinct from all other elephant populations, males grow to 4 metres in height.
Orangutans, Sunda clouded leopards, sun bears and leopard cats are among the species that will benefit from Farina’s project in the area, which is an ecotourist destination, known for its oxbow lakes and tropical forests.
Since its creation in 1993, it has channelled £24 million to 220 conservationists across 80 countries. — TMR
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