Cheetah Conservation Fund’s holistic conservation strategy is the key to success in saving the cheetah and its ecosystem. CCF works to develop best practices that benefit the entire ecosystem upon which the cheetah depends. CCF’s programs address the concerns for wildlife populations and the human communities that share the landscape.
To prevent further cheetah population decline, CCF works with farmers to investigate, develop and implement predator-friendly livestock and wildlife management techniques. The techniques are also exhibited at CCF’s Model Farm, where the farming community can see demonstrations and complete farming coursework. CCF promotes predator-friendly livestock management solutions in farmer publications, agricultural shows, communal meetings, and within agricultural coursework at colleges and universities.
CCF began monitoring Illegal Wildlife Trade of cheetahs. CCF became a founding member of the Coalition Against Wildlife Trafficking (CAWT). While CAWT as an organization is no longer in operation, its members have branched out into focused groups around the world where they continue to work toward fighting IWT.
In 2001, the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) collaborated to find a habitat improvement program that would be ecologically and economically viable. CCF identified a business opportunity: processing encroaching bush into high-heat, low-emission, compacted logs for use as a cooking fuel or for home heating. CCF Bush (PTY) Ltd. was established to manufacture the Bushblok product.
This loss of habitat not only reduces the available farmland, it reduces available habitat both for cheetahs and their prey species. With less usable land for humans and wildlife, human-wildlife conflict is exacerbated. Habitat loss, whether due to encroaching thornbush or human development, is consequently one of the top threats to the cheetah in the wild.
CCF is actively engaged in habitat restoration for cheetahs through its Bushblok initiative.
Ambassador Cheetah Dominic was rescued from the illegal pet trade in Namibia and will live out his days at the Cheetah Conservation Fund field center in Namibia. Dominic was only three days old when he was rescued and never learned the skills from his mother that he needs to survive in the wild.
Experience Wildlife has been a avid supporter of the Cheetah Conservation Fund since 2017. Photographing efforts both in the United States and in Namibia. Our mission is to provide powerful storytelling imagery to aid CCF in education, outreach and funding. All Limited edition prints sales support this project. Here are some of the images that have been made to support CCF’s work. These images could not have been possible without the continued support of my art collectors.
Today, cheetahs are found in only 9% of their historic range and are functionally extinct. Once found throughout Asia and Africa, today there are fewer than 7,100 adult and adolescent cheetahs in the wild.
Currently, cheetahs are listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. In Namibia, they are a protected species. Under the Endangered Species Act in the United States, they are considered Endangered. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) lists them as an Appendix 1 species. Most wild cheetahs exist in fragmented populations in pockets of Africa, occupying a mere 9 percent of their historic range. In Iran, fewer than 50 Asiatic cheetahs (a sub-species) remain.
The largest single population of cheetahs occupies a six-country polygon that spans Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Angola, Mozambique and Zambia. Namibia has the largest number of individuals of any country, earning it the nickname, “The Cheetah Capital of the World.” More than 75 percent of remaining wild cheetahs live on rural farmlands alongside human communities.
Experience Wildlife directly donates funds to organizations by raising money through print sales, leading workshops and publishing articles. A portion of all proceeds are donated directly to our partner organizations.
Experience Wildlife donates images to be auctioned off during fundraising events for our partner non-profit organizations. Funds raised from these images goes to supporting field work.
Experience Wildlife leads conservation focused workshops that partner directly with non-profit organizations. These trips allow our guest to work first hand at creating storytelling imagery that directly supports conservation efforts.
Experience Wildlife is always looking for conservation based non-profit organizations to partner with. Conservation is built into everything we do and that includes helping organizations raise funds to support their missions. If you want to learn more about how to become a conservation partner click the apply today button below.
