Thread by @bopinion

Social distancing may save human lives, but it’s making some of the world’s most threatened species even more vulnerable trib.al/sTWVnIb

🦏In Botswana, poachers have taken advantage of suddenly empty reserves to kill at least six endangered rhinos. In South Africa’s North West province, at least nine more were killed.

Tigers, elephants and countless other species might face similar threats trib.al/sTWVnIb

🌍Tourism has supported the conservation of threatened habitats for decades by giving local communities an economic stake.

The pandemic is teaching conservationists and governments alike that this model isn’t sustainable in a steep downturn trib.al/sTWVnIb

International tourism has taken a massive hit, with daily flights down by almost 80% since early April.

🏝️Small island developing states such as the Seychelles and the Maldives have seen their tourism industry erased, accounting for as much as 30% of GDP trib.al/sTWVnIb

🇲🇬Madagascar has spent decades promoting its unique habitats and rare species. With 144 protected areas, it has succeeded spectacularly in:

- Preserving biodiversity
- Creating economic benefits for local communities trib.al/sTWVnIb

Because of the virus, Madagascar’s model is defunct.

Since January, $500 million of expected revenue has been wiped out and Ranomafana National Park, home to 12 lemur species, is generating no income at all.

Those losses will ricochet through the nation
trib.al/sTWVnIb

Madagascar isn’t alone. 🦍These nations have suspended all tourism activities to protect mountain gorillas from the virus:

🇷🇼Rwanda
🇺🇬Uganda
🇨🇩Democratic Republic of Congo

That means lost revenue for conservation efforts and local people trib.al/sTWVnIb

The threat to endangered species is likely to worsen.

Poverty and poaching are strongly correlated: Communities deprived of tourism revenue will look elsewhere for income trib.al/sTWVnIb

Without an economic rebound, the pressure to poach will only ramp up over time.

In previous major epidemics, it took an average of 19 months for visitor numbers to recover. The depth of the current downturn will almost certainly require longer trib.al/sTWVnIb

Conservationists will need to ensure that the future economic benefits generated by preserving wildlife and habitats are widely shared by:

Including locals in decision-making and management
Giving them hunting and agricultural rights trib.al/sTWVnIb

Meanwhile, governments and NGOs should tap into the demand for sustainable investments.

📈For example, there’s a 5-year, $50 million impact bond designed to protect rhino populations. If their numbers grow, investors get back their capital and a yield trib.al/sTWVnIb