Tigers for Tigers Develops Conservation Leaders
Last weekend, Oct. 16-18th, Tigers for Tigers hosted its first leadership conference at Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge in Charleston, South Carolina.
One of the core principles of Tigers for Tigers is to develop the next generation of conservation leaders. Through Tigers for Tigers, students are able to develop their skill sets not only grow their club on campus, but also to become engaged in real wildlife conservation.
Chris Orr of Clemson University Tigers for Tigers said, “I had such an awesome time meeting such experienced people who were so passionate about what they do and the world they live in!”
At the event, students learned about the principles of recruitment, advocacy and fundraising from NGO professionals and conservation practitioners. It was a fantastic opportunity for our students to share ideas, collaborate and discuss future opportunities to improve their clubs on campus. The beauty of Tigers for Tigers is that it is a student-led initiative, designed and developed by students. Every T4T club and student brings different experiences and skillsets to the table. We hosted a series of workshops about advocating for wild tigers to congressional leaders, developing clear messages to support local recruitment efforts, and developing a clear fundraising strategy to support meaningful tiger conservation efforts abroad.
During our fundraising workshop, students were challenged to raise $750 during their upcoming National Tiger Awareness Week programs in early November to support tiger habitat restoration work in Central India. Stay tuned for more information in the upcoming weeks!
We would especially like to thank the staff of Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge for their support and hospitality during our stay. We had an incredible wildlife experience out on Bull’s Island off the coast of South Carolina. For many of our students, it was their first time on a national wildlife refuge! We saw red wolves, dolphins, alligators, oystercatchers, fox squirrels, rails and more!
We would also like to say thank you to our wonderful guests, Brandi Geurkink from the ONE Campus Campaign, Brendan Tate from USFWS-International Affairs, Dr. David Tonkyn from Clemson University T4T and Ms. Anjana Gosain from Tiger Trust India.
To see more photos from the event, click here!
All the best and go tigers,
Sean
