For Etal Chakma – A Call to Stand with the Tortoise Guardian

Etal Chakma, a dedicated wildlife conservationist from Bangladesh, urgently needs your help. Born and raised in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Etal has devoted his life to saving globally threatened species like the Asian Giant Tortoise, Western Hoolock Gibbon, and Sun Bear. As a Field Supervisor with Creative Conservation Alliance (CCA), Etal’s tireless work has brought once-extinct species back to their native forests. For the last few years, Etal is responsible in conducting post-release monitoring of the first ever reintroduction of captive-bred Asian giant tortoises in the wild. His ability to build trust with the community resulted in zero poaching of the reintroduced tortoises. He is also part of the Conservation Leadership Program (CLP) team that is working on conducting field surveys of Sun Bear in Bangladesh.

Today, however, Etal is fighting for his own survival.

On July 8th, Etal was hospitalized with severe malaria, experiencing frequent vomiting and weakness. His condition rapidly worsened when he developed severe jaundice, later confirmed as caused by Hepatitis A and B co-infection. On July 12th, Etal was moved to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after both his liver and kidneys became critically compromised. Further tests revealed Leptospira IgG positive, complicating his already fragile condition.

Etal has been in critical care ever since, fighting multiple life-threatening infections simultaneously. His family, friends, and the conservation community are rallying around him, but the mounting medical costs for ICU care, dialysis, and specialist treatments are far beyond what his family can manage.

Etal has given so much to protect the wildlife of Bangladesh. Now, he needs our help.

Please consider contributing to this fundraiser. Your support will directly cover his ongoing ICU care, specialist consultations, and essential medications to give Etal the best possible chance of recovery.

Together, we can help Etal heal and return to the hills where he belongs- as a guardian of tortoise and a symbol of hope for conservation.

#SaveEtal

#SavetheTortoisGuardian