Overview
Lemurs are likely the most endangered vertibrates on earth because the forests where they live are being logged at an alarming rate. They need help from us, their fellow primates, to continue leaping through their native forests. This is why I'm traveling to Madagascar to work with Azafady, a British NGO to work on protecting habitat for both lemurs and Madagascar's diverse flora and fauna. 

After a lifetime of dreaming about lemurs I finally have the opportunity to travel to Madagascar to learn about the vibrant culture and the outrageously cool, highly bio diverse, and very threatened ecosystems this unique island has to offer. This is a trip I have been hoping to do since I was a child, when I was obsessed with bizarre animals and the places they live. As I have grown up, my fascination with Madagascar has only intensified, as has my desire to work to conserve this place and learn about the people who live there. Ninety percent of the plant and animal species in Madagascar exist nowhere else on earth, and I want to see them and help to preserve them before it’s too late.

To learn more, check out this article: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/jun/06/madagascar-biodiversity-600-species-discovered  

This fall I will spend two and a half months participating in a volunteer internship with Azafady, a British NGO that is working to preserve the threatened forests in the Southeastern part of Madagascar and educate and excite local people about the benefits of preserving biodiversity in the area. After extensive research, I have found that Azafady is an organization with an impeccable record of volunteer satisfaction, proof of successful projects and management, and importantly a dedication to making local people part of the conservation team.

While volunteers pay to participate, Azafady asks that volunteers fundraise to cover the cost of their time with the program to spread awareness about the organization’s projects and goals. The money I raise will help to cover my food and lodging, and the rest will go towards Azafady’s charitable projects, not administrative costs. Your donation will not only allow me to have the experience of a lifetime, but will support projects that Azafady is doing to conserve the forests and simultaneously improve the quality of life of the people living in and near them.

 

To learn more about Azafady take a look at their website:  http://madagascar.co.uk/ 


 
Background

I recently graduated Colorado College with a degree in Environmental Anthropology, which uses anthropological theory and techniques such as ethnography and cultural analysis to better understand peoples’ relationship to their environment and their natural resources. In my studies I have found that conservation is not as simple as preserving ecosystems because there are always multiple groups of people involved with diverse interests. Sometimes conservation by a government or an NGO can negatively affect local people because their access to resources or land becomes restricted, or westerners devalue local traditional knowledge in favor of scientific understanding. This dynamic is present in many places in Africa, including Madagascar. 

Conservation can be incredibly simultaneously beneficial for both human and non-humans, though. I am fascinated by the multi-cultural conservation partnerships that are becoming increasingly common in threatened areas of high biodiversity because they can be opportunities for remarkable cross-cultural collaboration and preservation of wildlife and resources. I have studied collaborative conservation in New Zealand, Cambodia, and the United States, and hope to continue this line of exploration in Madagascar. From the research I have done I feel that Azafady excels at sensitive and successful collaboration, but I will approach this experience with a critical anthropological eye, and will assess what is working and what could be improved.

 
What will I be doing?

As conservation volunteer, I will be living in a Malagasy village with other volunteers and local people. I will be waking up with the sun each morning and trekking into the jungle for 3-4 hours conducting lemur, reptile, or invertebrate research.  We will break for a simple lunch of rice and beans in the heat of the day, then will discuss the morning’s progress and have a lesson in Malagasy, the language spoken in Madagascar. We will then do an environmental education project or some similar project in the afternoon and break for dinner and socializing. After dark we may trek back into the jungle to study the nocturnal animals such as the aye aye.  The information we gather will help scientists and policy makers to better protect threatened species. 

 
Where will your money go?  

Azafady is a charitable organization, and thus depends on donations to survive. The vast majority of the donations they receive go directly into their community and conservation projects. For more information on Azafady’s financial breakdown, check out their Accountability page: http://madagascar.co.uk/about/accountability 
.  I am raising money to cover the cost of my donation to the program, NOT airfare or any travel I may do outside Azafady. This donation will cover my food, lodging, and transportation while I am with Azafady in Madagascar, and will help to fund projects such as environmental education for local children, reforestation, fuel efficient stoves to reduce the need for timber harvesting, and lemur censuses.

 
What’s in it for you?

For donors of $ 75 or more, I will send you two hand written postcards from Madagascar, and for donors of $200 or more I will hand felt you a Madagascar animal of your choice.

I wish I could promise that I will keep a blog to keep everyone updated on my adventures and reflections, but realistically I will spend most of my time in the jungle with no electricity let alone a computer. When I can, I will post pictures to instagram @haley_lb, so please follow me there!

I will be taking pictures and keeping a field journal with ethnographic observations and will share all of my pictures and anthropological reflections on a blog when I return.

THANK YOU!
Thank you so much for taking the time to learn about my project and helping to make a lifelong dream come to fruition. Please pass this to anyone you think might be interested!