Eat Chocolate & Drink Coffee for Tree Kangaroos
- Apr 22, 2017
- 3 min read
Project: Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program
Location: Papua New Guinea
Ever crave a melt-in-your mouth piece of chocolate after dinner or a warm cup of coffee to get your day started? Thanks to tree kangaroos, you now have an extra excuse to indulge!
Tree kangaroos are arboreal marsupials that live in Papua New Guinea and parts of Australia. They have sharp claws for climbing trees, a long tail for balance, and an adorable fluffiness to endear themselves into your heart.
The Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program (TKCP), as part of the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, Washington USA, takes a holistic, community-based focus to protect the endangered Matschie's Tree Kangaroo (pictured above) which makes its home within the gorgeous forests of Papua New Guinea. TKCP has been dedicated to the survival of these unique animals for over twenty years, and has grown to be an integral piece of the community.
Papua New Guinea land is owned by local people; it is not controlled by the government, purchased, or sold. This makes conservation of primary habitat a little different than other places in the world. Locals had to choose to set aside their own land to be preserved. The community as a whole created laws for land use and determined tree kangaroo habitat. Many locals already believed in the importance of setting aside land for cultural and religious reasons, allowing a great partnership of conservation mindedness between the community and program. Community members were appointed to routinely monitor the land, mapping its details and enforcing agreed upon rules.
When communities lack access to income, healthcare, and education they are more likely to feel pressure to hunt and poach in order to provide for their families. As a way to secure income for healthcare and education of communities in Papua New Guinea, TKCP helps them to farm coffee and cocoa and then ships the products for sale. The coffee is sent to Caffé Vita while the cocoa is sent to Theo's Chocolates. Both stores are USA based with in-store and online presence. You can help support the amazing work of the TKCP by making a purchase at either location.
If this wasn't enough already, the program has recently expanded to provide essential training to healthcare workers and teachers in rural areas where these opportunities are often nonexistent.
The TKCP also conducts research to better understand local wildlife, and welcomes the submission of future research proposals which may benefit local communities and help us learn more about this beautiful and unique habitat.
How To Take Action!
Share this post on Social Media
Learn more about the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program
Support Woodland Park Zoo
Donate to the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program
Request to conduct research on the YUS Conservation Area
Buy coffee grown in PNG sold by Caffé Vita
Buy chocolate from Theo made from cocoa sourced in PNG
Comment below!
References
All pictures on this blog post are from websites related to the mentioned projects and are directly linked to their source.
Okena, Daniel S. (2015). Supporting YUS Ranger to Strengthen Local Ownership of Conservation Efforts in Papua New Guinea. Presentation at the 2015 Zoos and Aquariums Committed to Conservation Conference. Find events like this near you on our Conferences page!
Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program. (2013). Annual Report 2013.
Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program. (2014). Annual Report 2014.
Personal interview with Lisa Dabek, Director of TKCP, at Woodland Park Zoo in May 2015
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