However, this is only the case in one town, Ranomafana, which is one of my stops on my way to "The Lost Forest."
Dr. Patricia Wright, a primatologist and conservationist from New York, has dedicated her life to saving lemurs, and even created the very first national park in Madagascar: Ranomafana National Park (RNP). She helped bring tourism to Ranomafana by encouraging Malagasy to practice their trade skills and sell them in the Ranomafana market. Hundreds of tourists visit Ranomafana every year to hike through the park and purchase handmade goods such as woven silk scarves, baskets, jewelry and other crafts. Ranomafana benefits from having direct access to a paved road, making it easily accessible to tourists (even though it’s a 12-hour drive from the capital city, Antananarivo, or ‘Tana for short). RNP and the town of Ranomafana are a great example of sustainable conservation--conservation that benefits both people and animals. Villagers understand that they earn more by protecting the forest than by harvesting from it, because as long as the forest is protected, tourists will continue to visit the town and buy their goods.
Unfortunately, this system is difficult to establish in more remote areas of Madagascar where transportation is a major obstacle. Without tourism, villagers must resort to other sources of income, many of which are not sustainable. These include catching lemurs for the illegal pet trade and poaching wildlife for food or trade. An ideal solution would be to provide these communities with items more valuable than money, since without easy access to markets, money can become useless.
What is something that’s more valuable to you than money?
