President of Kyrgyzstan Calls for Action to Protect Snow Leopards and Mountain Ecosystems

In 2013, under the leadership of the then-President of the Kyrgyz Republic, we helped create the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Program (GSLEP). Since then, the Snow Leopard Trust has continued to support the Secretariat of this intergovernmental cooperation alliance of Environment Ministers of all 12 snow leopard range countries. Recently, the incumbent President, Sadyr Zhaparov, visited snow leopard habitat with our staff and recorded a video appeal to the people of the world.

TWO NEW SNOW LEOPARDS ON AIR!

“We collared a new snow leopard yesterday. I’ve said those words many times, and it never gets old. We had just finished dinner and were enjoying the warmth of the fire when the alarm went off. We rushed to our trapping site and found ourselves in the presence of a big male cat. He explained in a very clear way what he thought of us, growling all the while until he fell asleep from the drugs.” – Senior Scientist Dr. Örjan Johansson.

Snow leopards and falcons and hamsters, oh my!

A rare falcon sighting in Mongolia’s Tost Tosonbumba Nature Reserve illustrates how protecting snow leopard habitat safeguards other wildlife as well. Once leased out for mining exploration and protected only after six years of effort by our team and the region’s local communities, this protected area is an important haven for many species beyond snow leopards.