26th August 2023
It’s THEIR Day!
Let’s celebrate Painted Wolf Day 2023
Today is International Painted Wolf Day or Wild Dog Day or Painted Dog Day. Whatever you choose to call them, it is a day when we can all celebrate this incredible creature and the hard work that conservation heroes are doing to save them from extinction.
This year has been very active for the Painted Wolf Foundation. We have been working hard to strengthen our organisation to create a significant force in Africa-wide painted wolf conservation.
We have also started making some significant grants and are bringing painted wolf conservation to neglected but important populations of painted wolves across Africa.
NEW TRUSTEES
We have strengthened our pack!
Dr Irene Amoke
Irene is the Executive Director of the Kenya Wildlife Trust (KWT). A landscape ecologist, she has worked in academia, government, and the private sector in Kenya, South Africa and the United Kingdom.
Dr Harriet Davies-Mostert
Harriet is the Director of Impact at Conserve Global, the Chair of the Wild Dog Advisory Group (WAG) and the former Head of Conservation at the Endangered Wildlife Trust.
Professor Claudio Sillero
Claudio is Deputy Director of Oxford University’s WildCRU, Founder and Director of the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme and the chair of the IUCN Canid Specialist Group.
New Website
Everything you ever wanted to know about the painted wolf
We are excited to announce our new website. Our objective has been to create a site which is a natural go-to destination for those seeking information on the painted wolf.
Very few know they exist, and even less care, so we have created an essential tool for spreading awareness. It is a place where you can send people when you are asked the question “What on earth is a painted wolf?”.
On the site you will find fascinating facts about the creature, detailed information on the conservation organisations trying to save them, as well as videos, quizzes, news and a gallery of 100 stunning images taken by our CEO and award winning photographer, Nicholas Dyer.
On the more serious side, you can learn about our Foundation, our strategy to double their numbers in three decades and how we are going about it.
You can also find out about the projects we are funding across Africa and the impact they are making.
Inaugural Projects
We are now investing in painted wolf projects across Africa
Our mission is to double the numbers of painted wolves across Africa over the next 30 years.
We have now started to invest donor money into projects that we believe will bring about transformational change and where painted wolf numbers could increase with the right conservation interventions.
We have partnered with some well respected conservation organisations to kickstart painted wolf conservation projects, investigate areas for reintroductions, spread best practice and build local capacity and knowledge.
 Kickstarting a painted wolf conservation project in the Southern Rangelands of Kenya Developing a collaboration between leading Kenyan conservationists – SORALO and The Mara Predator Conservation Programme, PWF kickstarted a painted wolf conservation project in the Maasailands of Southern Kenya.  Investigating the last remaining painted wolves in West Africa. Working with the Zoological Society of London, we are supporting the investigation of the last remaining painted wolf packs in Senegal’s, Niokola-Koba National Park. We are also investing in DNA research to determine the genetic significance and long-term viability of this important but isolated population. |
 Investigating the viability of potential new reintroduction sites in East and Central Africa. Reintroducing painted wolves into their former rangelands is a core PWF strategy and we are supporting the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s investigation into areas where painted wolves could be reintroduced and accepted by local communities.  Sending leading Maasai Conservationists to Zimbabwe to learn about PW Conservation. PWF founded an exchange of six leading Kenyan conservationists from SORALO and Kenya Wildlife Trust to visit Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe to learn about the conservation of the species. Collaborations and building knowledge and capacity is critical to spreading best practice. |
The Diane Skinner Award for the Unsung Hero in Conservation
We are heading to Kigali to present the Award
This week is the start of the Business of Conservation Conference in Kigali, Rwanda, organised by the African Leadership University’s School of Wildlife Conservation. CEO, Nick Dyer and Trustee, Irene Amoke are honoured to be there to announce the winner of the inaugural Diane Skinner Award for the Unsung Hero in Conservation.
Over 55 people were nominated from all across Africa and over the last few months PWF and ALU judges have been judging the entries. We have been so impressed by the quality of the entrants which made choosing a winner a difficult challenge.
In fact we felt obliged to select and showcase our top ten, but an overall winner did emerge and we all felt that person embodied the egoless values and passion for wildlife that so marked Diane’s contribution to conservation.
Tune into our social media channels to see who the well deserved winner is.
Donate on their day
We are now implementing a strategy to double the number of painted wolves across Africa in the next thirty years.
We strongly believe it is possible, but to achieve it we need all the support we can get.
Every gift is important to us and none can be described as too large or too small. Regular monthly contributions are especially valuable and give us greater visibility and security to support our work.
Please donate to the Painted Wolf Foundation on their day by following the link below and join us in our mission to secure the future of the painted wolf.
