Standing for their forest, the local communities of the Chittagong Hill Tracts demand fair opportunities and change
Creative Conservation Alliance
Is dedicated to the ecological and cultural preservation within Bangladesh’s last remaining wild places – a critical region of the Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot.
THE CREATIVE CONSERVATION ALLIANCE (CCA) IS A GOVERNMENT REGISTERED NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION, DEDICATED TO ECOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL PRESERVATION WITHIN BANGLADESH’S LAST REMAINING WILD PLACES. AS A CRITICAL PART OF THE INTERNATIONAL INDO-BURMA BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOT - THE MOST THREATENED BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOT IN THE WORLD - THESE REMAINING FORESTS OFFER A REFUGE FOR OVER 29 GLOBALLY-THREATENED SPECIES. THROUGH OUR COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH, WE EMPOWER LOCAL PEOPLE AS STAKEHOLDERS IN THEIR OWN LANDSCAPES.
OUR ORGANIZATION IS ACHIEVING CONSERVATION SUCCESS THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS WITH GOVERNMENT AND NON-GOVERNMENT STAKEHOLDERS, PROVISION OF ALTERNATIVE INCOME SOURCES FOR THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES, RIGOROUS SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, AND THE SUSTAINABLE PROTECTION OF NATURAL RESOURCES. BOTH WITH OUR CHITTAGONG HILL TRACTS PROGRAM AND WITH THE NORTHEAST PROGRAM, WE ARE GIVING LOCAL COMMUNITIES A VOICE AND THE TOOLS TO SUCCEED IN STAVING OFF THE DESTRUCTION THAT THERE ARE LANDS FACING.
Indigenous parabiologists are a foundation of our organization. Local community members - with little to no formal education - are trained to carry out basic scientific tasks such as collecting morphometric data, GPS logging, and telemetry work. These citizen scientists act as role models for their communities and serve as local conservation ambassadors for the region. Without these dedicated souls we would not have the manpower or requisite traditional ecological knowledge of the study areas to conduct our research.
By marketing traditional indigenous crafts we are providing sustainable and alternative incomes for local communities, empowering women artisans, sustaining our Schools for Conservation, and reducing local dependency on forest resources. Proceeds from every purchase go directly to the communities through an ethical social business model where they can be applied in a culturally-appropriate manner. By collaborating with local communities and other non-government organizations to train and engage a younger generation of artisans we are successfully reviving lost cultures. Our traditional ethnic crafts are currently being sold at Aranya boutique in Dhaka, Bangladesh and will be available internationally soon.
Utilizing Lawachara National Park in northeast Bangladesh as an experimental platform, we conduct species-specific research resulting in sustainable management decisions applicable to species conservation in human-modified landscapes throughout Asia. Globally-threatened Burmese pythons, elongated tortoises, and Chinese pangolins are currently being studied here with plenty of springboard research opportunities available. Our long-term goal is to facilitate both international and domestic research projects in this mixed-evergreen forest so if you are interested in conducting research in Bangladesh, please contact us."
We are building and supporting primary schools in the remotest areas of Bangladesh, for an amenable exchange of hunting and logging moratoriums protecting 27+ globally-threatened species including Asian elephants, 8 turtle species, Chinese pangolins, gaur, gibbons, hornbills, etc. Through this initiative, we can create indigenous-managed sanctuaries while bringing literacy and alternative livelihoods to the region to empower the local communities.
