Mabuwaya Foundation

Description

The Mabuwaya Foundation is a Philippine NGO, established in 2003, dedicated to conserving the critically endangered Philippine crocodile.

It works mainly in the municipalities of San Mariano and Divilacan, in the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park and its surroundings in northern Luzon, where the last wild populations of the species survive. It also works occasionally with smaller scattered populations on Dalupiri Island and in other municipalities of Isabela province. The foundation runs its program in close collaboration with local communities, municipal and provincial governments and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Its community-based conservation approach rests on five components: communication, education and public awareness campaigns; research; protection; capacity building; and population re-enforcement and recovery. It carries out cultural shows, school visits and distribution of educational materials to build local acceptance of crocodile conservation. A rearing station protects hatchlings until they are large enough for release into the wild, and research includes head-start studies, telemetry and quarterly population monitoring.