The Wildlife Conservation Society and WCS-Singapore will collaborate on new field conservation and public education efforts with Wildlife Reserves Singapore Pte Ltd (WRS), the parent company of Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari, and Singapore Zoo, together with its recently established Wildlife Reserves Singapore Conservation Fund (WRSCF).

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between Ms Claire Chiang, Chairperson of both WRS and WRSCF; Mr Ward W. Woods, Chairman of WCS; and Dr. Steven E. Sanderson, President and CEO of WCS and Chairman of WCS-Singapore; in the presence of President S R Nathan, Patron of WRSCF, on January 29.

This MOU marks the start of a stronger commitment to protect biodiversity, not just in Singapore, but in Asia and around the world. Through the joint commission, representatives from all four parties will cooperate on field projects and share best practices and technical expertise contributing to wildlife conservation. They will also promote public education and work to increase awareness on conservation issues.

“At WRS, an unprecedented level of effort has been invested to conserve and protect biodiversity. To strengthen our commitment, WRSCF was established last year, primarily to conserve endangered native wildlife. This MOU represents another important step forward in our ongoing commitment to preserve our ecosystems and precious wildlife species, many of which are already threatened and in dire need of protection,” said Ms Chiang.

“Our new partnership with Wildlife Reserves Singapore represents an important step for WCS and the conservation of wildlife in Asia,” said Mr. Woods. “WRS’s conservation efforts and programs have won worldwide acclaim. We look forward to spearheading new initiatives together and developing a regional center of excellence for the protection of Asia’s most endangered wildlife."

“We share WCS’s clear mission to save wildlife and wild places across the globe. That is why I am so proud to be part of this joint collaboration to bring our conservation program to the global arena. This partnership will pave the way for future collaborations and open many doors for all four parties to work towards their shared goal of protecting global biodiversity,” added Ms Chiang.

Working in Asia since the early 20th century, WCS has partnered with national and regional governments, local communities and other scientific organizations to protect the continent’s incredible diversity of wildlife and wild places — to bolster environmental policy, train new generations of environmental stewards, support sustainable livelihoods, and connect protected areas. Some notable WCS projects include: working with the government of Cambodia to establish the Seima Protection Forest, created to protect wildlife and conserve carbon; and an ongoing effort to save tigers across Asia (WCS is committed to increasing tiger populations by 50 percent across 10 landscapes by 2016).

In the areas of conservation and research, WRS parks in Singapore have undertaken multiple projects, which focus on species such as the oriental pied hornbill, pangolin, and orangutan, through collaborations with various organizations and institutions. Recent conservation efforts include hosting a regional Asian pangolin conservation workshop. All WRS parks are designated wildlife rescue centers by the governing authority.

Watch a video on the partnership and some of the new conservation projects it will spawn from channelnewsasia.com.