2009 Seed Grant Winners
Amphibian Ark is pleased to announce the winner of the new Seed Grant program. This $5,000 competitive grant is designed to fund small start-up projects that are in need of seed money in order to build successful long-term programs that attract larger funding. We would like to acknowledge the generous support of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Andrew Sabin Family Foundation in establishing these grants.
View Amphibian Ark Seed Grant recipients in a larger map
The successful projects was:
Association Mitsinjo for “ Establishing a Captive Breeding Facility for Malagasy Amphibians”
Slightly more than one quarter of Madagascar’s amphibian species are threatened with extinction. Habitat destruction and over-harvesting are the greatest factors contributing to this biodiversity crisis. The impending threat of amphibian chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium denrobatidis (Bd) is also of huge concern. To bring the potential threat of this disease into perspective, it has been called the “worst infectious disease ever recorded among vertebrates in terms of the numbers of species impacted and its propensity to drive them to extinction”.
Association Mitsinjo, a community-run organization founded by villagers in Andasibe, is seeking a total of US $98,302 to create a captive breeding facility for threatened Madagascar amphibians. This facility will maintain captive amphibian populations to help ensure the continued survival of species at the greatest risk of extinction. On the ground, AArk funds will be used to purchase supplies for live food production and equipment for field work. The real benefit from financially supporting this project however, will be our ability to demonstrate solid backing from AArk on applications to leverage future funding opportunities.
The complete project proposal can be viewed here.
Amphibian Ark Seed Grant program
Although the deadline for applications for 2009 grants has closed, information about the application process is available here.
