Conservation grants open for application

Today Online 11 Dec 09;

Individuals and organisations with a passion for wildlife conservation can now apply for grants from the Wildlife Reserves Singapore Conservation Fund (WRSCF).

These are for projects related to wildlife unique to Singapore, and should include at least one of these elements: Conservation-related research, direct field conservation work, education and public awareness, human-animal conflict resolution or capacity building and the sharing of best practices.

Ms Fanny Lai, Group CEO, Wildlife Reserves Singapore said: "From these efforts and studies, we hope to make concrete progress on the conservation front and to raise public awareness of native species."

The National University of Singapore's Ah Meng Memorial Conservation Fund is the WRSCF's first grant recipient, with $500,000 over a five-year period. This supports NUS students and faculty members in their academic research and studies pertaining to endangered wildlife.

The WRSCF was registered as a charity and an institution of public character this year with $1 million. Wildlife Reserves Singapore contributes 20 cents for each admission ticket sold at its parks to the WRSCF. Application forms for the WRSCF grants are available at www.wrscf.org.sg.