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In a significant flight forward for global conservation efforts, the MENTOR-Bat program, co-led by Bat Conservation International and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) International Affairs (IA) held its second in-person workshop in Yogyakarta, Indonesia from August 18-23, 2024. This high-level event brought together emerging conservation leaders from Cameroon, Colombia, and Indonesia that are dedicated to advancing One Health approaches to bat conservation.
The nine Fellows and three Mentors have diverse expertise in fields ranging from virology, veterinary science, environmental education, bat research, to cave tourism. In just the first few months of the program, the participants are already gaining global attention, highlighting the need for focused attention on bat species whose role in ecosystems and global wellbeing is critical, yet often overlooked in global conservation efforts.
While the workshop in Indonesia focused on conservation project planning and proposal development, this particular gathering emphasized evidence-based conservation - an emerging yet underrepresented area of conservation practice that IA's Division of International Conservation (DIC) has prioritized in recent years. Emphasizing evidence and evaluation is critical to ensure that conservation efforts are grounded in scientifically-sound methodologies, which is particularly important for understudied species like bats.
Several international specialists participated in the workshop, including DIC’s own Dr. Matt Muir, the first evaluation officer for a USFWS program. Dr. Muir led several training sessions throughout the week on the importance of integrating evidence-based approaches into every aspect of conservation work by introducing the Fellows to the Open Standard for the Practice of Conservation.
"The commitment of the Fellows to learning and using evidence in their projects has been really impressive," said Dr. Muir following his session. "Their ideas and discussions will be essential for advancing evidence-based bat conservation and One Health practices."
This workshop in Indonesia follows the successful inaugural gathering in Manizales, Colombia held in April 2024. As the MENTOR-Bat program progresses, Fellows will continue engaging in comprehensive learning and training, then will design and implement One Health-focused bat conservation pilot projects in their respective regions. And, if all goes to plan, they'll be gathering and applying evidence every step of the way.
MENTOR-Bat is set to culminate at a final gathering in September 2025 during the MENTOR Conservation Leadership Forum in Cameroon. There, the Fellows will showcase the outcomes of their efforts, promising to be a landmark moment in their 18-month fellowship journey towards sustainable and healthy coexistence between bats and humans.
MENTOR is innovative program is committed to building conservation capacity worldwide through rigorous training, mentoring, and hands-on project implementation. Learn more about USFWS’ MENTOR Program here.
Read more about DIC’s Evidence and Evaluation work: USFWS Division of International Conservation Receives Prestigious Recognition | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
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