Tapirs and night monkeys are two of the estimated three million species of the Amazon rainforest which plays a vital role in stabilising the world’s climate. Dr Pati Medici from Brazil and Dr Angela Maldonado from Colombia are on a mission to ensure these species stick around and play their role in preserving the world’s largest tropical rainforest. Danger abounds as they must share habitat with armed militias, mining, palm oil companies, and more. Ahead of Brazil hosting world leaders for COP30 in Belem this year, Pati and Angela discuss how to save the Amazon. They talk coexistence and coalitions, “tapir heaven” and monkey selfies, with broadcasters and Whitley Fund for Nature Ambassadors, Kate Humble and Tom Heap. The podcast was recorded at a live event at London's Royal Institution.

Special thanks to Edward Whitley

Watch Pati Medici’s Gold Award film, narrated by Sir David Attenborough—a must-see story of conservation in action! Watch now.

Discover Angela Maldonado’s Gold Award-winning journey in this film from 2010. Watch now!

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s top conservationists. The 2025 Whitley Awards shortlist is here! Meet the inspiring conservationists making a difference.

Click here to donate: bit.ly/WhitleyAwards_Donate

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The Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan is known for its pristine forests, prioritising wellbeing over economic growth, and being the world's first carbon negative country. In this episode, Kate Humble and Edward Whitley hear from wildlife biologist Kuenzang Dorji on how Buddhism is the cornerstone to conservation in Bhutan. He's restoring harmony between two populations in Bhutan's forests: Gee's Golden Langur monkeys and farmers, many of whom live below the national poverty index and whose crops of oranges, guava and even chilli, the primates have started to raid. Using an arsenal of natural deterrents as well as citizen science, Kuenzang is determined to restore the good fortune once associated with the leaping langur and the harmonious coexistence between people and primates.

See Kuenzang’s short film narrated by Sir David Attenborough here: bit.ly/GoldenLangurMonkeys

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s leading conservationists. Applications for the Whitley Awards are open! If you are leading a grassroots conservation project in the Global South that we should know about, please apply here: bit.ly/WhitleyAward_ApplyNow

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the savannah grasslands and forests of Guyana's South Rupununi, the scientific discovery of a little songbird catalysed the creation of the country's first Indigenous-led conservation NGO. Leroy Ignacio was determined to chart a new destiny for the Red Siskin when it was first identified in Guyana in 2000. The finch had been hunted almost to extinction in nearby Venezuela - for the pet trade, historically for its feathers to make hats, and for experiments to produce a red canary. In this episode, Kate Humble and Edward Whitley hear from Leroy, who is Indigenous Makushi, and president and founding member of the South Rupununi Conservation Society. Amid an unprecedented economic boom, Leroy is leading an expansion of the community-managed conservation zone for the Red Siskin and defining a new vision, powered by Indigenous people, for environmental protection.

See Leroy’s short film narrated by Sir David Attenborough here: https://bit.ly/GuyanaRedSiskins

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s leading conservationists. Applications for the Whitley Awards are open! If you are leading a grassroots conservation project in the Global South that we should know about, please apply here: bit.ly/WhitleyAward_ApplyNow

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The African manatee is an elusive marine mammal inhabiting the Atlantic coastal waters of 21 African countries from Mauritania to Angola and whose population is unknown. Cameroon's foremost manatee expert, Dr Aristide Kamla, had never heard of what's considered the elephant's closest relative when he started university; he couldn't swim and he wanted to be a doctor. In this episode, Kate Humble and Edward Whitley hear from the Fulbright scholar about how local fishing communities became Aristide's teachers in how to find the mysterious species which is now his life's passion. And in a masterclass in how to restore harmony between people and wildlife, he persuaded them to become chief advocates for the manatee; from fighting invasive species with him on Lake Ossa to recording thousands of sightings of marine species on Siren, Aristide's citizen science app which is rapidly expanding across Africa.

See Aristide’s short film narrated by Sir David Attenborough here: https://bit.ly/AfricanManatees

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s leading conservationists. Applications for the Whitley Awards are open! If you are leading a grassroots conservation project in the Global South that we should know about, please apply here: bit.ly/WhitleyAward_ApplyNow

Click here to donate: bit.ly/WhitleyAwards_Donate

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Waimiri-Atroari people fought with their lives to protect their land when Brazil’s military dictatorship forced the BR-174 highway through the Amazon rainforest in the 1970s, cutting the habitat of wildlife in two. The Waimiri subsequently recorded more than 20,000 road fatalities of wildlife. In this episode, Kate Humble and Edward Whitley hear from Fernanda Abra, a road ecologist and pioneer of low-cost canopy bridges in Brazil. Together with the Waimiri, Fernanda and her team have built the first 32 bridges to reconnect habitat for tree-dwelling mammals such as Capuchin and spider monkeys. Her Reconecta Project is the start of an ambitious plan to scale across the world's most biodiverse country which has the fourth-largest road network.

See Fernanda’s short film narrated by Sir David Attenborough here: bit.ly/AmazonCrossings

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s leading conservationists. Applications for the Whitley Awards are open! If you are leading a grassroots conservation project in the Global South that we should know about, please apply here: bit.ly/WhitleyAward_ApplyNow

Click here to donate: bit.ly/WhitleyAwards_Donate

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

He is the mastermind of one of Nepal's biggest conservation festivals. But it's not in honour of the solitary snow leopard, the majestic Bengal tiger or red panda - it's for the humble owl. In this episode, Kate Humble and Edward Whitley hear from Raju Acharya, who is known as "owl, sir" in Nepal. The Himalayan country is home to 23 species of owls which are simultaneously regarded as good and bad omens by the country's 125 distinct ethnic groups. Raju has recruited "owl envoys," spearheaded a 10-year government action plan and gone door to door to shift perceptions around the nocturnal species. Now districts are lining up to celebrate them.

See Raju’s short film narrated by Sir David Attenborough here: bit.ly/SafeguardNepalOwls

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s leading conservationists. Applications for the Whitley Awards are open! If you are leading a grassroots conservation project in the Global South that we should know about, please apply here: bit.ly/WhitleyAward_ApplyNow

Click here to donate: bit.ly/WhitleyAwards_Donate

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The "Amazon of the Seas" is a vast marine area in the western Pacific Ocean that is home to 76 percent of the world's coral reef species. In the Papua New Guinea corner of the Coral Triangle, a local biologist is accelerating protection for them. In this episode, Kate Humble and Edward Whitley hear from Naomi Longa who leads an all-female team of Indigenous divers who monitor and manage the reefs of Kimbe Bay, an area of staggering marine biodiversity which includes pygmy seahorses, whale sharks and orcas. The Sea Women of Melanesia are working with AI to map coral reefs in a country where technology is scarcely accessible. They are only getting started....

See Naomi’s short film narrated by Sir David Attenborough here: bit.ly/ConserveCoralReefs_PNG

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s leading conservationists. Applications for the Whitley Awards are open! If you are leading a grassroots conservation project in the Global South that we should know about, please apply here: bit.ly/WhitleyAward_ApplyNow

Click here to donate: bit.ly/WhitleyAwards_Donate

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Greater Adjutant Stork is a misunderstood bird that Dr Purnima Devi Barman in Assam, India, has devoted her life to protecting. In this episode, join Kate Humble and Edward Whitley to hear how Purnima built a 10,000 strong army of local female fans of the reviled scavenger. Saving it, not only dramatically transformed the outlook for the bird, known as "Hargila," but also the lives of the local "stork sister" protectors. The "Hargila Army" is now so popular that even men want to join.

See Purnima’s short film narrated by Sir David Attenborough here: bit.ly/GreaterAdjutantStorks

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

How to Save It highlights ingenious solutions from the world’s leading conservationists. Applications for the Whitley Awards are open! If you are leading a grassroots conservation project in the Global South that we should know about, please apply here: bit.ly/WhitleyAward_ApplyNow

Click here to donate: bit.ly/WhitleyAwards_Donate

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Prepare to be inspired on a trip round the globe with Kate Humble and Edward Whitley as they hear from extraordinary people who are standing up for the rarest of species from the Greater Adjutant Stork to the tiny Red Siskin and African manatee. Nature is under threat like never before but what if we flip the doom script and focus on how to save it? From the remote shores of Papua New Guinea all the way to the rainforest nation of Guyana via Cameroon's Lake Ossa, conservationists are rallying local people to join forces with them to protect the natural world.

How to Save It is a podcast by the Whitley Fund for Nature: bit.ly/WhitleyFundForNature

Edited and produced by Sarah Treanor

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.