Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme (MWSRP), as its name suggests, study whale sharks in the Republic of Maldives. However, that aspect of their work is merely the tip of the ice berg. The programme was created in 2006, when four British university graduates set off to the 1192-island archipelago on a pilot study in search of the whale shark, after learning from the dive industry (already well established in the Maldives) that there were a substantial number of whale sharks throughout the country but not one person was studying them.

The Jalore Wildlife Sanctuary, established in 2005 in a remote jungle area of granite hills, savanna and forest, is the first and only privately owned and operated wildlife sanctuary in India. The sanctuary’s mission is to balance the needs of locals and wildlife by combining conservation and ecotourism. The idea to create a new wildlife refuge in Jalore was first born out of discussions among a group of friends and family – Gajendra Singh Chouhan, a patron of the arts from Jodhpur, and his friends

By Shams Uddin, Chitral Association for Mountain Area Tourism (CAMAT) – A vigil rally was organized in Booni, northern Chitral, Pakistan, as part of the global “Vigil For Survival” movement calling for a strong climate treaty in Copenhagen. Standing in solemn solidarity with the citizens of the nations whose very survival is threatened by the climate crisis, thousands of rallies and candlelight vigils were held around the world on December 12th and 13th, 2009. (Source: 350.org)

Spread between 1,700 and 2,400 metres of altitude, Tusheti is considered the most remote area of Georgia. Unlike Svaneti – another historic region characterised by towers – Tusheti is of such pristine and endemic nature that it is one of the Protected Areas of Georgia and inhabited only during the summer. Cultural heritage runs deep here, the roots felt when communicating with locals and taking part in their festivals and traditional practices.

When gazed upon from afar, the sharp-peaked mountains of the country of Georgia are soaring and grand. Unseen within their rocky confines, however, lie isolated and amazing sights inaccessible to most outsiders. Located at the Western Asian / Eastern European frontier and bordered by the Black Sea, Russia, Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan, little-known Georgia is the site of the truly off-the-beaten-path mountainous regions of Svaneti and Tusheti, two raw, entrancing and rough-and-tumble provinces of well-established age-old traditions that give real meaning to hospitality.