loading . . . SLN Special Webinar - Forty-eight Years Among the Snow Leopards of Central and South Asia. https://snowleopardnetwork.org/2025/07/01/sln-special-webinar-presentation-forty-eight-years-among-the-snow-leopards-of-central-and-south-asia-from-the-first-telemetry-study-to-mobilizing-communities-and-fostering-multisectoral-partnership
Forty-eight Years Among the Snow Leopards of Central and South Asia: from the first telemetry study to mobilizing communities and fostering multisectoral partnerships.
In this webinar, Rodney Jackson – the first scientist to radio-collar snow leopards shares milestones along his 45+year career dedicated to the research and conservation of this seldom seen big cat. Much of Rodney’s pioneering work was undertaken before the introduction of PC computers, hand-held GPS devices, or smartphones and without the benefit of walkie-talkies or digital cameras. His study area in Western Nepal was only reachable via a 12-day or more trek over arduous, dangerous trails, with all supplies, food and equipment for the 3–6-month field session portered in by local people or, more rarely, on yaks. Rodney and his team rarely saw snow leopards but nevertheless were able to gather extensive information on snow leopard behaviour, movements and habitat selection using telemetry and tracking social signposts along travel lanes favoured by male and female snow leopards alike.
From this seminal study, Rodney will share his work training Protected Area rangers in Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Mongolia using sign transects (SLIMS) to conducting the first camera trap and non-invasive studies, pioneering community-driven conservation and wildlife-livestock conflict mitigation, to working with Traditional Cultural Elders, shamans and educators in Central Asia. Over the past few decades, he has focused on mentoring the next generation of conservationists.
Rodney and Rinzin will then discuss how studies of snow leopards and their prey have changed from the “muddy boots” days of the 1970s-1990’s to involve closer and more interactive exchanges with local communities for resolving human-wildlife conflict, address climate change and laying basic framework for empowering local people to become increasingly effective as citizen scientists and front-line guardians of the snow leopard, its mountain biodiversity and their own environment. While key questions remain, like “how many snow leopards are there?”, the need for more strategic conservation action to address many growing threats remains. Indeed, the future of snow leopards rests with the current generation of biologists, ecologists and social scientists — men and women working in tandem with local people (especially pastoralists and herders) and government rather than being heavily driven by academia.
About our Speaker:
South-African-born Dr. Rodney Jackson (MSc UC Berkeley; PhD Univ. of London) pioneered snow-leopard radio-tracking in Nepal (Rolex Award 1981–85; National Geographic cover 1986). He co-founded the Snow Leopard Trust and later established the Snow Leopard Conservancy (2000) and SLC-India Trust (2003). Jackson led the SLIMS survey standards, authored the snow-leopard chapter of IUCN’s Cat Action Plan, trained range-country biologists, and consulted for the World Bank and UN agencies. A five-time Indianapolis Prize finalist and Honorary Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, he now chairs SLC’s board, mentors emerging conservationists, and trials drone-based prey surveys in Mongolia.
(see more: https://snowleopardnetwork.org/2025/07/01/sln-special-webinar-presentation-forty-eight-years-among-the-snow-leopards-of-central-and-south-asia-from-the-first-telemetry-study-to-mobilizing-communities-and-fostering-multisectoral-partnership)
About our Facilitator:
Rinzin Phunjok Lama is an internationally recognized conservationist from Humla, Nepal. He holds a BSc in Forestry from Tribhuvan University, Institute of Forestry, Pokhara, and a Master’s degree in International Nature Conservation jointly from the University of Göttingen, Germany, and Lincoln University, New Zealand. Rinzin currently leads UKALI, a community-led initiative focused on trans-Himalayan biodiversity conservation in Nepal, with emphasis on his native Upper Karnali region.
Since 2014, Rinzin has been actively involved in high-altitude wildlife research and conservation, contributing numerous peer-reviewed publications. His leadership and dedication have earned him several prestigious accolades, including the WWF Nepal Conservation Award (2020), the prestigious Rolex Award for Enterprise (2021), and recognition as one of Time magazine’s Next Generation Leaders (2022). In 2024, he received the Future for Nature Award and the National Geographic Wayfinder Award, and was named among OnlineKhabar’s “40 Under 40” most influential youths in Nepal.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JiXhxYJ4FA
