Partnering for animal welfare in South Asia

Wild Welfare’s field director, Dave Morgan, has been exploring project partnership opportunities with India’s Zoo Outreach Organization (Zooreach), a zoo welfare and conservation organisation that works across the South Asia region.

Meeting with Zooreach’s executive director Sanjay Molur recently, Wild Welfare learnt more about how the organisation works throughout India and across other countries in South Asia and had the chance to discuss mutual projects that it might be beneficial to work together on.

Commenting on the opportunity to meet with Zooreach, Dave Morgan said: “Zooreach’s approach is very similar to Wild Welfare’s in that they choose to tackle projects in a positive and constructive way, so as to achieve the best possible outcome for the animals involved. We’d welcome the opportunity to work together on developing any projects that may help further zoo animal care and welfare in the region.”

Zooreach was founded in India more than 30 years ago by wildlife and zoo conservationist Sally Walker. The organisation was established to improve animal welfare in zoos across India and the other South Asia countries (Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afganistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka), by working with the zoo community. Zooreach successfully lobbied for the introduction and implementation of national zoo standards across India and helped to found the South Asian Zoo Association for Regional Cooperation (SAZARC), an organization for South Asian zoos and aquariums. Today, along with it’s work with zoos, Zooreach actively supports in-situ conservation projects and initiatives, wildlife public awareness campaigns and education programmes.

With Zooreach’s founding aim always having been on helping zoos improve through welfare and standards of care, Wild Welfare is very excited about exploring opportunities they might work together for the region’s captive wild animals.