In fall 2016, more than one-third of the school kids in nine communities around Tandoureh National Park were educated about the leopards and their conservation needs. In a program implemented in partnership with local Department of the Environment and Bureau of Education, more than 180 school children aged 11–13 attended two series of educational classes specially developed by the Future4Leopards Foundation.

Located close to the border with Turkmenistan, Tandoureh has hosted a satellite collaring project since 2014. So far, most of the collared leopards have occasionally wandered into rural areas around the National Park, but only very rarely have they committed depredations on livestock. Although conflict with communities seems be a minor challenge for leopard conservation in this area, leopards wandering among the villages – probably in search of dispersal routes or new resources – may bring them into direct contact with local people. There have been several cases in which frightened people attempted to kill a leopard when one of these large predators wandered around a village, which obviously can be viewed by uneducated people as presenting quite a danger. This is why we established a comprehensive educational and outreach program to cover various social groups, starting with school kids. Villages were chosen based on leopard patrolling areas derived from satellite collar data.

This coming winter, another nine villages will host the outreach programs, bringing the total to 18 villages around Tandoureh and as far as the lands bordering Turkmenistan. Then, in spring 2017, the school children will be invited to come along on our eco-trips in Tandoureh National Park to give them first-hand experience of the nature around them.