Grant Recipients Conference, Belize 2017

1. Background
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The Rufford Foundation has played a crucial role in the field of nature conservation in developing countries worldwide. Its small grants have offered immense opportunities to early career conservationists to explore and contribute to wildlife research and nature conservation. The Rufford Foundation has supported more than 4,200 research and conservation projects in 157 countries, including more than 1100 across Central and Latin America.
Since 2012, The Rufford Foundation has been holding conferences in collaboration with local organisations around the world with the aim of bringing their grant recipients together and providing a forum for them to discuss ideas, problems and issues, and create invaluable networking opportunities.
The first Rufford Small Grants (RSG) conference in Belize was held on 13-15th November 2017 at Monkey Bay Wildlife Sanctuary near Belmopan in the Belize District, and was organised by Blue Ventures on behalf of the Rufford Foundation. It was attended by Rufford grantees working across Belize and Mexico, who presented their work as oral presentations and engaged in group discussions and feedback sessions. The conference was enriched by an additional presentation from Reynold Cal from the Runaway Creek Nature Reserve in Belize about his work on the jaguar (Panthera onca) and Baird’s tapir (Tapirus bairdii).