In celebration of Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King, Disney will continue to support the Wildlife Conservation Network’s (WCN) Lion Recovery Fund (LRF) and LRF’s partners working across Africa to double the number of lions in the wild by 2050. Since Disney’s animated classic The Lion King was first released in theatres 30 years ago, Africa has lost half of its lions, and in 2019, Disney launched the “Protect The Pride” campaign, alongside the release of The Lion King, in support of the LRF.
The LRF supports efforts of local communities to conserve lions on behalf of the world, and since 2019, the LRF has been able to fund more than 300 projects, working across 25 countries in Africa.
Since 2017, the Lion Recovery Fund (LRF) has invested in the most innovative and effective projects across Africa to help recover lions and restore their landscapes. By supporting local conservationists who are protecting lions from poaching, reducing human-lion conflict, and safeguarding their habitats and prey, the LRF is working toward its goal to double the number of African lions by 2050. The LRF is a collaborative granting initiative created and managed by the Wildlife Conservation Network.
The Lion Recovery Fund’s ongoing projects include:
- Securing Lower Zambezi National Park Conservation Lower Zambezi
In Zambia, the Conservation Lower Zambezi (CLZ) supports the Department of National Parks and Wildlife to mitigate threats to wildlife, such as poaching. With funding from the LRF, CLZ supports the training and deployment of rangers throughout the park to tackle poaching. This helps prevent the decline of lion prey species and the incidental capture of lions in snares set to catch other animals for bushmeat.
- Protecting Lions and Livelihoods in Zimbabwe Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust
Zimbabwe’s northwestern region is a stronghold for lions and connects to other lion populations in northeastern Botswana. The LRF supports the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust in their Community Guardians program, which is designed to help prevent livestock predation in the areas adjacent to Zambezi National Park and Fuller Forest. This project will support rural villages with a lion early warning system and support the construction of mobile bomas which both protect livestock and fertilize fields, thus enhancing cropping yields and improving livelihoods. These interventions will reduce conflict and the loss of lions.
- Reintroduction Assessment for Lions African Parks Angola
Using LRF funds, African Parks will conduct an assessment in Angola’s Iona National Park to determine the potential of reintroducing lions into the landscape. This assessment will encompass ecological, social, and security factors to inform park management and develop a risk-benefit analysis and intervention plan, with potential to reintroduce lions in 2025. Such a reintroduction would significantly boost lion conservation in Angola, as lions have disappeared from most of its protected areas in the last few decades. You can find the Lion Recovery Fund Annual Report for 2023 (PDF) here.
Protect the Pride is an example of a campaign under Disney’s Conservation programme. Disney Conservation is committed to saving wildlife and building a global community inspired to protect the magic of nature together. Since 1995, Disney Conservation has directed more than $120 million and the expertise of our dedicated teams to support organisations working with communities to save wildlife, inspire action and protect the planet.
For more detail: https://thewaltdisneycompany.eu/world-in-balance/