I’ve just discovered this amazing bloggers hand book written by the reporters without borders on the Kabissa site.

Here are some funding opportunities and their application deadlines that I found on various websites

Open: Environment (international).
Applications for Conservation Trust grants from the National Geographic Society for conservation and research programs that promote the sustainable use and preservation of the earth’s biological, cultural, and historical resources. Grants of up to $20,000 each are available. Additional information is available on the organization’s Web site. Who may apply: individuals who have conducted prior research or conservation work related to the proposed program. Advanced degrees are not required. The society strongly encourages applicants to seek additional, concurrent sources of support.
Contact: NGS 1145 17th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036; (800) 647-5463 conservationtrust@ngs.org; http://www.nationalgeographic.com/research/grant/rg2.html

March 15: Environment (international).
Applications for the Research Fellowship Program, administered by the Wildlife Conservation Society, with support from the Conservation Leadership Programme. Fellowships of up to $25,000 each will support postgraduate or professional conservationists in conducting yearlong field-research projects that help protect threatened wildlife and habitats in Latin America, Africa, and most of Asia. Additional information is available on the organization’s Web site. Who may apply: professional conservationists or postgraduates who are pursuing an advanced degree. Native Americans and First Nation Peoples in Canada can apply to work on their native lands as long as their projects are relevant to conserving wildlife. Otherwise, grants will not support research in Australia, Europe, Japan, New Zealand, or North America. Organizations are not eligible to apply. Applications must be submitted online.
Contact: Kate Mastro, WCS 2300 Southern Boulevard, New York, N.Y. 10460; (718) 741-8197 fellowship@wcs.org; http://www.wcs.org/international/tcbp

September 15: Environment (international).
Applications for the Research Fellowship Program, administered by the Wildlife Conservation Society, with support from the Conservation Leadership Programme. Fellowships of up to $25,000 each will support postgraduate or professional conservationists in conducting yearlong field-research projects that help protect threatened wildlife and habitats in Latin America, Africa, and most of Asia. Additional information is available on the organization’s Web site. Who may apply: professional conservationists or postgraduates who are pursuing an advanced degree. Native Americans and First Nation Peoples in Canada can apply to work on their native lands as long as their projects are relevant to conserving wildlife. Otherwise, grants will not support research in Australia, Europe, Japan, New Zealand, or North America. Organizations are not eligible to apply. Applications must be submitted online.
Contact: Kate Mastro, WCS 2300 Southern Boulevard, New York, N.Y. 10460; (718) 741-8197 fellowship@wcs.org; http://www.wcs.org/international/tcbp

February 2: Film and media (international).
Nominations for the Harry Chapin Media Awards, sponsored by World Hunger Year and the Harry Chapin Foundation. The awards include cash prizes of up to $2,500 each to recognize print and electronic media coverage of hunger, poverty, and self-reliance issues. Awards will be made in six categories: books, newspapers, periodicals, photojournalism, radio, and television and film. Additional information is available on World Hunger Year’s Web site. Who may be nominated: individuals whose work appeared from January 1 to December 31, 2008. Television, film, and radio entries must have been broadcast. Unpublished manuscripts or photographs are not eligible. International entries must be submitted in English.
Contact: WHY 505 Eighth Avenue, Suite 2100, New York, N.Y. 10018; (212) 629-8850 media@worldhungeryear.org; http://www.worldhungeryear.org/media_center/hcma.asp

May 15: Grantsmanship (national).
Applications for training scholarships from the Foundation Center, supported by the Verizon Foundation. Scholarships will enable nonprofit organizations to take a Foundation Center seminar or course in proposal writing. Additional information is available on the center’s Web site. Who may apply: organizations classified as tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code with annual operating budgets under $1-million. Preference will be given to groups that are working in the areas of literacy and domestic violence.
Contact: JuWon Choi, Foundation Center 79 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10003; (212) 807-2413 jwc@foundationcenter.org; http://foundationcenter.org/getstarted/training/verizon

Bloggers are a weird community of people but the statistics show that we can’t ignore them. More than 15% of Americans are blogging or reading blogs, - in South Korea 40% of the population has a personal blog!

So, we have no choice to make a difference in wildlife conservation we have to blog. The more that I have gone into it, the more I realize that there are some unstated rules that govern blogging etiquette… here’s a few things you should be aware of or risk being an blog outcast

1. Get personal and bare it all Effective blogs require a certain amount of frankness. It’s exciting to hear and feel emotions, to hear strong opinions, and to hear a different perspective. But its boring when your opinion is middle of the fence, or when you talk in third person. Always be honest about who is writing – don’t mislead your readers, EVER.

2. Update regularly and frequently Your content will get stale unless you refresh the blog at least two to three times a week, if not more often. Tell your story in bits so that we are drawn in and forced to log in and read the next stage in some unfolding drama.

3. Interact with your community Find ways to encourage visitors to post comments and join the conversation. Thank your readers, listen to opinions and answer questions.

4. Don’t be offended by comments Sometimes comments can be a bit nasty – an inspired reaction is indeed a good indicator of how good your blog is. But hold back, don’t get offensive at any point just enjoy the conversation and wait for things to cool down. It always does….

You’ll find more interesting and useful tips on blogging etiquette here and here and here

If I told you that your blog is a personal diary then I lied. Your conservation blog is so much more than just a diary, it’s a conversation between you and your readers who you want to become supporters. They must not just read your posts, but to feel compelled to take action. It could be in the form of a comment on the post, which is nice, or preferably in the form of a whopping great donation. Yes! Always keep this goal in mind while you develop your conservation blog.

I’m no expert, but I hope that these tips below help everyone, from beginners to the experienced conservation bloggers, and especially the fatigued. Use these tips to get started - or re-started, to energize your blog posts and drive up traffic and donations. To see what I mean in full colour go to one of my all time favourite blogs which is written by an American retired conservationists, Chris Wemmer who describes his personal adventures in the American wilderness in Camera trap codger
HEADLINE MAGIC

Did you know that 8 out of 10 people read the headline, but only 2 out of 10 go further and read the actual blog post?

To get the reader beyond your title you first need a magnetic headline

“Your headline is the first, and perhaps only, impression you make on a prospective reader. Without a headline or post title that turns a browser into a reader, the rest of your words may as well not even exist.

But a headline can do more than simply grab attention. A great headline can also communicate a full message to its intended audience, and it absolutely must lure the reader into your body text.

At its essence, a compelling headline must promise some kind of benefit or reward for the reader, in trade for the valuable time it takes to read more.”

by Brian Clark

To hook the reader on your title use key words and phrases that get normal people, not just conservationists and donors excited like “Five reasons why gorillas wont survive”, or “Confessions of a poacher”, “secrets of our wild dogs”, “Why I hate scorpions”, “Encounter with a lion” and of course your typical campaign titles eg. “One thousand dollars will save a rhino”Grab attention with an interesting headline - check out Right name for a Spitter)

Raise alarm responsibly! - check Distubing news from Lodja

And above all, be honest - read Safe haven for congo’s orphaned chimps

Are you hooked yet? To read more about headlines go here

I’ve started this blog to share a resource of conservation tools that I know can make a difference anywhere in the world. I’m starting with the opportunity conservationists need to grap onto with two hands - blogs.

Most conservationists I know have a mental block about the internet, websites and all things technical including blogs. I want to demystify blogs and wake you all up to the fact that blogs can be your best friends in conservation.

A blog is also known as a weblog which sounds complicated but it’s just an online diary and guestbook.

A personal blog is your best friend because although it is the fastest growing new activity on the internet, you can do it and be part of it without any training - from today! Blogging is the ultimate in free speech, it allows everyone to share their thoughts – about everything and anything.

It’s true, absolutely anyone can start a blog! There are millions of them out there already and growing by the millions every day about all manner of topics – especially politics. I specialize in wildlife conservation blogs which are under represented, especially in Africa, Asia and south America. But this is about to turn around…

WildlifeDirect pioneered the use of blogs for conservation community building to raise awareness and much needed funds. Through the Wildlifedirect.org blog hosting platform there is a large community of field based conservationists in some of the most remote corners of the wilderness who are using blogs to inform the world about their lives in the field, to raise global awareness, to involve the community of readers, to solicit help, and to share and learn. A community of supporters on Wildlifedirect.org are starting their own blogs to support specific projects - these are campaign blogs. This has been so successful that some projects have raised significant funds through their blogs.

If you are a conservationist, here are Six reasons why you should start a blog

1. A blog will allow you to express yourself and raise awareness about things that are important to you and the world, as they happen. Blogs are current and if you post articles as thing happen you could boost your reputation as an expert in your field and generate tremendous media interest. Two rangers in the Democratic Republic of Congo now run one of the most well known conservation blogs raising significant awareness and funds for Gorilla protection in the Virunga National Park.

2. Blogs enables you to establish relevant networks and stay in touch with people who care and are willing to help. A blog allows you to keep communication lines open with so that you can always interact with readers and supporters. It also helps nurture trust in you as an individual. Another blog, manioc valley from the Congo written by the Wildlifedirect team has drawn attention to the plight of internally displaced people, schools, a hospital, and the domestic energy crisis there. This has led to a campaigner starting a companion blog called ending charcoal to explore alternative energy in Africa and to raise funds for implementation.

3. It’s a great way of generating knowledge through sharing and getting regular feedback. Readers can comment on what you have posted and leave you information, advice, criticisms, and links to resources that you need. Joyce Poole and Petter Granli ’s blog, Elephant Voices shares information on research in elephant communication and how this is relevant to conservation policy.

4. Even an idiot can blog – it’s easy, it’s free and it’s is not labour intensive. You don’t need any computer programming knowledge. Posting once every two days is enough – this takes only a few minutes. I know this first hand because I’m an idiot and I have a blog! Wildlifedirects blog community includes NGO’s, individuals, international organizations, scientists, explorers, fund raisers, Maasai warriors, community organizations and even government rangers. Blogging can be done anywhere so long as there is network. Bloggers can post using computers or telephones from virtually anywhere on this beautiful planet, including the middle of the rainforest in the Congo.

5. It is a FANTASTIC way to promote your cause, project, NGO or website. Blogs can be linked to all these which will drive traffic to your other sites. It may be your most cost effective means of advertising your organization. Check out how it has been used to draw attention to the Mara Conservancy to raise funds to overcome a crisis in the Masai Mara. Also see

6. Blogging WILL make a difference in conservation. By talking, informing, sharing and participating in networks bloggers from all over the world are equally empowered to have a voice, and have access to a global community of environmentally conscious supporters. Rangers, scientists, conservationists, teachers, students, community workers, volunteers … can all have a say through blogs. Balemba in the Congo uses the Rumangabo Youth Alliance blog to network with schools around the world, and give his sporting event a global audience.

In addition, WildlifeDirect offers a bunch of freebies to help conservationists raise money so that they can get on with what matters - saving the wildlife. This includes free technical support, marketing support, media support and financial support. Not just any old financial support like all those other NGO’s that help you raise funds, we’re talking funds transferred for free (donations are transferred net only of bank transfer fees). That means WildlifeDirect takes nothing from donors, that’s Zero, Nada, Zilch… and yes, when you put your funds through the big conservation orgs you WILL feel a big ‘ouch’ - up to 40% of your money can be deducted for ‘overheads’ so WildlifeDirect is pretty extraordinary.

If you are convinced then you will want to start a conservation blog with WildlifeDirect immediately! Just write to me! paula@wildlifedirect.org