Wondering what went right this week in the conservation world? We’ve got you covered with our Conservation Optimism Round-Up! Each week we are collating stories of optimism from around the globe so that you never miss your dose of Monday Motivation.

1. ‘A thrilling sign’: Researchers discover secret colony of highly endangered marmots on Vancouver Island

” The Vancouver Island marmot is endemic to the island, and only lives in the high mountains in open alpine habitat. Their populations have plummeted in past decades because of habitat loss, reaching a low of 27 in 2003. Because of captive breeding programs in the Toronto Zoo, Calgary Zoo and Mount Washington, there are now around 200 individuals in the wild population. “

2. Record number of Cornish choughs fledge

“The chough, which is a distinctive black bird with a red beak and legs, returned to Cornwall in 2001, after being absent for 28 years. This year 66 choughlets have fledged, from 23 breeding pairs – the most since the species recolonised the county.”

3. In Sri Lanka, biologists and divers build a Facebook for sea turtles

“The Turtle ID project uses photos taken by recreational divers to build up a database of turtles based on their unique facial patterns. The initiative was launched in August 2019, but soon came to a halt as dive centers, among other tourism businesses, closed during the lockdown imposed in early 2020.”

4. Scottish forests could save red squirrel from extinction

“Twenty forest strongholds in Scotland would save the red squirrel from extinction even if grey squirrels were to colonise the whole of Britain, according to research.”

5. The “Lost and Found” project works to bring to life the inspirational stories of those that never stopped believing and whose passion led them to rewrite the history of the species they so deeply cared about.

“Our goal is to use the universal language of storytelling to showcase in narrative and visual format the most formidable rediscoveries of both vertebrates and invertebrates animals as well as plants from five continents.”

6. How restoring nature keeps the floods at bay

“Fires. Storms. Floods. The climate crisis is here, and it’s making extreme weather events ever more frequent. As we fight the root causes of the crisis, it is just as important to protect ourselves against its devastating consequences. We must adapt. To do so, restoring our natural landscapes is essential.”

7. Farmers regreen Kenya’s drylands with agroforestry and an app

“Dried-out soils create a hard pan that rains and roots can’t penetrate, but in Kenya, more than 35,000 farmers have joined the Drylands Development Programme to regreen their lands with agroforestry, joining peers in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Mali and Niger.“

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