Rare (conservation organization)

Rare is a US-based nonprofit environmental organization whose stated mission is to help communities adopt sustainable behaviors toward their natural environment and resources. The organization uses marketing techniques and technical interventions to address threats like overfishing and deforestation. Rare's work is founded on the belief that most of the threats faced by the environment are the result of human behavior, and that changing human behavior requires appealing to people using both rational and emotional arguments and removing any barriers that might prevent change.[1]

Rare
Founded1973 (1973)
FocusOcean and fishery sustainability, clean water, sustainable agriculture, behavior change for conservation
HeadquartersArlington, Virginia, United States
Area served
Global
Key people
Brett Jenks, CEO
Websitewww.rare.org

History

Rare was founded on January 1, 1973 by David Hill. The organization was originally headquartered at the offices of the National Audubon Society in New York before joining the World Wildlife Fund in the 1980s. In 1987, Rare returned to being an independent entity.

Currently headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, in the United States, Rare also has offices in the Philippines, Indonesia, China, Brazil, Mozambique, Mexico and Micronesia. Rare has worked with communities and local partners in over 55 countries.[2] Rare receives 3 out of 4 stars,[3] from Charity Navigator.

Approach to Conservation

Social marketing: Rare uses social marketing to achieve its mission. Each marketing concept is applied to motivate communities to take pride in their surrounding environment and wildlife.[4] The tools Rare uses include: animal mascots, puppet shows, religious sermons, radio spots, billboards, art contests, community theater events, festivals, murals, songs and school visits.

Rare's campaign approach originated on the Eastern Caribbean island of St. Lucia in 1977, with the work of Paul Butler, now Rare's senior vice president. Butler was hired by St. Lucia's Forestry Department in an effort to save the declining, endemic St. Lucia Parrot. Hunting, habitat destruction and the bird trade had caused the species to decline from 1000 birds in the mid-1950s to less than 150 by 1977.

Working with Gabriel Charles (Former Chief Forest Officer) and a team of forest officers, he created an outreach campaign that aimed to build community pride in the parrot and its forest habitat. Butler and his forestry department colleagues leveraged marketing materials that mirrored those used by the private sector, including campaign songs, mascots, and poster art depicting the parrot alongside a targeted call to action: "Take Pride in St. Lucia! Report illegal hunting of wildlife and clearing of land!"[5]

In 1979, the government of St. Lucia declared the parrot its national bird, established a parrot sanctuary, and updated and enforced laws to protect the species and its habitat. The parrot population steadily recovered, and today population estimates for the species exceed 2,000.[6] Butler's campaign and marketing tactics formed the foundation of Rare's social marketing strategy.[7]

Current Projects

Fisheries

Rare works with coastal communities to restore small-scale fisheries in the Philippines, Belize, Brazil, Indonesia and Mozambique.[8] Through the Fish Forever partnership between Rare, the Environmental Defense Fund, and the Sustainable Fisheries Group at the University of California Santa Barbara, the organization expands and implements sustainable fisheries management solutions worldwide.

The Fish Forever program pilots and implements TURF+Reserves,[9] (territorial user rights for fishing) a pairing of exclusive fishing access and marine reserves that allows fisheries restoration and marine conservation to work together. Marine reserves (specifically in the form of no-take areas) are designated alongside or within the exclusive fishing areas, or TURFs, with the aim of giving fish populations the chance to thrive and spill over into the fishing areas.

Watersheds

Rare works with local communities throughout Latin America to implement reciprocal water agreements for upstream habitat protection. The agreements incentivize upstream landowners to conserve watershed habitat, with downstream water users (both entities and individuals) financing such incentives.[10]

Sourcing Solutions

Solution Search is a crowdsourcing online contest platform designed to source, reward and disseminate proven solutions in conservation and development. Past competition themes have sought out fisheries restoration solutions and climate adaptation approaches worldwide. The 2015 Solution Search contest recognized solutions in U.S. weather-related disaster risk management.[11] The contest has identified more than 240 solutions from 65 countries across the various topics.[12]

Sustainable Agriculture

Rare works with farmers in China to adopt sustainable agriculture practices—in particular the shift from conventional cotton to organic cotton. The program seeks to reduce pesticides and other contaminants[13] entering the waters and threatened wetland habitats of China.

References
  1. "Pride campaigns | Rare".
  2. Bobrow, Emily (2 June 2017). "Conservation That Works for Locals". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 18 November 2018.
  3. "Charity Navigator Rating – Rare". Charity Navigator. Retrieved 2020-04-26.
  4. Bornstein, David (9 February 2012). "Harnessing Local Pride for Global Conservation". NY Times Opinionator Blog. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  5. Heath, Chip & Dan (2010). Switch. Broadway Books. pp. 149–151. ISBN 978-0-385-52875-7.
  6. "St. Lucia & the Jacquot Parrot | up! magazine".St. Lucia & the Jacquot Parrot | up! magazine
  7. "Pride Protects St. Lucia Parrots | BirdNote". birdnote.org. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
  8. "Fish Forever | Turning the tide for coastal fisheries in the developing tropics". www.fishforever.org. Archived from the original on 2015-09-08. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
  9. Bernstein, Lenny. "Well-funded program tries new approach to tackle overfishing in developing world". Retrieved 2016-04-13.
  10. "Ecosystems in Colombia". www.instiglio.org. Instiglio. Retrieved 18 November 2018.
  11. "Contest Shows Natural Solutions Can Protect Against Extreme Weather". The Nature Conservancy Blog.
  12. "Solution Search". Solution Search. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
  13. Shuqing, An; et al. (June 2007). "China's Natural Wetlands: Past Problems, Current Status, and Future Challenges" (PDF). Ambio. 36 (4).
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