Three young conservationists were recently named winners of the 2025 Future For Nature (FFN) Awards for their initiatives to conserve amphibians, pangolins and Andean wildlife.
The winners will each receive 50,000 euros ($54,000), FFN said in a statement.
“Working in conservation can be tough,” Anthony Waddle, the winner from Australia, told Mongabay by email. “We have a job that requires consistent advocacy for ourselves, the species and ecosystems we are trying to protect, and the broader value of biodiversity for society. Winning this award means I have some stability in pursuing my conservation goals.”
Waddle has devised strategies to protect Australia’s threatened frogs from the deadly chytrid fungus, which has wiped out some 90 amphibian species globally and caused declines in hundreds more. Believed to have originated on the Korean Peninsula, the fungus destroys amphibians’ skins, disrupting their ability to take in water and air.
The fungus thrives in cooler temperatures but struggles to survive beyond 30° Celsius (86° Fahrenheit). So Waddle created simple “frog saunas” to help Australia’s frogs survive annual winter epidemics of chytrid. The saunas are inexpensive structures made of bricks and vegetable greenhouses, where the frogs “bake off the chytrid fungus,” Waddle said.
Waddle has also helped develop promising vaccinations that could give frogs a long-term chance at fighting the fungus. He said he’ll use his prize money to implement both these strategies across Australia’s east coast.
Ruthmery Pillco, founder of the NGO Peruvian Wildlife Conservation, focuses on restoring the habitats of two threatened Andean species: the Andean bear (Tremarctos ornatus) and the dwarf deer (Mazama chunyi).
Pillco told Mongabay by email that the prize money will support her research on the ecology of the little-known dwarf deer; its movement patters, diet and habitat use.
“Additionally, the funding will contribute to environmental education and awareness efforts, establishing the dwarf deer as an ambassador for Andean cloud forests and promoting the conservation of both the species and its habitat,” Pillco said. She added being part of the FFN community is a recognition of the “dedicated field team and the local communities we collaborate with.”
The third winner, Kumar Paudel, is founder of the organization Greenhood Nepal. Paudel has been at the forefront of pangolin protection in Nepal. His team conducts pangolin surveys in the country, works with Indigenous communities to reduce pangolin poaching, and collaborates with governments and international agencies to combat pangolin trafficking. He’s also interviewed more than 100 imprisoned wildlife criminals to understand their motivations.
“I will use the prize money to help secure Nepal’s last remaining pangolin populations and habitats by scaling up Greenhood Nepal’s science-driven conservation programs,” Paudel told Mongabay by email. “This includes support in identifying pangolin conservation priority sites, community-based conservation, law enforcement support to control the poaching and illegal trade, and raising public and policymakers’ awareness of pangolin conservation importance.”
Banner image: From left — Anthony Waddle, image by Yorick Lambreghts; Ruthmery Pillco, image by Eleanor Flatt; Kumar Paudel, courtesy of Paudel.
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