PRESS RELEASE -
SOS RHINO, Malaysian Wildlife Department Sabah, and Singapore
Zoological Gardens to host "International Sumatran Rhino Conference
2002"
Kota Kinabalu – SOS RHINO is collaborating with staff of the
Malaysian Wildlife Department Sabah Borneo, University of Malaysia
Sabah, World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF), and Singapore Zoological
Gardens ( SZG) to organize the “International Sumatran Rhino
Conference”. The conference will be held on April 4 and 5,
2002 in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
The conference will focus on the progress of Sumatran rhino conservation
efforts and successes from around the world. At least 60 participants
have been invited to attend from institutions such as Forestry Department
Sabah, Department of Conservation Sabah, WWF Sabah, Sarawak Forestry
Department, to name a few.
Researchers and scientists from SOS RHINO, WWF AREAS Project, and
the University of Malaysia Sabah will update their colleagues on
the successes of their in-situ (in the wild) and ex-situ (in captivity)
Sumatran rhino conservation efforts.
Dr. Edwin Bosi the Program Officer for SOS Rhino in Borneo proclaimed,
“this is a landmark meeting. On the heels of the birth of the
first Sumatran rhino in 112 years, we now have the attention of
the conservation community. We must maintain our efforts to locate
and protect these animals that remain in the wild.“ Dr. Bosi
was the first to successfully breed the Sumatran in captivity at
the Sepilok Research Center in Sandakan.
The Sumatran rhino is one of the most endangered of the five rhino
species due to habitat loss and poaching. SOS RHINO is dedicated
to protecting rhinos and their habitats, with emphasis on the Sumatran
rhino, by supporting research, providing technical assistance and
developing programs that educate the public on the plight of the
rhinoceros.
Learn more about global conservation efforts of the Sumatran rhino
by visiting SOS RHINO’s web site at www.sosrhino.org.
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