These critically endangered turtles need your help.

It’s with heavy hearts we announce that this year’s Turtle Ranger Program will not go ahead during the upcoming nesting season… unless you can help them. 

Your support will protect vulnerable and endangered Green and Hawksbill turtles from poaching and destruction in the pristine nesting grounds of the Conflict Islands, Papua New Guinea.

Funding for the Conflict Island Conservation Initiative’s (CICI’s) turtle ranger program is usually secured by paid eco-tourism and volunteer projects. COVID has prevented this. However, your generous gift means we can continue to empower dedicated community conservation rangers to stop the poaching and destruction of precious and vital nesting sites.

The last nesting season from November to February (20-21) was facilitated by the previous year’s ecotourism and vital partnerships with organisations like the Sea Shepherd. We successfully released 13,672 endangered hatchlings, and tagged 83 new green turtles and 36 new hawksbill turtles. Our PNG rangers protected and relocated 123 nests during the season, patrolling the beaches across the atoll every night to protect the turtles and their eggs.

Without your help, these turtles – as nesting females and hatchlings – will be defenceless.

With all programs postponed till 2022, without your support during these difficult times we cannot continue our critical work to protect the local wildlife and conserve this unique and wild place.

The Conflict Islands atoll is one of the richest natural habitats in the world, hosting more than half the world’s coral species hosting many endangered wildlife. It is here that the turtles’ long lives begin as hatchlings, and here that they are most vulnerable.

You can make a tax-deductible donation to this vital cause right now. Conflict Island Conservation Initiative is recognised by the Register of Environmental Organisations (REO).

$325 employs and trains a PNG turtle ranger for two weeks

$250 helps to pay for an atoll patrol 

$150 helps to incubate a nest of turtle eggs

$50 helps to maintain our turtle hatchery

$25 purchases the equipment to collect and translocate a turtle nest