World Wildlife Fund

With offices in Mongolia, Russia and China, WWF is in a unique position to achieve sustainable conservation results in the Amur-Heilong region. We are focused on four areas that present the best opportunities for altering the global markets that challenge the future of this place.

WWF is finding innovative ways to help the severely endangered Amur leopard.
© Vasily Solkin

Restoring habitats and protecting species
Habitat loss and depletion of vital prey species have driven near-extinctions of the Amur tiger and leopard. Our work includes: creating a multinational protected area in Russia and northeastern China for leopards; establishing national parks in Russia’s Primorsky Krai province; and expanding tiger habitats in China. We restore damaged forests, bolster populations of deer and wild boar that sustain big cats, and enhance enforcement of China’s ban on wildlife trade.

Promoting sustainable forestry
Unsustainable and illegal logging practices are devastating habitats for endangered leopards and tigers. With the help of our Global Forest and Trade Network, we work globally and locally to facilitate trade between companies committed to responsible forestry practices. We also work with American and Japanese purchasers of wood products from the Amur-Heilong to educate them about their power to create change by choosing responsibly-sourced timber products.

Ensuring the river’s natural flow
The increasing international demand for energy has prompted plans to dam the Amur-Heilong River. We are working with local, national and international governments to urge adoption of a WWF proposal for hydropower energy development that strikes a sustainable balance between the needs of humans and the region’s ecological integrity.

Protecting the river’s headwaters
Mining, forest fires, poaching and overfishing threaten the headwaters of the Amur-Heilong in northeastern Mongolia. WWF works with local communities and industry, the Mongolian government, and global environmental groups to improve land reclamation and restoration practices and implement ecotourism programs that encourage conservation while infusing local economies with revenue.