The team
Meet the Wildlife Heritage Areas team of expert assessors evaluating applications and ensuring the highest standards for wildlife watching destinations.
About Wildlife Heritage Areas
A Wildlife Heritage Area is an outstanding wildlife watching destination where local people recognise their natural heritage with a deep sense of pride and play a central role in protecting wild animals and their habitats.
As animal welfare and sustainable tourism in general become more important for the travelling public, Wildlife Heritage Areas will identify places that meet the highest standards of animal welfare, wildlife conservation, community well-being, and sustainability, whilst also maintaining high tourism value.
By coming together to reconnect with, protect and respect nature, Wildlife Heritage Areas will help turn the tide on biodiversity loss and wildlife suffering by demonstrating the power of local communities to help solve the planet’s most urgent issues.
Wildlife Heritage Areas is a global programme developed by World Animal Protection and the World Cetacean Alliance (WCA). The concept was born out of the successful community-led model of the WCA's original Whale Heritage Sites programme (now Whale Heritage Areas), initiated in 2015.
Managed and run by the World Cetacean Alliance, and supported by World Animal Protection since 2019, Whale Heritage Areas showcase an entire community and their relationship with whales and dolphins by encouraging respectful human-cetacean coexistence – celebrating cetaceans in local culture, arts and events; supporting local economic and environmental sustainability; and developing locally based science, research and education. Whale Heritage Areas continue to be designated by the WCA and now form part of the Wildlife Heritage Areas global network.
For more information
Our mission
Learn about Wildlife Heritage Areas’ mission to protect wildlife, support communities, and promote responsible tourism for people and nature.
Guiding principles
Explore the Guiding Principles everyone involved with this initiative adhere to, demonstrating their commitment to a better world for people and wildlife.