- Conservation solutions:
Over his years in the field Russ has seen the varied ways the global environmental catastrophe plays out at the local level. The cutting edge responses Russ spearheads at CI recognize the need to take local factors into account in addressing the worldwide threat to biodiversity.
- MADAGASCAR:
Russ has tramped the length and breadth of this unique island and is one of the key players in developing conservation strategies for this hotspot. Few people know more about Madagascar’s biodiversity, and no one has done more to protect it.
- SOUTH AMERICA:
There are remote regions of Suriname and Brazil that would baffle the most intrepid explorer, but Russ knows them like the back of his hand. Few people are as knowledgeable about the cultural, political, and environmental issues of this vast and varied continent.
- CONSERVATION CORRIDORS:
One day he’s risking life and limb to catch goliath frogs in Equatorial New Guinea. The next, he’s hunting for signs of ape-like creatures in the Himalayas. Russ treats the world as his personal petting zoo, and the decades he has spent with the animals he loves in their natural habitats give him special insight on the need to preserve them for future generations.
- PRIMATES, REPTILES, AND AMPHIBIANS:
Russ may be comfortable striding the corridors of power, converting CEOs and heads of state to the cause of conservation, but his heart is in the conservation corridors- linked parks and reserves in the hotspots and high biodiversity wilderness areas that allow animals to follow their natural migration paths. Russ and CI pioneered this unique concept that maximizes the effectiveness of protected land.