We celebrated World Pangolin Day through a participatory creative workshop titled “Postcards to the future: Hope for the Philippine pangolin” in partnership with the Goethe-Institut Philippinen.
The workshop started with a welcome message and overview of the activity from Lorenzo Alvenida, Library and Information Manager at the Goethe-Institut Philippinen. It was followed by an introduction from Prof. Dr. Denise Margaret Matias, Professor at the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development and ZooMap Overall Project Leader, explaining the background of the workshop as well as highlighting the relevance of the workshop in World Pangolin Day and the ZooMap project. The participants were also given the time to introduce themselves to one another. Meanwhile, Bryan Mariano, ZooMap PhD researcher, presented an introduction about the Philippine pangolin, particularly its conservation status, habitat and ecology, and realities from the ground based on several ZooMap fieldworks in Palawan. The participants crafted their own postcards that respond to our prompt, “What are my wishes and stories about the Philippine pangolin that I want to tell my future self or loved ones?”, and shared their stories and aspirations to the group.