Say cheeese, critter! That's exactly what is happening in Indonesian Borneo, and I love this approach to wildlife conservation! A program called KehatiKu, operated by Borneo Futures in West Kalimantan, is helping turn animal hunters into animal protectors by giving local communities a way to earn money photographing wildlife instead of removing them from their natural habitats. Using a dedicated mobile app, villagers photograph or record wildlife, submit their observations for verification, and receive payment based on the species. 📸 A common bird can earn approximately $0.30. 📸 An endangered orangutan can earn approximately $7.50. The beauty of this approach is that the same animal can be photographed over and over again, providing an ongoing opportunity to earn income while allowing the animal to remain wild and free. And look what this program has accomplished so far! 🐾 More than 800 local wildlife observers are participating. 🐾 Nine villages are involved, with two more expected to join in October 2026. 🐾 There are 73 species eligible for payments. 🐾 Two participating villages have voluntarily introduced hunting bans! The program is also helping researchers gather valuable information about wildlife populations and where different species are living. But there's another beautiful side to this story. One participant, a 50-year-old farmer named Octavius, shared that his earnings are helping pay for his children's college education. Another participant, 72-year-old Imelda, described how animals once viewed as pests, including deer and wild boar, are now animals people want to protect. This program currently has funding secured through 2028, although finding a way to sustain it financially over the long term remains an important goal and I will be keeping an on this one. 😊 What I especially love about this approach is that communities aren't being asked to choose between providing for their families and protecting the animals who share their world. They're being given an opportunity to do both and this is when the magic happens!

Animals bring so much to our lives and to the Earth. They share their unconditional love, forgiveness, and acceptance with us and expect nothing in return. Their wild beauty reminds us that there is something bigger out there making this world go round. Whatever your experience is with animals, there is always room to grow, share, learn, understand, and love them even more. Empowering Animals would love to share all that with you. Come on over, the animals are waiting for you. ❤️🐾

In the COMMENTS BELOW, please share a Skool community you think is doing really great things. It can be one you've participated in yourself or one that you've heard from others is amazing. Please do the following: 1. Tell us the name of the community and link to it (affiliates allowed). 2. Tag the person who owns the community. If they are not in the CLASSIFIEDS, then please send them a DM and let them know that you mentioned them here. I promise you will make their day! 3. Describe why the group is so wonderful and how it has helped you. Please DO NOT just copy and paste the About page! 4. Comment on each others comments and scroll through the referrals to see if there's an amazing group you are missing out on! Thanks so much for supporting each other and this community! Please note that any #FriendFriday mentions that are created as new posts will be deleted. Thanks! Please DO NOT promote yourself. 🤨. The entire community is for promoting yourself. This post is for celebrating someone else. 😊

Today is another good day for animal news! NBCUniversal Local has announced the results of its 2026 Clear The Shelters campaign, and more than 135,000 shelter animals found homes during the months of July and August! More than 1,200 shelters and rescues participated across 47 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and Guam, with over 100 NBC and Telemundo stations helping spread the word. The campaign also: 🐾 Raised more than $480,000 for participating shelters and rescues. 🐾 Airlifted 60 vulnerable dogs and cats from overcrowded Louisiana shelters to areas where they had a better chance of being adopted. 🐾 Brought professional photographers into approximately a dozen shelters to help animals stand out to potential adopters. Since Clear The Shelters began in 2015, the campaign has helped generate nearly 1.5 million adoptions and raised more than $6 million for shelters and rescues. This is what can happen when we work together for the animals. What a beautiful win! ❤️🐾 If you'd like more animal stories and simple ways to help animals, I'd love to have you join us in Empowering Animals. Please use the link in this post rather than my profile so your membership is credited correctly. Thank you! ❤️

Lulingu was only 18 months old when she was rescued from the illegal wildlife trade in 2016 and brought to GRACE, the Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center in the Democratic Republic of Congo. There, she grew up in a gorilla family and learned the skills she would need to survive on her own in the wild. In December 2024, Lulingu and three other rescued Grauer’s gorillas followed a wild silverback named Mwasa into the forest, becoming the first gorillas rehabilitated by GRACE to return to the wild. Then, on May 21, 2026, Lulingu gave birth to a healthy baby in the wild. That is what wildlife rehabilitation is all about. 🦍❤️ If you love stories like Lulingu’s and want to discover more incredible animals and the organizations working to protect them, come check out Empowering Animals. It’s free to join!