Bass Hotels & Resorts & WWF Partner to Support Wildlife Conservation

Bass Hotels & Resorts Asia Pacific, owner of the Inter-Continental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn brands partnered with WWF, the international conservation organization to raise significant support for conserving endangered wildlife.

A region-wide fundraising and awareness campaign titled “Sleep Well, You Just Saved A Life,” raised US$ 56,000 for WWF's ongoing wildlife conservation work in the region with the help and support of participating Inter-Continental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn hotels and resorts in 10 countries across Asia Pacific.

During the five-month campaign held from July to November last year, guests staying at any of the participating hotels were given the option to do their bit for wildlife conservation by having the equivalent of one US dollar added to their bill as a donation to WWF. "We are grateful to both Bass Hotels & Resorts and all of the guests who have made this initiative successful," said Ms Winnie Sek, WWF Hong Kong Executive Director. "Their support has shown that such a regional initiative and partnership can work for the benefit of conservation."

Bass Hotels & Resorts is a founding member of the Asia Pacific Hotels Environment Initiative (APHEI). It operates or franchises more than 170 hotels and resorts in 25 countries & territories in Asia Pacific. According to Mr Richard Hartman, Managing Director of the Asia Pacific division, “We strongly believe in supporting conservation efforts in each of the communities which we serve. Several of our hotels are located near wildlife areas and these efforts will hopefully help to ensure that future generations are able to enjoy the same wildlife diversity we take for granted today.”

Asia Pacific is home to some of the world's most unique and well known animal species. These include the Giant Panda, the tiger, the Asian elephant, Asian rhinos, Orang-utan, Dugong, and marine turtles. Species new to science have also recently been discovered, adding to the world's natural wealth. For instance, in Vietnam, between 1992 and 1997, WWF and local scientists discovered three new large mammal species - the Saola, a goat-like animal; the Giant Muntjac; and the Truong Son muntjac. Such finds are significant as worldwide, less than 10 new large mammal species have been discovered by scientists in the last century.

One of WWF's major goals is to ensure the conservation of viable populations of such globally important wildlife species. Many projects provide solutions for reducing habitat destruction and other threats to the survival of the species such as poaching for illegal wildlife trade. Efforts are also focused on developing models of community based livelihood or ecotourism ventures based on sustainable resource use and economic benefits. These help in some ways to address the human-wildlife conflict prevalent in parts of the region where high population pressure is shrinking natural habitats.

WWF is the world's largest and most experienced independent conservation organization. Its network encompasses more than 50 countries on five continents. In Asia Pacific, WWF implements conservation projects in 20 countries.