@sambentley: Can you tell which of these is real leopard skin, and which is fake? Most people can't, and that's actually helping save leopards in Zambia. In parts of southern Africa, real leopard skins have been worn in traditional ceremonies for generations, but a global wild cat conservation organisation called Panthera has been quietly changing that. Through their Furs for Life programme, they've been working with communities to swap out real leopard skins for high-quality synthetic ones, keeping the meaning of the tradition, just changing the material. And it's working! 1000s of these "heritage furs" have now been shared across the region, and by 2024, more than 80% of people who used leopard skins had switched to the fake ones. Poaching reports have dropped, and camera traps are showing leopard numbers rising from around 2.7 to 3.8 leopards per 100 square kilometres. Panthera has also recently started working with newer bio-based materials designed to have a lower environmental footprint than synthetic fur. The latest garments use less energy, produce fewer emissions, and are made with fibers shown to be safe for human health. It's a powerful reminder that you don't always have to choose between tradition and conservation, sometimes you can protect both. #goodnews #conservation #TikTokForGood

Øystein :

But they are made with plastic :(

Jase’s rattery & rabbitry :

I don’t think swapping for synthetic is the best alternative dyed rabbit skins would be better

Wipe my ass with🇹🇷 :

Im so grateful for good peopel

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ ᴀᴍᴀʟɪᴀ ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙ :

ILY YOU ARE SAVING THE WORLD

John.G :

Can these be made out of cow instead of synthetic/plastics?

Tomato.on.Table :

yay we now have plastic garments that will last half as long as the real vintage ones!! just dye deer hides

Nana :

that is good news for everyone 🥹

liss :

what are they made of?

Saga :

what are they doing with the old ones?

Nida :

What happen to the real skins? Will the west going take it for their muzium?

Dita Doll :

this is horrible. they can dye goatskin rather than use synthetic.

€Π|∆R∆──⃝─⃝⃝⃝⃝── :

this is very beautiful to hear

🇱🇹 noone 🇩🇪 :

why get rid of old ones tho

StayWeirdLC :

the first is real and the second one is fake

Lukhanyo mpembe🐊 :

I believe leopard skins should only be used by our African kings and royalty as we used to historically commoners did not wear leopard skins as they do now

reality weaver :

microplastics in clothing like this are one of the absolute worst things for the environment, this is not good news 😔😣

NottheWriter :

I do want to point out that I hope they're changing over when they need NEW ones & not throwing out still usable pelts for plastic ones. unfortunately the most sustainable type of fur is fur that already exists in pelts & can be reused (2nd hand, inherited, recycled, etc) with synthetic (plastic) fur being the 3rd most sustainable because they are still microplastics. (the 2nd is "pelts that come from sustainable meat sources" which isnt relevant to this discussion)

Alarchwen :

It shows that working with local people is a good tool for conservation.

Peanut 🇨🇱 :

ehhh, couldnt they just stain other hides? mostly saying because synthetic skins are literally just plastic and like all plastic it will not degrade naturally

Quack :

Malene Sofie Faber R :

so amazing ♥️culture AND protection of wildlife 🥰🙌

Quack :

saastainen sanni :

just a dot.

EmNHam :

Amazing news!!

Eileen Reilly930 :

❤️