Newly Created Holiday Aims to Educate & Empower Future Conservationists
Want to raise awareness of threatened species?
Create a holiday to honor them!
That’s what propelled environmental conservation organization Wildlife Madagascar to create the inaugural International Chameleon Day, which honors nature’s ultimate masters of disguise. From now on, International Chameleon Day will be celebrated annually on May 9.
In addition to celebrating this unique species, this newly created global holiday aims to build awareness of the challenges facing chameleons, which primarily stem from issues such as habitat loss, climate change, and illegal trade.
Because approximately half of the world’s chameleon species are found in Madagascar, the Dr. Abigail Ross Foundation for Applied Conservation (TDARFAC) saw an opportunity to leverage this novel observance to celebrate and educate future conservationists about this incredible species through hosting chameleon-themed educational events.
Building Un-Camouflaged Excitement: Leading up to the first-ever International Chameleon Day, TDARFAC partnered with The Mad Dog Initiative (MDI) and local youth organization Tany Ketsa to arrange an educational event with students at Ambohidroa School in Madagascar. Together, the groups shared facts about the unique world of chameleons and lemurs – whose habitats are in their own backyard!
This event helped build excitement with students about the upcoming new holiday and increase awareness of this importance of this species on a local level.
Putting Learning into Action: On International Chameleon Day, Ambohidroa School students were treated to a very special celebration exploring the fascinating world of chameleons. Students put their learning into action with fun-filled activities including chameleon-focused quizzes that tested their knowledge on this unique species.
Participants also had the opportunity to make their own chameleon masks designed by Wildlife Madagascar. Inspired by what they learned at the event, students created and shared amazing chameleon-themed artwork.
The International Chameleon Day celebration events increased enthusiasm and excitement about the students’ upcoming field trip to Andasib, where they will have the opportunity to see some of the incredible chameleon species in their natural habitat. Another goal was accomplished: Helping support TDARFAC’s commitment to educate and support the next generation of environmental stewards!
Other nonprofits can leverage holidays and observances to build awareness of their mission! Below are a few best practices to accomplish this goal, based on our recent International Chameleon Day success:
Research relevant observances at the beginning of the year and mark them on your calendar. This way you can easily keep track of the ones most relevant to your organization to help plan activities and celebrations well in advance!
Develop a plan for how to celebrate relevant observances. Some holidays might warrant a social media post to observe the holiday, others might be a better fit for a more involved educational and/or celebratory event. Making a plan ahead of time to execute the options you’d like to accomplish will improve the chances of success.
Partner with other organizations to celebrate relevant holidays. Like we did with MDI and Tany Ketsa for International Chameleon Day, observances can be a great way to forge and maintain valuable partnerships with other organizations with a similar focus and mission – which can build added awareness not only with your audience, but theirs as well.
Want to learn more about International Chameleon Day and how observances like this one can help bring increased awareness to threatened species? Visit TDARFAC’s Facebook and Instagram pages to learn more, and to check out all of the images from our International Chameleon Day celebration events!
