Cheetah Conservation Fund - Laurie Marker
www.cheetah.org

With almost 30 years experience working with cheetahs, Dr. Laurie Marker has become one of the world's leading authorities on the world's fastest land animal. Laurie started her career at Wildlife Safari in Oregon, then continued on as Director and Research Fellow at the NOAHS Center, National Zoo, Washington, D.C. In 1990, Laurie moved to Namibia, Africa, and co-founded the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) - an internationally known center for cheetah research and conservation. She serves as Director of CCF and is the keeper of the International Cheetah Studbook. She is also a member of the IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group.

While cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) were once found all over Africa and Asia, they are now endangered in most of their original ranges and extinct in others. Only 12,000 cheetahs remain worldwide. Although cheetahs pose no threat to human life, they are often seen as a threat to livestock. Persecution by humans, loss of prey base and habitat, and competition with larger predators are the major threats to cheetah survival.

Laurie Marker and the CCF staff work with local farmers, schools, NGOs and the government to help increase understanding of and appreciation for this remarkable cat. In addition, CCF's activities include many innovative conservation and management strategies to reduce the conflict between people and cheetah, serving as a model for other conservation projects. For example, CCF provides Anatolian Shepherd guard dogs to protect local livestock without harming cheetah, and has an active program of cheetah relocation to move animals that would otherwise be killed to the land of cheetah-friendly landowners. Cheetah Conservation Fund is a grassroots organization with a global mission.