The SAVE THE FROGS! Three Year Plan (2018-2021)

Introduction

SAVE THE FROGS! seeks your input before we finalize our Three Year Plan, which includes an array of activities aimed at protecting amphibian populations and promoting a society that respects and appreciates nature and wildlife.

Litoria pearsoniana courtesy Daniel Pomfret

Since May 2008, SAVE THE FROGS! has been the most effective amphibian conservation organization on the planet, educating, inspiring and empowering the next generation of conservationists to protect amphibian populations and to promote a society that respects and appreciates nature and wildlife. 

The primary objective of the SAVE THE FROGS! Three Year Plan is to ensure that when the second decade of SAVE THE FROGS! begins in May 2018, we will be fully prepared both strategically and financially to survive and thrive in a rapidly changing world, and of course to save more frogs than we have ever saved before.

SAVE THE FROGS! has succeeded not only in protecting and improving the natural world around us, SAVE THE FROGS! has changed the lives of thousands of people, including staff, volunteers, students, teachers, ecotourists and participants of the 2,000+ live events we have organized over the past decade.

While most new businesses and nonprofit organizations fail in their first several years of existence, SAVE THE FROGS! is still here a decade later thanks to our generous donors, and to the perseverance of myself and my incredible team of staff and volunteers. Together we have conquered whatever challenge we faced, and in the process we have created a better planet for wildlife and for humans. Our decade of real world experiences and the extensive worldwide network of amphibian conservationists that we have created allows us to enter into our second decade smarter, more capable, more organized, more dedicated and more focused than ever before.

“Hi Kerry, 
Your three year plan sounds great. And you should be very proud that your work and inspiration has made SAVE THE FROGS! so successful and has changed the thoughts and minds of so many.”
— Kristi van Greunen
SAVE THE FROGS! Wetland Construction Workshop Participant

Litoria peronii courtesy Daniel Pomfret

The Three Year Plan

The Three Year Plan consists of 14 amphibian conservation programs, as detailed below.

Wetland Construction & Restoration
One of the best ways to improve our environment and to assist amphibians is to build wetlands. Since 2014, SAVE THE FROGS! biologists have assisted with or led over 30 wetland projects. We will partner with landowners, land managers and other organizations to build at least 12 more wetlands and to train students and biologists in wetland construction techniques via two-day live training sessions at each of the 12 wetland construction events. 

Gulf Coast Leadership Training
The USA is home to many threatened amphibian species as well as most of the generous funders of SAVE THE FROGS! activities. As such we will conduct a 10 day training program in the Gulf Coast for twelve talented young Americans. The Gulf Coast Leadership Training will ensure that the USA has talented, inspired and capable conservationists prepared to spread the word about America’s threatened amphibians and implement projects and programs to protect amphibians. 

Save The Frogs Day
Conceived and coordinated by SAVE THE FROGS!, Save The Frogs Day is the world’s largest day of amphibian education and conservation action. Our goal is to provide people with educational materials, ideas and inspiration and empower them to educate their local communities about amphibians. Save The Frogs Day takes place annually on the last Saturday of April and since 2009 our supporters have held over 1,300 Save The Frogs Day educational events in 60 countries. Each year Save The Frogs Day is highlighted on local and national media and activates citizens to conduct amphibian conservation efforts or raise awareness about the plights amphibians face in their communities. As Save The Frogs Day has educated tens of thousands of people around the world about amphibian ecology and conservation, we will continue organizing this incredible worldwide event. 

Website
Millions of people around the world have learned of SAVE THE FROGS! and made use of SAVE THE FROGS! educational materials through our freely accessible website (www.savethefrogs.com). As the site is one of the primary means of connecting, educating and growing our worldwide community, we will continue to develop and modernize the site to ensure it remains engaging and useful for the tens of thousands of people who visit it each month. 

Ghana Expedition
In 2011, Dr. Kerry Kriger and Gilbert Adum co-founded SAVE THE FROGS! Ghana, which has gone on to become our most successful international chapter, conducting inspirational work in the rainforests and savannahs of West Africa. SAVE THE FROGS! biologists from the USA visited Ghana in 2013 and 2016 to conduct trainings and learn Ghanaian conservation methods. In 2018, a team of six of our top staff and volunteers from around the world will travel to Ghana to implement frog conservation projects and share our depth of environmental experiences with our Ghanaian staff, volunteers and the local community leaders.

Live Presentations
SAVE THE FROGS! Biologists Dr. Kerry Kriger and Michael Starkey have given over 600 presentations over the past decade, directly reaching tens of thousands of students, teachers, government officials and community members. We will continue giving presentations at important live events to inspire and create many new SAVE THE FROGS! supporters. (24 presentations per year times three years equals 72 total presentations). 

Seed Grants & Training
SAVE THE FROGS! will disburse $36,000 in grants to talented amphibian conservationists. Every six months, six new grantees will receive $1,000 to implement a real world amphibian conservation or education project. Grantees will receive regular supervision from SAVE THE FROGS! staff. Grantees will gain real-world experience and their projects will directly benefit amphibian populations.

Podcast
Podcasts are quickly becoming one of the most effective ways for organizations to spread their message and grow their communities. The SAVE THE FROGS! Podcast will be released weekly and the episodes will serve as a permanent, freely accessible archive of environmental knowledge and inspiration. We expect the SAVE THE FROGS! Podcast to become our primary method of educating the worldwide amphibian conservation community.

SAVE THE FROGS! World Summit
In order to further understand the threats that amphibians face and to create action that leads to their survival, SAVE THE FROGS! will annually organize and host the SAVE THE FROGS! World Summit, which will bring together students, academics, herpetologists and SAVE THE FROGS! supporters from all over the world aimed to work together towards the preservation of amphibians. The World Summit will be an experience for anyone interested in amphibians to learn from the experts, network with fellow frog-conservationists and foster support and collaboration for amphibian conservation efforts — face to face with enthusiastic amphibian conservationists. The SAVE THE FROGS! World Summit will be held in the USA. We aim to host 200 attendees for a 2-day summit each year, and request half the funding from donors to assist with planning; the remainder of funding will come from attendees and sponsors.

Ecotour Leader Training
Ecotours serve as a powerful educational experience for frog lovers and SAVE THE FROGS! community members. Our past tours to Belize, Ecuador, Peru and Costa Rica have given participants once in a lifetime nature experiences and created many new SAVE THE FROGS! volunteers who continue to assist our efforts for years to come. SAVE THE FROGS! Ecotours contribute tens of thousands of dollars to the local communities we visit, assisting their efforts to protect frog habitats, and helping us inspire local people and tourists to care about nature and wildlife. SAVE THE FROGS! Ecotours are funded by participants and we do not seek additional funding via this Three Year Plan. The funds we seek are specifically to train a new ecotour leader during each tour. The training will enhance the skill set of ecotour leaders and enhance their own amphibian conservation knowledge. After the training, the new ecotour leader will be capable of organizing and leading ecotours in their home country and elsewhere, so that we can expand our ecotour offerings — thus introducing more people to amphibians and raising more funds for amphibian conservation. Through this program we will train four new leaders per year (12 total leader trainings).

Chapters
Organizations can accomplish more than individuals — if they are managed properly. Having extensive experience in starting SAVE THE FROGS! chapters in many countries, we have developed a set of guidelines for new SAVE THE FROGS! Chapters. Our goal is to provide regular supervision to the Chapter’s executive committee and a salary for the President of the chapter to work one day per week, every week. We will choose one chapter per year to fund and supervise. We expect to have three new, fully independent and sustainable SAVE THE FROGS! chapters by 2021. These chapters will succeed because they have a framework, supervision and funding. Their goal will be to gain financial independence and continue their missions in their local communities for many years to come.

Monthly Online Training
SAVE THE FROGS! staff will hold monthly online meetings to further connect with and educate supporters, students, teachers, and everyone else interested in amphibians. These meetings will feature presentations by SAVE THE FROGS! staff and volunteers on a wide range of amphibian topics that will teach amphibian conservation, ecology and about the work of SAVE THE FROGS!. The trainings will also be a perfect time for anyone with questions to receive expert assistance with their amphibian projects and campaigns.

SAVE THE FROGS! Magazine
The SAVE THE FROGS! Magazine is your #1 source of amphibian conservation information in print and is the official magazine of SAVE THE FROGS!. The magazine contains amazing frog photos, articles on current amphibian conservation issues, scientific updates, frog art and poetry, reports from SAVE THE FROGS! volunteers and lots of ways for teachers, students, scientists and frog lovers to get involved in worldwide amphibian conservation efforts. While digital has largely replaced print media, we still love being able to distribute SAVE THE FROGS! Magazines at live events or at important meetings with donors, partners and politicians as well as mail them to supporters who may not spend much time online. We will publish one edition of the magazine each year in early November. 

Continuing Education
The world is changing rapidly. For us to succeed we must continuously expand the knowledge and skills of SAVE THE FROGS! staff members through educational courses, workshops, books, private training and conferences. As such, we seek funding to ensure we have access to the finest continuing education resources.

Litoria serrata courtesy Daniel Pomfret

What do you think about the Three Year Plan?

We would love to hear from you so we can incorporate your input into the final version of the plan and commence fundraising. Please contact us with your thoughts on the Three Year Plan. Thank you!

Litoria chloris courtesy Daniel Pomfret