WWF’s Dr. Rimington Award Celebrates Women in Tiger Science

WWF’s Dr. Rimington Award is presented to an individual who has made a highly commendable contribution to the conservation of wild tigers and this year’s theme for the award is ‘Women in Tiger Science’. The 2022 award is going to not one, but two incredible women working in tiger conservation, Wai Yee Lam, Country Program Manager, Panthera Malaysia and Dr. Rungnapa Phoonjampa, WWF-Thailand’s Senior Project Manager.

Not only is Wai Yee and Rung’s work critically important, they’re both from and working in Southeast Asia where tiger populations are in decline. There are estimated to be less than 150 tigers in Malaysia and between 148-189 tigers in Thailand. Without dedicated people like Wai Yee and Rung, the future of tigers in their countries could follow that of other mainland Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam where tigers have become extinct over the last 25 years.

Let's meet this year's winners 👇

First up is Wai Yee. It’s hard to do justice to the impact Wai Lee’s career has had on tiger conservation and in preventing wildlife crime in Malaysia. Before her days as Panthera’s Country Program Manager, she built a wildlife protection team of Malaysian patrollers and analysts to effectively protect tigers and other wildlife from poaching threats in the Kenyir-Taman Negara landscape. By applying crime science to understand and predict where, when and how poachers were moving and using the deep forest, the team has assisted the Department of Wildlife and National Parks Malaysia in arresting over 40 foreign poachers in the past eight years and are finally seeing a reduction in snaring incursions.

Wai Yee’s day to day life now includes juggling work and life with a young family, and her work as Country Program Manager has shifted the focus of her work to other important areas of tiger conservation. She now concentrates on growing the Malaysia country program for Panthera, building partnerships, and building local capacity.

One of the major challenges Wai Yee has faced in her work was a lack of confidence and the constant worry about how others might perceive her because of being a woman. Tiger conservation has historically been a male dominated field and so we asked Wai Yee what her experiences have been working in this field. “When I first started my career in conservation I spent most of my time doing fieldwork. One of my daily worries was whether I could physically keep up with the men on the team while hiking in the forest with 20-25 kilogram backpacks and camping in the jungle for several days. I remember feeling like I needed to prove that I could do it, whether to others or to myself, and years later I realised that this was not important because I had a lot of other skills that I was bringing to the table to contribute to the patrol team. I realised that instead of showing them I could do what they could do, I should also do what they could not do - something that really made a difference to the team and towards the target we hope to achieve together.”

We asked Wai Yee what she wanted to see happen in the future of tiger conservation. “My hopes are that we continue to be innovative, to think out of the box, and to stay ahead of the factors that threaten the survival of tigers in the wild. The future in tiger conservation has to involve people working together and working creatively.”

The other winner of the WWF Dr. Rimington Award is Dr. Rungnapa Phoonjampa, one of the most devoted conservationists you’ll meet and who has been working to protect Thailand’s wildlife for over 20 years. She has led one of the longest-running tiger conservation projects in Southeast Asia, and works across four connected protected areas.

Rung’s colleagues see her as a trailblazer. Her scientific research and monitoring has contributed to the first-ever insights into the biology of tiger and prey recovery in Thailand. 

Rung’s passion for wildlife is matched by her compassion for people. She successfully led a 12-year initiative to train and equip park rangers, educate and inspire the public, and scientifically monitor the status of tigers and their prey in Thailand. Under her watch the impact of this initiative has been significant with park ranger capabilities and confidence soaring, just ask the park rangers themselves! Poaching has also declined and populations of tigers and their prey are either stabilising or increasing in certain areas.

We asked Rung what her average day at work looked like, “It is a combination of office work and field work. In fact, I prefer performing fieldwork over doing paperwork. Working in the field is more fun and peaceful, and it allows me to be close to nature and wildlife which motivates me.”

We hope that Wai Yee and Rung inspire women across the world to get involved in wildlife science. Here are a few final words of encouragement from them both…

“Find yourself first and find the role you wish to fill in your field of work. It doesn't matter where or when you start, because you own your experiences and you can choose to use them as part of your foundation to get you where you want to be. Do not be discouraged when you are faced with obstacles and challenges, but use those opportunities to learn and be better.”  - Wai Yee Lam, Country Program Manager, Panthera Malaysia

“Wildlife science has a long way to go, it’s crucial to promote gender equality because conserving wildlife is everyone’s responsibility, but most importantly, keep reminding yourself that….you can do it!!” - Dr. Rungnapa Phoonjampa, Senior Project Manager, WWF-Thailand

WWF would like to thank the Rimington family for their support to WWF and to this award which spotlights incredible individuals working tirelessly to conserve tigers and their habitats.