Vinicius Alberici
- Project name: Road effects on occupancy and population density of giant anteaters in Cerrado
- Project site: Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
- EDGE species: Giant anteater Myrmecophaga tridactyla
- Active: 2018 - 2020
Biography
While studying for his PhD Vinicius has been collaborating with Brazilian NGO ICAS to contribute to the Anteaters and Highways project, which aims to assess the impact of roads on giant anteater populations in the Brazilian Cerrado.
Vinicius hopes that the EDGE Fellowship will improve his conservation leadership capabilities by developing his communication and interpersonal skills, so he can improve his fundraising capabilities and effectively train others to assist with conservation actions. He intends to learn more about project implementation at multiple scales, so he can successfully engage with everyone from local communities and NGOs to government agencies and policymakers. Vinicius will be one of the first Nat Geo Photo Ark EDGE Fellows.
EDGE Project
Vinicius’s project aims to understand the impact of roads on giant anteater populations, as part of the ICAS Anteaters and Highways project. His objectives are to:
- Investigate how natural and anthropogenic landscape variables, including roads, affect giant anteater populations in the Cerrado
- Estimate the occupancy and population density of giant anteaters
- Engage local communities in the conservation of the giant anteater
- Share a camera trap album and research results with stakeholders
