TOFTigers Wildlife Tourism Award 2024

TOFTigers, in association with Sanctuary Nature Foundation, have combined to bring together the 7th TOFTigers Wildlife Tourism Awards 2024. This year’s theme is ‘Celebrating Harmony – Fostering Sustainable Wildlife Tourism Through Innovation And Collaboration’. The Awards aim to highlight and reward the very best in the nature tourism field; those individuals, naturalists, businesses, Environment supporters, Wildlife photographers, Wildlife filmmakers, service providers, and community enterprises who are leading the way in wilderness destinations in the Indian subcontinent. Each in their own way will be pioneering new ways to support and inspire wildlife conservation, engage local communities, and help restoration of wildlife habitat through their vision, drive, and actions.

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Judging Panel

Mr. Julian Matthews

Founder – TOFTigers

Founder of TOFTigers. He has worked for two decades in the Indian Subcontinent to advocate sustainable tourism as a partner in tiger conservation and rewilding the Indian forests through the TOFTigers campaign – whilst encouraging sustainability to the travel trade community worldwide. Currently he is involved in rewilding and natural capital in UK and abroad. In 1990’s he founded a safari and conservation travel business, now part of the Steppes Travel Group.

Mr. Praveen Pardeshi

Chief Executive Officer, Maharashtra Institution for Transformation, (NITI for MAHARASHTRA)

With 38 years of experience in the Indian Administrative Services (IAS), Mr. Pardeshi has served in various senior executive roles. He is an avid wildlife enthusiast who has served as the Principal Secretary, Revenue and Forest. He has always Pushed for forest conservation while ensuring livelihoods for tribal people dwelling in the forests.

Mr. Bittu Sahgal

Founder – Sanctuary Nature Foundation

The Founder of the Sanctuary Nature Foundation, Editor of Sanctuary Asia, India’s foremost magazine on nature, wildlife, conservation, and the environment, is a highly regarded author, editor, and conservationist in India. With a deep commitment to raising awareness, he has published a multitude of impactful works, including coffee table books showcasing India’s national parks and sanctuaries.

Dr. Anish Andheria

President & CEO, Wildlife Conservation Trust, Conservationist, Naturalist, Nature Educator and Nature & Wildlife Photographer.

Dr. Anish Andheria heads the Wildlife Conservation Trust (WCT) a not-for-profit that works with over 160 national parks and sanctuaries across 23 states of India. He is a 2008 Carl Zeiss Conservation Awardee as well as a 2017 UAA-Institute of Chemical Technology Distinguished Alumnus Awardee. He is a Member of the State Boards of Wildlife of Maharashtra and Jammu & Kashmir and an Independent Director of Wildlife Conservation Society-India (WCS-India). He is associated with several national level nature conservation initiatives. A professional Nature & Wildlife Photographer of repute, he has been part of the jury of umpteen photography and environment film competitions.

Mr. Toby Sinclair

Director of &Beyond Asia

Mr. Toby Sinclair has almost fifty years’ experience of working across South Asia.He was key player at Tiger Tops Kathmandu and for establishing Mountain Travel India.He has also set up two tented camps and a lodge in Central India. Currently he working as a Director of &Beyond Asia and receipt of Carl Zeiss Wildlife Conservation Award in 2007.

He has worked on various publications including For the Leopard: The Story of Sri Lanka’s Leopards (2003), and co-authored and contributed photographer to A New History of India (2023). Since 1995 he has been involved in the production of wildlife documentaries in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal.

Mr. Rohit Varma

Founder, Nature inFocus

Founder of Nature inFocus, a premier platform for wildlife and nature photography and conservation. With a background in corporate roles at AMD, SanDisk, and CyberMedia, he transitioned to focus on his passion for wildlife. Raised near Kanha National Park, Rohit has utilized his expertise to foster a community dedicated to nature awareness and conservation. His work is widely published, and his TEDx talk, “Half a Flush to Save the Tiger,” underscores his commitment to environmental issues.

Ms. Bahar Dutt

Environmental Journalist and Associate Professor at the Shiv Nadar University

An award-winning journalist and conservation biologist, notable for winning a Green Oscar for her environmental reporting. With over 15 years in environmental journalism, her acclaimed TV series “Saving the Ganga” and “Saving India’s Western Ghats” highlighted critical environmental issues. In addition to more than 1000 articles, news reports and opinion pieces, she has written three books – Green Wars ( 2010) for Harper Collins, Rewilding in India (2019) with Oxford University Press and Planet Protectors an illustrated book for kids (2024) with TERI. Dutt was awarded the Kavli Science Journalism Award by the American Society for Advancement of Science ( AAAS) in 2024 for her story on the Asian Giant Soft-shell turtle.

Ms. Shivya Nath

Founder, Climate Conscious Travel

Shivya Nath, founder of Climate Conscious Travel, is an award-winning travel writer and author focused on sustainable tourism. With over 14 years of experience and a background in living with remote communities worldwide, she integrates community-centric climate action into tourism offerings. Currently pursuing a Master’s in Sustainability and Environmental Management from Harvard University, Shivya’s work includes developing carbon-neutral trips and sustainability storytelling.