'That fire burned for about three weeks until the rain came,' Iroro Tanshi said — a wildfire that helped persuade farmers to protect bat colonies rather than destroy them. Tanshi has won the Goldman Environmental Prize for protecting bats in Nigeria, recognised for cutting human–bat conflict and tackling wildfires that damage farms.
A rare conservation win in a country that often shuns bats
Iroro Tanshi, a Nigerian conservationist, has been awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for her efforts to protect bat populations in parts of Nigeria where the animals are widely feared and persecuted. The prize, handed to grassroots environmental campaigners, highlights projects that combine science, community engagement and direct action to save threatened species and habitats.
Tanshi’s work has focused on shifting attitudes as much as it has on protecting animals. In many of the rural communities where she works, bats are blamed for crop losses, accused of spreading disease and treated as pests. That stigma has encouraged culling, the destruction of roosts and, in some cases, violent removal of colonies.
Her approach has been to build bridges with farmers and local leaders, and to show that protecting bats can deliver practical benefits. She has linked bat conservation to local priorities such as reducing wildfires and protecting fruit crops. That pragmatic message helped persuade people who had long shunned bats to work with conservationists.
What the work involved
The award citation points to a blend of field research and hands-on outreach. Tanshi and her team studied bat roosts and monitored impacts on both animals and farmland.
They then used that evidence to design interventions tailored to local conditions — from safe roost management to public education campaigns aimed at younger people.
Community meetings and farm visits formed a large part of the effort. Tanshi told reporters that a major turning point was when farmers linked bat protection to a local problem they cared about: wildfires. "That fire burned for about three weeks until the rain came. There was nothing people could do - we just kept watching it every day," she said, explaining that people work with them because they "just want to deal with the problem of wildfires on their farms as well".
That connection made conservation less abstract. Farmers began to see bat protection measures as part of a package of steps to manage their land more safely — clearing firebreaks, storing crop residues differently and protecting important roost sites that can help maintain insect-eating bat populations which reduce agricultural pests.
Why the bats matter beyond sentiment
Bats play several roles in ecosystems that matter to people.
Many species eat insects that damage crops. Some pollinate fruit trees and native plants. Keeping bat populations healthy can reduce the need for chemical pesticides and help support yields for smallholder farmers.
In places where bats are persecuted, those ecosystem services can unravel quickly. The loss of insect-eating species can mean more crop damage, more spending on pesticides and greater risk of secondary problems such as soil degradation. Tanshi’s work aims to prevent that slide by keeping bat colonies intact and helping communities adapt their farming practices.
Economic and political implications
The prize has both symbolic and practical implications. Symbolically, it raises the profile of a little-loved animal and of the idea that conservation can be done through partnership with people who rely on the land for a living. Practically, the award brings attention and potentially funding that can expand community programmes and scientific monitoring.
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Her work persuaded farmers to protect bats as part of broader efforts to reduce wildfires and protect crops.
This article was created with AI assistance.
