Prativa Kaspal was a participant in the 2023 CoalitionWILD EXCELerator program. CoalitionWILD, driven by the potential of young people to improve the health of our planet, facilitates youth leadership in conservation. It does so through mentorship, capacity building programmes and amplifying young voices through collaborative platforms for policymaking and impactful storytelling. The EXCELerator Program is one such leadership development programme offered by CoalitionWILD. This is Prativa’s story, the third in a three-part series from participants in the 2023 cohort showcasing the love for nature at the heart of their work, and the power of youth leadership to make the planet a better place.
Growing up in Bhaktapur, Nepal, I spent my childhood in the lap of green forest that homes leopards, Chinese pangolins, and countless other creatures. But amidst the beauty of the forest, I faced a quiet battle at home. My mother, whom I loved deeply, was diagnosed with mental illness, later identified as schizophrenia. Under medication after a long time for schizophrenia, she also suffered from Parkinson’s disease, a drug induced side effect of psychiatric medicines, followed by seizures. Her illness shaped my childhood and continues to shape me in many ways. Caring for her became my life’s center, so I have to find a way to balance both my desire to support her and my need for purpose.
As her health declined, I began searching for an outlet that allowed me to both work close to home and give her the care she needed. That inner search led me to the wildlife around me. I think I had a call from the forest where I found solace in a species as fragile as my mother — the pangolin.
My first close encounter with these mysterious creatures came around 2007 when I visited the Central Zoo in Nepal as part of my study. There were two pangolins rescued within Kathmandu valley and were placed there to test for feasibility of putting them in educational display after their proper care. As that was not their natural homes, both pangolins were quiet and reserved. Something about them drew me in, so I stayed and observed them for 24 hours straight. After several days of watching, something magical happened. I had a call to visit zoo. I found the more reserved of the two pangolins was about to give birth. I was there, witnessing the first moments of life as a baby pangolin, soft and scale-less, emerged into the world. It was fragile and vulnerable, just like my mother.
The mother pangolin, sensing my presence, immediately became cautious. She held her baby within her body, her protective instincts was like my way to shield my mother from the world’s harshness. In that moment, I saw something of myself in that mother pangolin. Her need to protect her fragile baby mirrored my own journey with my mother. My mother, much like the pangolins, was often misunderstood and overlooked by the surrounding world even by her own parents and relatives.
That day sparked a deep connection between me and the pangolin. They, too, were gentle creatures who never caused harm but were the most trafficked and exploited animals. I began to see my mother’s fragility in the species, and my heart grew full of compassion for them. Like my mother, the pangolins were silent yet strong, suffering yet enduring.
For more than a decade now, I have dedicated myself to conserving this fragile species. I have made it my mission to help the pangolins through collective community efforts, working closely with those who share their habitat in both rural and urban landscapes of Nepal. My journey has been about more than just saving pangolins; it has been about understanding vulnerability and embracing empathy. My mother’s fragility taught me patience and love, and it was through that lens that I came to love the pangolins — creatures who, like her, deserve understanding and protection.
This path has been full of challenges, but with each pangolin I help protect, I feel I am also honoring the strength and resilience of my mother. Through the pangolins, I have found a way to give back to nature what it has given me: a sense of purpose, compassion, and an undying love for the fragile and the forgotten. I am very thankful to the coalition Wild family and other supporters for their trust and support.
Read Thomas Odeyo’s story