Support Rangers with our great products

TTGLF is a Company Limited by Guarantee (ABN 22 126 573 779) and is registered with the Federal Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit Commission and the Register of Environmental Organisations. We have DGR status which means that all donations to us are tax-deductible.

TTGLF is committed to maximising the amount of supporter funding that goes to fund projects in the field. That is why for every supporter donation under $1000, we use 100% to fund projects. For donations over $1000, we typically put 15% of the donation towards administration and organisational costs.

The Thin Green Line Foundation was established as the charity arm of the IRF in 2007. We collaborate closely to raise awareness about the work that Rangers do and the dangers they face. Sean Willmore, the TTGLF Founder and Managing Director, is the immediate past President of the IRF.

We are an independent non-government organisation and carry out our work free from party-political or religious agendas. We have no membership or affiliation to any political party or religion.

TGLF has three main program areas:

1. Fallen Ranger / Emergency Fund – where we provide financial assistance to families of Rangers killed in the line of duty. This financial assistance recognises the loss of (usually) the primary income earner and is a one-off payment of USD2000,  designed to support families to pay for immediate housing or accommodation needs, keep children in school and start / strengthen alternative income generation means such as the setting up of small enterprises or the purchase of agricultural assets such as seeds or farming equipment.

   We supported 40 families of Fallen Rangers with emergency funds, and provided financial support to train 135 Rangers in 2019-20.

2. Ranger Training and Equipment – Rangers are provided with high skill training customed to their challenges localy, along with the resources and tools they need. All the training an equipment is sourced and provided locally, reponding to the Ranger groups needs. 
3. Advocacy and support for Rangers to network and exchange knowledge and experience.

   In 2019, 81 Rangers were supported to attend the World Ranger Congress in Nepal. In 2019-2020, ten Rangers’ salaries were paid, and 998 Rangers were equipped through our Ranger Care Box program across nine countries in three continents.

4. Small Grants Program – where we provide funding to projects with budgets under USD5000 or that support the establishment of Ranger Associations around the globe.

In 2016-2017, TTGLF supported 16 projects in 13 countries as diverse as Solomon Islands, Zimbabwe, Costa Rica, Peru, Benin and Tanzania. Our total funding given to these projects was US$127k .Ten of these projects were in Africa, two in South America, two in Latin America, one in Australasia and one in Eastern Europe. The types of projects that were funded included training and skills development for Rangers (27%), building of Ranger bases and training centres (34%), equipment for Rangers (17%), support for individual Rangers and their families (9%), conferences and congresses for Rangers (8%), organisational strengthening and setting up of Ranger Associations and conservation partners (5%).

In many countries around the world, statistics on the actual number of rangers killed each year are not kept, nor are their deaths reported accurately. Our current evidence and research show that on average a Ranger is killed in the line of duty every 2 to 3 days. We mostly hear of these deaths through notification by Ranger Associations and other partners or via media reports. This horrifying statistic equates to about 120 Ranger deaths every year; 31% of these deaths are homicides, (mainly by poachers or militia), 34% through accidents (vehicle accidents, bush-fires, drowning, falls etc), 17% illness (such as strokes and heart-attacks while on patrol, or COVID-19) and 18% by wildlife.

The TTGLF and the IRF are working on ensuring that every family of every Ranger killed has access to the support that we can provide; this means spreading information about how we can help to Rangers in every corner of the world through Ranger Associations and other partners on the ground. We’re getting there and last financial year, we were able to support the families of approximately half the number of estimated Fallen Rangers.

In 2016-2017, TTGLF supported the families of 53 Rangers killed in the line of duty with funds of just over $109k. This amounts to support for 272 dependents of Rangers; of which 161 were school-aged children that the financial assistance kept in some form of education. This often means that they have the ability to pay school fees, buy uniforms and books or pay transport costs to and from school. 61% of the funding was spent in Africa, 33% in Asia and 6% in Latin America.

We supported 40 families of Fallen Rangers with emergency funds in 2019-20.

TTGLF is extremely fortunate to have a number of businesses and organisations who believe passionately in the work that we do to support Rangers on the frontline. Australian businesses and organisations that donate money or their time to us include: South Australian Ranger Association, Qantas, Queensland Ranger Association, PixelMore Design, Australian Ranger and Conservationists-Victoria (formerly Victorian rangers Association), Booran Motors, Protected Area Workers Association of NSW, Coopers and Launders & Rogers Lawyers. This list is not exhaustive and there are many many more.

TTGLF Ambassadors are people who like us passionately believe in the value of the work that Rangers do. We are fortunate to call these people TTGLF Ambassadors:

• Dr Jane Goodall - renowned British primatologist and anthropologist considered to be the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees.
• Wouter “Wally” De Backer - better known as Australian musician and singer-songwriter Gotye.
• Nicky Bomba – Australian musician who donated music to the documentary that started the Foundation.
• Tex Perkins – Australian singer-songwriter who has performed and promoted TTGLF.
• Professor Tim Flannery - renowned Australian palaeontologist, environmentalist, author and climate change activist. 

TTGLF has a triple bottom line approach to everything we do: striving to make positive change in our programs, for our people and for the planet. Our ethos of sustainable procurement means that we only source merchandise that is produced in a fair way ensuring profits go back to communities and where the artisans that create these products are given a fair price for what they make.

Our clothing is sourced from OCC Apparel who use only certified organic cotton to produce clothing in their factory in Sydney.

Our jewellery comes from Mulberry Mongoose a company formed by local Zambian women to produce unique products such as the snare-wire jewellery. Each artisan is paid a fair price, and for every sale of snare-wire jewellery, funds go back to support Ranger projects in the South Luangwa Valley

As of Nov 2020, TTGLF has a total of six full-time and part-time staff members. However, our work would not be possible without the amazing support we get from volunteers generously giving their time to help us with projects and tasks.

TTGLF works alongside a variety of Ranger Associations in Australia to build awareness of the vital work they do as well as supporting Indigenous Rangers in Western Australia and Northern Territory. In 2017, TTGLF supported nine Indigenous Rangers to travel to Kenya to meet, work alongside and share learning with their Maasai Ranger counterparts. See this experience yourself in the TTGLF documentary "Ranger To Ranger".

TTGLF documentary "Ranger To Ranger".