What our supporters have to say...
Supporters of For the Love of Wildlife are crucial in enabling us to continue vital work in protecting and conserving endangered species and their habitats. Their backing provides us with confidence to continue our essential programs, raise awareness, and drive advocacy efforts that make a significant impact on wildlife preservation.
Hon Greg Hunt MP
Former Minister for the Environment
Minister Hunt delivered the following speech in Parliament on 8 September 2015 prior to the screening of Blood Lions. In front of invited guests, members of parliament, staff and colleagues both Donalea Patman and Ian Michler were touched my the Minister’s heartfelt words. Those attending included Senator Lee Rhiannon, Roderick Campbell (author Ecolarge), Matthew Collis (IFAW), Heather Neil (CEO RSPCA Australia) amongst many others.
Andrew Harvey
Author, Mystic, Teacher, Founder of Sacred Activism
As everyone now knows the wildlife of our beautiful earth is now tragically endangered and hundreds of species are vanishing every month in the orgy of greed and destruction that our civilisation is seemingly addicted to. This is a tragedy of immense proportion which every decent person and everyone that has ever responded to the beauty of an animal or the love of a pet must feel as a permanent ache in their heart.
This would be awful enough to warrant massive action on a massive scale, however, the great sages of humanity and the shamans of all indigenous traditions have also warned us that by endangering the wildlife of creation, we also endanger the wild life inside ourselves, that natural, instinctual, unfettered passion for life and energy of survival and celebration that are amongst our most precious gifts.
This foundation For the love of Wildlife, started by Donalea Patman, is one I support with the whole force of the global movement of sacred activism behind it. For I know that it is from the divine animal side of us that we find the passion to stand up for compassion and justice and I know too that if we continue to savagely disrespect and ravage creation and its creatures we will unleash unstoppable forces both inside and outside us that will ensure our destruction. I pray that all people of goodwill, power and wealth will support the humble and heroic work of this foundation and so help humanity come into this unity with its inner and outer world.
Andrew Harvey
Institute of Sacred Activism
Author – The Hope, Radical Passion
www.andrewharvey.net
Ian Michler
Internationally Respected Conservationist, Investigative Journalist, Safari Guide
I have got to know and work with Donalea Patman from For the Love of Wildlife (FLOW) over the last 18 months through a mutual friend and colleague. This came about after Donalea viewed a short fundraising promotional clip for an upcoming documentary on predator breeding and canned hunting in South Africa. Shocked and outraged, she contacted Jason Wood, her local Member of Parliament to view the footage. Since that day, she and Jason have become an integral part of the campaign to have these horrific practices closed down. And history now shows the fruits of their passionate and dedicated involvement; on the 13th March, the Australian government became the first country to take a stand by banning the import of all lion body parts into Australia. For this we need to thank Minister Greg Hunt, Jason Wood MP, Stephan Hartley and Donalea as well as the Australian people who supported them in their endeavours.
To get a full picture of how important this move has been, I need to give some background.
Over the last 25 years, my work across 20 African countries has seen me become immersed in the ecotourism, conservation and wildlife challenges the continent faces. This work has ranged from managing numerous different safari camps and community concessions to owning my own as well as acting as a professional safari guide on untold trips to every destination imaginable, and to my more recent exploits as an environmental photo-journalist and ecotourism consultant.
During this period, the land-use options we use to manage Africa’s protected areas have been one of the core issues to stay with me. In short, this involves the role of trophy hunting: does the killing of large numbers of wild animals have a role to play as a conservation or management tool protecting biodiversity, or as some would have it, the far simpler question; in this day and age, is trophy hunting appropriate behaviour. These questions take on greater relevance with the knowledge that photographic ecotourism plays a far more significant and sustainable role across the continent.
This debate will become more intense in the coming years, especially as science increasingly exposes our close relationship with all other species and the impacts we are having on the planet. However, there is one component to the trophy hunting debate that demands immediate attention and action; the intensive breeding of wild animals under agricultural conditions to be killed in confined areas by trophy hunters.
These practices are particularly prevalent in South Africa where today about 200 facilities are holding anywhere between 6 000 and 8 000 predators, mostly lions in cages or enclosed areas. And these animals will be used for a variety of revenue streams ranging from cub petting and walking with lions to canned hunting, the lion bone trade or traded out to other breeders and collectors.
I have been an outspoken critic of these practices for 15 years and have done this work by writing extensively on the practices, going undercover to get footage, doing untold public presentations and compiling reports for international NGO’s. And it’s all been done with the aim of bringing greater awareness to the general public, the wider conservation community and the government in South Africa with the hope of engineering change.
I must also point out that there have been numerous other individuals and organisations that have been working tirelessly with the same objectives in mind, and I have collaborated with many of them. But the harsh reality is that, barring a short period in 2005/6 when the then Sth African Minister of Environment gave a glimmer of hope that government was willing to try and shut the operations down, we have failed. The numbers tell this story: when I started my investigations in 1999, there was approximately 1 000 predators; by the time I did a comprehensive report in 2005, the numbers had increased to between 3 000 and 3 500 and now we have as many as 8 000 predators in captivity.
The first and only breakthrough we have had in trying to have these practices shutdown has come from the Australian government. And as mentioned, Donalea and FLOW have been instrumental in this momentous step. From the outset, she completely understood the arguments, their context and how important it was to fight this battle in a way that would influence decision-makers.
Her tireless and incisive approach has been a large factor in carrying this issue all the way to the Minister’s desk. On behalf of all of us who have been fighting these practices, not to mention the lions and other predators as well as untold other wild species being bred for the bullet, we owe Donalea a massive thank you.
Ian Michler
Invent Africa Safaris
www.inventafrica.com
Greg Brown's love of wildlife
Greg Brown, one of Australia’s finest chefs has created great tasting granitas with real fruits. Simply add water and freeze!
He has been an international success story, with his restaurants being world class, ambassador for luxury items and his talents have been in demand worldwide.
Being a gourmet chef has always had its challenges. But being a gourmet chef diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is the reason behind this launch.
When Greg was first (mis) diagnosed many of his friends and colleagues thought he had hit the bottle and was a drunk...almost 10 years ago now.
MS does that, it affects the muscles and speech and so you physically wobble and slur. He’s had to fight to stay not only on top of his disease, but to retain his dignity and talent. Due to MS he’s had his businesses taken away from him, he was made a ward of the state (6 years to regain his independence), lost his antique and other rare collections, his family, his friends and hasn’t been able to work for many years. He was in Canberra, Australia when he had a fall, the police picked him up and put him in a cell for two days without his medication all because they didn’t believe he had MS and made the mistake (almost a fatal one) of not listening to him.
With MS it’s best you eat cold food so that your throat muscles stay tight making it easier to speak, eat and breathe. Greg quickly became bored with sucking on ice blocks and with his palette still finely attuned, he decided to embark on developing food for people not only with MS, but with disabilities in general.
Greg has wanted the emphasis to be on flavour using mostly all natural ingredients, that are simple and easy to make (making you the food hero). This range of granita mixes are made from 100% natural fruit. Simply add the granita mix to 600 ml of boiling water and freeze. Once frozen remove and let sit for a short while, stir through with a fork, ready to serve. The portion you don't use just return to the freezer as granita last for months. It’s that easy!
How has protecting wildlife become part of the project?
Greg Brown has always been connected to nature, having been raised on a farm, he is a man of the land. He remembers killing a small animal when he was a kid and that action has haunted him till today.
Greg resides in the beautiful forest of Sherbrooke, Mt Dandenong where he is surrounded by birds, wallabies, wombats and all sorts of wonderful creatures.
Early 2015 he met a woman at a local cafe and became interested in the work she was doing. Donalea Patman is the founder of For the Love of Wildlife which has been created to expose crimes against nature. The first campaign targeting the cruel and barbaric industry of captive breeding and canned hunting of African lions.
After watching the remarkable capacity of this small organisation to accomplish so much in the short period of time he’d known Donalea, Greg realised that Africa’s wildlife is under siege and wanted to be able to contribute in some way.
For the Love of Wildlife has been the catalyst in the Australian Federal Government banning the importation of lion trophies and body parts as a direct response to this barbaric industry...a global first.
Part proceeds of the sale of these granitas goes to supporting our work.
To order these five fabulous flavours, email fortheloveofwildlife@gmail.com - two packets (minimum order) $25, one packet of each is $50, two of each $90 and we'll happily quote for any combination you'd like. Strawberry, raspberry, mango, blueberry and passion fruit...delicious! (Postage additional)
http://fortheloveofwildlife.org.au/
Biography
Greg Brown is one of Australia’s finest chefs.
Author of several books and a myriad of gastronomic awards, owning restaurants and a chain of bakeries, Greg Brown is internationally renowned.
Growing up on a farm in the Western districts of Victoria, Australia where he developed a deep love of the land and animals.
To finance his university study he worked for local restaurants learning to be a cook.
After graduating in psychology Greg realised his real calling was the food industry so he set off for Europe.
His career in gastronomy commenced training under the wing of acclaimed French chefs Raymond Blanc at the Manoir aux Quatre Saisons and Michel Roux at the Waterside Inn. Greg was also fortunate enough to study at Ecole Lenotre in Versailles famed for its Patisserie and Boulangerie (bakery).
Greg’s rigorous training in Europe led to a significant level of knowledge in the food and catering business.
Returning to Australia Greg opened ‘Paysan’, a restaurant that was awarded many accolades including the ‘Restaurant of the Year’ for two years running. His subsequent restaurant ‘Browns’ was also an instant success awarded the ‘Restaurant of the Year’ six months after opening!
Greg continued on with his success as a reputed chef by extending into pastries and breads through a chain of stores ‘Brown’s Bakers of Distinction’.
In early 2000, Greg was diagnosed with a mild form of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and over the next few years suffered a number of personal setbacks, including the loss of his businesses, separation from his family and the onset of the debilitating symptoms.
Although physical limitations have affected his body’s agility his mind, palate and intimate knowledge of ingredients are still working overtime to develop new recipes and mastering his existing 700+ recipes.
