More about Praveen

Praveen Bhargav has been involved in wildlife conservation activities since 1982 when he co-founded a conservation group called WILPEG which focused on conservation education activities. In 1995, Praveen co-founded Wildlife First, a proactive Wildlife Advocacy group and serves as its Managing Trustee.

Since 1996, Praveen has been part of a core group of Wildlife First volunteers who relentlessly campaigned against iron-ore mining in the heart of Kudremukh National Park. This decade old battle finally led to a land mark Supreme Court Judgment on a petition filed by Widlife First. All mining activities have stopped since December 2005 and the mining lease area is now fully notified and forms part of the Kudremukh National Park.

He has conducted several training programs and workshops for Media persons, Judicial Magistrates, Police, Customs and Forest officers. He has represented Wildlife First on National Board for Wildlife, the highest advisory body on wildlife chaired by the Prime Minister. He has also served on various committees of the Ministry of Environment and carried out field appraisals of Tiger Reserves for the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

Praveen received a Certificate of recognition from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in 1998. The ESSO Honor for Tiger Conservation was awarded in 2001 for his sustained Tiger Conservation efforts. In 2002, an eminent international panel nominated Praveen for the Environmental Leaders Forum hosted by CERC, Columbia University, New York. Praveen was selected to participate in the International Visitor Leadership Program on Public Parks and Conservation by the US Government in 2005. The Sanctuary magazine presented the 2006 Wildlife Service Award for his efforts to protect and secure Karnataka’s wildlife and forests.

Praveen is an advertising professional who contributes a substantial amount of his time as a volunteer to co-ordinate Wildlife First’s conservation campaigns to save precious wildlife habitats in the Western Ghat biodiversity Hotspot. He also writes regularly on conservation policy and issues in the media.