Ugandan Wild Cat Protector Named 2025 Emerging Conservationist
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The Indianapolis Prize, the world’s leading award for animal conservation, has named Mwezi “Badru” Mugerwa the Winner of the 2025 Indianapolis Prize Emerging Conservationist Award. This honor—only the second given to date—is presented to a conservationist under 40 who has made a significant impact on saving an animal species or group of species. Mugerwa will receive a $50,000 award.
Mugerwa is a Ugandan conservationist and researcher and is the founder and director of Embaka, a grassroots community-based conservation organization focused on the preservation of the African golden cat. He established the first-ever community-based anti-poaching conservation project focused on the African golden cat at Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park in Uganda. Mugerwa also created the African Golden Cat Conservation Alliance (AGCCA), a network of African nationals implementing conservation activities for the African golden cat across the species range. Additionally, Mugerwa serves as the president of the Society for Conservation Biology’s Africa Region and is the president-elect for the Society for Conservation Biology Global.
Mugerwa began studying the African golden cat through research using camera traps, where he captured a black and white image of an unknown animal in the forest. At the time, the African golden cat was virtually unknown—an elusive species found only in the forests of equatorial Africa. Turning to the community, he came to understand how the wild cat’s primary threat—poaching—was directly connected to the livelihood of local people, as it is often caught in bushmeat snares.
“Having a national park in your backyard is not a burden, it’s an opportunity. That’s the connection we’ve been trying to draw for the African golden cat in these communities,” said Mugerwa. “Once you’re in the communities and you understand the problem: ‘I need money to pay my dentist bills.’ Well, what if I brought you a dentist? Once you explain that, it connects really well. The communities hold the solutions, but if you don’t talk to them, you won’t know.”
Using artificial intelligence to analyze camera trap data, Mugerwa and others working with the AGCCA in 19 African countries are moving toward a standardized model of observation to better study the population of African golden cats across the continent.