The snow leopard（雪豹）is one of the world's most secretive animals. They have been officially protected since 1975, but many continue to be killed for their fur and body parts, worth a large amount of money. In recent years, though, conflict（冲突）with local herders（牧民）has also led to a number of snow leopard deaths. This is because the big cats kill the herders ‘animals, and drag the bodies away high up in the mountains to eat. As a result, the population has dropped. The only way to stop it and bring these cats back is to make them more valuable alive than dead.
The organization Snow Leopard Conservancy India Trust has started Himalayan Homestays, a program that sends visitors to herders' houses. For a clean room and bed, meals with the family, and an introduction to their culture, visitors pay about ten U. S. dollars a night. In addition, the organization helps herders build walls that keep out snow leopards. In exchange, the herders agree not to kill snow leopards.
In Mongolia, a project called Snow LeopardEnterprises（SLE）helps herder communities（社区）earn extra money in exchange for their promise to protect the endangered cat. SLE buys animal products from herding families and sells them abroad. Herders must agree to protect the snow leopards and to encourage neighbors to do the same. If no one in the community kills the protected animals over the course of a year, the program members are rewarded with a 20 percent bonus in addition to the money they've already made. An independent review found no snow leopard killings in areas where SLE operates. Today, the organization continues to add more communities.
Projects like the Homestays program in India and SLE's business in Mongolia are doing well. Though they cover only a small part of the snow leopard's homeland, they make the leopards more valuable to more people each year. If these programs continue to do well, the snow leopard may just have a fighting chance.
