Pangolin defender wins top environmental prize

Beacon of hope: Thai posing for a photo at the pangolin conservation centre at Cuc Phuong National Park. — AFP

A conservationist working to save pangolins from the devastating multi-billion-dollar wildlife trade won a prestigious award for his role in rescuing over a thousand of one of the world’s most endangered creatures.

Highly prized for their flesh, pangolins are seen as a delicacy for the mistaken belief that they can cure anything from impotence to cancer.