Julia W. is the youth correspondent for muttscomics.com, the website for Patrick McDonnell's MUTTS comic strip. She spent some time in India last summer. Listen in on what she reported to MUTTS. Then check out photos from her time in India by clicking the link at the bottom.

Hello!

I would like to tell you a little about my latest trip to India. It was my fifth trip there. Although every trip is interesting and exciting, this trip was particularly so.

My mom (who works for Sanctuary Asia magazine) and I started off in Delhi. There, we attended the Fifth Bengal Tiger Consultation. This conference was about conserving India's tigers and forests (of which little remains) and how India can help fight climate change.

In the two days of the conference, so much happened! There were many meetings and workshops. Surprisingly, I was not the only kid there. There were many Delhi schoolchildren present at the workshops and participating in all kinds of save-the-tiger activities. Some of them are even members of the Junior Tiger Task Force, which works to save and protect India's tigers. It was really terrific to see other kids participating and asking questions. After all, this is the world that is going to be left for us, and we deserve to have it protected!

Into the Green

It was great to be at the conference, but I was glad when it was time to travel to one of India's national parks. After the tremendous number of people in Delhi, it was like stepping into another world when we entered Sariska National Park. It was incredible to think that all of India used to be like this, and could be like this again.

We spent three days in Sariska. We learned that by 2005 every single tiger in the park had been poached (hunted illegally). It was a terrible truth to realize. A lot needed to be done to find out how it happened.

Sadly, not much has been done to stop it from happening again. But a year and a half ago, three tigers were relocated there from a nearby park. The two females and one male have been radio-collared to try to keep them safe.

We did not see any big cats this trip, but we did see lots of other wildlife in Sariska. Driving through the park we saw herds of spotted deer, many peacocks, wild boar, and jackals.

Protecting the Planet

This trip was incredibly rich in many ways. The conference was very interesting. And meeting and talking to other kids was inspiring. Sariska was beautiful, and considering what it has gone through, it was a privilege seeing it so healthy.

There is still so much to be done to bring the tigers back, but the forest itself was alive and green. I hope everyone values the earth that we live on, and sees how precious it is. We need to do everything in our power to protect it and the animals we share it with. By protecting where we live and who we live with, we're also protecting ourselves.