Vivek Menon founded the Wildlife Trust of India in 1998.
This non-profit organisation works with communities and government agencies to protect wildlife in India, with a particular focus on endangered species and threatened habitats. When it began, it employed just three members of staff and has since grown to become one of the most important Wildlife Trusts in India.
Menon is a well-known wildlife conservationist, environmental commentator, author and photographer, who has a passion for elephants. He has been working in conservation for over 35 years, during which time he has led five NGOs dedicated to environmental conservation issues.
He is a councillor of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), where he is chair of both its Governance and Constituency Committee and its IUCN Asian Elephant Specialist Group. Menon is also a member of the Advisory Board for the IUCN Strategic Initiative on the post-2020 global biodiversity framework, and a member of the Species Survival Commission Steering Committee and the IUCN Conservation Translocation Specialist Group.
IUCN follows a science-led approach to provide knowledge, resources, and initiatives to public, commercial, and non-governmental organisations. This seeks to support the coexistence of society, economy, and nature. The resources supplied by IUCN include data, assessments and analyses, recognised standards, impartial convening fora, and capacity-building tools. The IUCN has over 1,500 member organisations, across 160 countries, and a network of over 15,000 scientists and experts.
In addition, Vivek Menon is the global chair of the Amphibian Survival Alliance (ASA) and has been a senior advisor to the CEO of the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) for over 10 years. He is the winner of the 2019 Clark R Bavin Award, the 2018 Whitley Continuation Award, the 2017 Round Glass Samsara Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2001 Rufford Award. He has written 10 best-selling books, including Indian Mammals: A Field Guide, Wildlife Crime: An Enforcement Guide, and On The Brink: Travels in the Wilds of India.