According to its organizational history, the Maddox Foundation expanded its activities and took on responsibilities connected to the protection of the 60,994-hectare Samlaut forest landscape.

The organization also established an operational presence in Battambang, allowing its activities to become more closely integrated with the communities it intended to support.

Local residents were recruited and trained to participate in forest protection.

Over time, conservation became one of the foundation's central missions, alongside efforts to improve livelihoods and public services.

Maddox Foundation

The scale of the landscape was considerable.

An area covering approximately 61,000 hectares is not simply a small nature reserve or a collection of trees surrounding a village.

It represents an extensive landscape containing a variety of habitats, ecological relationships, and communities.

Forests on this scale can provide important shelter for wildlife, help regulate water movement through watersheds, protect soils from erosion, and store carbon in vegetation and the ground.

They can also connect habitats used by animals that travel long distances in search of food, water, breeding opportunities, and suitable shelter.

However, conservation on such a scale comes with enormous practical challenges.

Patrolling thousands of hectares requires personnel, equipment, training, transportation, coordination, and sustained funding.

Dense vegetation can make illegal activities difficult to detect.

Remote terrain can complicate access.

Environmental threats may change with seasonal conditions, development pressures, and local economic circumstances.

Effective protection therefore depends on far more than establishing a boundary on a map.

It requires an enduring presence on the ground.

The Maddox Foundation has sought to contribute to that presence through cooperation with Cambodian authorities, local residents, and conservation partners.

Its role should not be confused with private ownership of the entire forest.

The Samlaut Multiple Use Area is part of Cambodia's protected-area system, and the foundation's conservation responsibilities operate through partnerships rather than through Jolie personally possessing tens of thousands of hectares.

This distinction is important because protected landscapes are governed by legal, ecological, and community arrangements that extend beyond any individual donor or organization.

Jolie helped make the initiative possible, but safeguarding the region requires continued work by the people and institutions responsible for it.

That shared commitment is one reason the project has endured for so many years.

A Forest Where Endangered Wildlife Still Survives

Forests | WWF

Photo Gallery - Pangolin Specialist Group

Dhole, Asian Wild Dog in the nature

Among the most compelling reasons to protect Samlaut is the wildlife that continues to inhabit its forests.

Cambodia forms part of a region recognized for its exceptional biodiversity.

Southeast Asia contains tropical ecosystems supporting an extraordinary range of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and plants.

Yet many of these species face growing threats from habitat loss, wildlife trafficking, hunting, and the fragmentation of natural landscapes.

Samlaut is no exception.

Wildlife surveys supported by the foundation and conservation partners have documented the presence of important species, including the Asian elephant, Sunda pangolin, and dhole, a wild canine found in parts of Asia.

These findings help demonstrate the ecological value of the forest and the importance of maintaining habitat where threatened species can survive.

Kiripost+1

Asian elephants: giants that need room to roam

Asian elephants are among the most recognizable animals in the region, but their conservation needs are complex.

Unlike smaller animals that can sometimes survive within relatively limited areas, elephants require access to extensive landscapes.

Their movements are influenced by food availability, seasonal water sources, breeding behavior, and the structure of surrounding habitats.

As forests become fragmented by roads, farms, and settlements, elephants may encounter increasing obstacles.

These changes can restrict movement and lead to conflict when animals enter agricultural areas.

Preserving connected forest habitat is therefore particularly important for elephant conservation.

When protected landscapes retain sufficient ecological integrity, elephants have better opportunities to move through suitable habitat and access the resources they need.

Their presence also carries significance beyond their individual survival.

Elephants can influence forest ecosystems through their feeding behavior, movement, and seed dispersal.

They consume vegetation, create pathways, and can help transport seeds across considerable distances.

In this sense, conserving elephant habitat may also support broader ecological processes.

However, the presence of elephants in Samlaut should not automatically be interpreted as proof that every elephant population in the area is secure or increasing.

Conservation success requires continued monitoring of population trends, habitat quality, threats, and long-term survival.

The foundation's efforts contribute to this broader task by supporting forest patrols, biodiversity monitoring, and protection against illegal activities.

Sunda pangolins: vulnerable animals hidden in the forest

The Sunda pangolin is another important species associated with the region.

Pangolins are unusual mammals covered in protective scales made of keratin, the same basic material found in human hair and fingernails.

They feed primarily on ants and termites, using specialized claws and long tongues to obtain insects.

Despite their remarkable adaptations, pangolins are extremely vulnerable to human exploitation.

Their defensive behavior offers protection against some natural predators, but it can leave them defenseless when encountered by people.

Rather than fleeing rapidly, a frightened pangolin may curl into a tight ball.

Unfortunately, this behavior makes the animal relatively easy to capture.

Across parts of Asia, pangolins have been heavily affected by illegal wildlife trafficking, with demand for their meat and scales contributing to serious population declines.

Protecting pangolins therefore requires efforts against trapping and illegal hunting, in addition to preserving their forest habitat.

For Samlaut, the documentation of pangolins emphasizes why conservation work must continue even when animals are rarely seen.

Some of the forest's most important inhabitants may spend much of their time hidden from human observation.

Their survival depends on the protection of the environment around them.

Dholes and the importance of ecological balance

Dholes, sometimes called Asiatic wild dogs, represent another important part of the forest ecosystem.

These social carnivores live and hunt cooperatively in parts of Asia.

Like other predators, they can play roles in ecological relationships by influencing prey populations and animal behavior.

But dholes face challenges associated with habitat loss, declining prey, disease, and conflicts with people.

Their presence in a forest can be an indication of ecological complexity, although a single sighting or camera-trap record cannot establish the health of an entire population.

By documenting wildlife such as elephants, pangolins, and dholes, conservation teams gain a clearer understanding of the species that depend on Samlaut.

This knowledge helps make protection efforts more targeted.

It can indicate which habitats deserve particular attention, where human activities create risks, and where future research may be most valuable.

Ultimately, protecting a forest is not only about preserving an attractive landscape.

It is about maintaining a living network of species whose survival is interconnected.

The Silent Threat Hidden Beneath the Leaves

One of the most dangerous threats facing Cambodia's wildlife does not necessarily involve firearms, heavy machinery, or dramatic confrontations between poachers and rangers.

Sometimes it consists of a thin piece of wire hidden along an animal trail.

Wire snares are among the most troubling forms of illegal hunting equipment found in forests across Southeast Asia.

They are often inexpensive to make, relatively easy to conceal, and capable of remaining in place without direct human supervision.

A snare typically relies on a loop that tightens when an animal moves through it.

Depending on its placement, the trap may catch an animal by the neck, leg, or another part of the body.