WILDLIFE CONSERVATION
: a l l e t n a M a i v Syl
A Personal Journey in Her Continuing Passion for Conservation How a journey to East Africa opened this conservationist’s eyes as to what she could still do for the world and the animals in her care WRITTEN BY RICK MULLER
A
uthentic. It’s a word Sylvia Mantella uses often. It’s usually to describe how she measures a charitable cause to which she may lend her considerable credibility, or how a particular charitable or social cause may resonate with her personally. Authentic can also be used to describe Mantella. She is one of Canada’s leading, most-admired and respected philanthropists, sitting on 13 committees and/or advisory boards. As the chief marketing officer of Mantella Corporation, she also brings her professional expertise to every cause in which she becomes deeply involved, such as children’s issues or her well-known support and
leadership role in promoting Canadian fashion and culture. “It’s not just my name behind something; they’re going to get all of me,” says Mantella in a recent interview with Dolce Magazine. “I like to think outside of the box, creatively, to make sure fundraising events and activities fit the particular charity, as the shoe is not all one size. You must be creative and resourceful just like you must be in marketing and branding because they are constantly changing. I apply those same skills to my philanthropy aspects.” One of her strongest passions is conservation, specifically regarding exotic wildlife conservation, human-wildlife conflict and land conservation. Her love of animals grew from her youth, and in her exacting manner, she remembers her
menagerie well. “I had a hamster, a guinea pig, two dogs and seven goldfish,” she recalls. “And my love for these animals was unconditional, as they just couldn’t wait to see me and be with me, and I felt the same way.” This passion has evolved to become a major centrepiece in Mantella’s life, as well as her family’s, including her husband, Robert. Today, it has had a most-tangible and authentic impact on them. And it all started with a solitary two-toed sloth. While renting a home with her family in Palm Beach, Fla., Robert became acquainted with a man who owned a zoological rescue centre in Miami, and who asked if they would be interested in fostering a young, orphaned two-toed sloth for two weeks as his rescue centre was short-staffed
44 DOLCE MAGAZINE | www.dolcemag.com
SPRING 2019
PHOTOS BY SACHA SPECKER
INTERVIEW BY VICTORIA SCOTT
