Groundbreaking for a Middle Eastern country, long-overdue systematic and dedicated animal and environmental protection work is underway in Bahrain. Under the umbrella of the Animal and Environment Protection Charity Organization (AEPCO), urgent animal and environmental issues have been identified, and protection initiatives started. This is no small matter, in what is ostensibly a third world country when it comes to animal and environmental matters. These issues have been ignored by the ministries for decades, despite repeated attempts by concerned denizens and international experts to improve the situation and galvanise the government into action.