Baraza

Category: Albertine Rift Project, Bwindi, Uganda, conservation, wildlifedirect | Date: Jun 16 2009 | By: admin

January this year on one of our visits to Uganda we had the privilege of meeting one of Africa’s leading conservationists. Gladys Kalema Zikusoka, recently the winner of the prestigious Whitley Fund for Nature awards. Her organisation Conservation Through Public Health is one of WildlifeDirects new Albertine Rift Project blogs.

The team and I were immediately captivated by CTPH and decided they would make a phenomenol blog advocating gorilla conservation. On our return to Nairobi we started making preparations for the followup visit conducting a blogging training workshop in Uganda and Rwanda.

Organised with the help of CTPH a 10 hour journey from Kampala, we held a workshop in Buhoma for the benefit of the community members adjacent to the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. An IT centre had already been established by CTPH, run on the ground by David Matsiko. The centre has trained over 150 community members to use computers and navigate their way around the Internet.  This provided an excellent opportunity to train members in the art of blogging and share their experiences and thoughts through a twin blog to the CTPH one Gladys updates. A blog that would be all about the community and the role in gorilla conservation through CTPH.

Our workshop and lodgings were at the CTPH campsite close to the national park.

Alex Ngabirano gave us a tour of the lab where all the samples collected from the field  gorilla fecal samples) by Uganda Wildlife Authority rangers were stored and analysed. After traveling to Uganda and Rwanda Twice now working with organisations doing gorilla conservation and still not having seen one myself I was just as happy to be staring into one of the specimens containing a gorillas lunch from a week ago.

Alex explained how CTPH began it’s work looking into the incidences of disease outbreak in gorillas and comparing it to that of the human population in communities nearby.  It is described in more detail in the introductary post on the CTPH blog.

For more on CTPH keep your eyes on their blog.

Published by Masumi.

Tags: Albertine Rift, Bwindi, CTPH, Gladys Kalema Zikusoka, Whitley Awards, wildlifedirect

One response so far

Category: conservation, wildlifedirect | Date: May 11 2009 | By: admin

Dear Friends

This note is to share with you  some great news. Earlier this year we encouraged Dino Martins, a Kenyan entomologist studying  at Harvard University to apply for a grant from the most  prestigious conservation awards, the Whitley Gold Award. Both Dr Leakey and Paula Kahumbu wrote letter of reference for Dino, and a friend of WildlifeDirect, spent a morning video taping Dino as part of his application.

Dino was shortlisted from 80 candidates and today his proposal will be judged by a panel of experts in London. His proposal is to work with the East African Natural History Society in the Great Rift Valley to and Taita Hills to improve local understanding and awareness of the vital role of insects in the pollination of crops and to encourage more sustainable methods in agriculture to create a better future for people plants and pollinators.

Knowing how amazing Dino is, compelling, enthusiastic, as well as knowledgeable - we are sure that he will win something. Here’s his latest news…

Hi Paula

Just a note to let you know that I am in the UK and just heading in to
the Whitley panel for my interview…

So excited and thanks so much for your input on this - fingers crossed!

Hugs
Dino

We are bubbling with excitement here. Please join us in congratulating Dino for getting this far, and send him your positive thoughts and wishes today right here and on his blog dudu diaries The final announcement will be made on Wednesday evening where Her Royal Highness Princess Anne will present prizes.

Tags: Dino Martins, dudu diaries, Insects, Princess Anne, Whitley, Whitley Awards

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