Hello and welcome to The Bulindi Chimpanzee & Community Project!
Campaign in brief:
· The forest home of the Bulindi chimpanzees is in imminent danger of being cut down entirely.
· The Bulindi Chimpanzee & Community Project aims to save the forest and promote sustainable coexistence between chimpanzees and local people.
· With support, this exciting conservation initiative will enrich both chimpanzee and human lives!
The Problem
Chimpanzee populations in Africa are plummeting. As human populations grow rapidly, chimpanzees become squeezed into shrinking forests surrounded by people. The Bulindi chimpanzees in Uganda are one such group of imperilled great apes trying to survive under desperate conditions.
This 20-strong group are the focus of a long-term study into how wild chimpanzees adjust to living around people. The findings from this research help us to plan conservation strategies for great ape populations under human pressure. But now their survival is under immediate threat. Local farmers live in poverty and they cut down the forest to plant crops and sell timber. In the past decade the Bulindi chimpanzees have lost more than 80% of their forest home. Without urgent intervention the last remaining forest will also soon be lost. If we let that happen, this precious group of great apes will not survive. Their future is in our hands.
The Solution The Bulindi Chimpanzee & Community Project (sponsored by Friends of CSWCT, a US-based nonprofit organization) offers a solution to this urgent conservation problem. The good news is that villagers want to conserve remaining forests! They know the many environmental services the forest brings, but give two main reasons for cutting it down. First, they need wood for construction and cooking. Second, they need money for school fees so that their children get a good education. Sadly, the best way for them to raise funds is to sell trees for timber and clear forest to grow cash crops like tobacco.
This one year pilot project uses a two-prong approach to tackle this conservation problem head-on:
First, it will provide school tuition fees for children of households with forest remaining on their land, helping them meet one of their main financial expenses. By investing in local children’s education this project aims to empower the next generation of forest stewards, which will benefit both people and chimps.
Second, we’ll raise tree seedlings for woodlots in order to meet households’ future wood requirements, helping to relieve pressure on the natural forest. We’ll also raise seedlings of fast-growing foods that the chimpanzees like to eat, such as figs, to restore and enrich the natural forest.
Participation in the project is voluntary. But to participate, households must agree to conserve the remaining forest so critical to the survival of the chimpanzees. They’ll work with us to enrich local forests by planting the chimp food trees, helping to replenish their wild food supply.
By reducing conflict between villagers and chimpanzees and restoring harmony between them, the survival prospects for the Bulindi chimpanzees will be enhanced immeasurably.
We’re confident this innovative project will have a positive impact, establishing a conservation framework to enable the Bulindi chimpanzees to survive alongside their human cousins. Every aspect of this pilot project will be carefully documented and evaluated. By ensuring its success, we can extend the approach into neighbouring areas to conserve other groups of chimpanzees also in urgent need of help.
Campaign in brief:
· The forest home of the Bulindi chimpanzees is in imminent danger of being cut down entirely.
· The Bulindi Chimpanzee & Community Project aims to save the forest and promote sustainable coexistence between chimpanzees and local people.
· With support, this exciting conservation initiative will enrich both chimpanzee and human lives!
The Problem
Chimpanzee populations in Africa are plummeting. As human populations grow rapidly, chimpanzees become squeezed into shrinking forests surrounded by people. The Bulindi chimpanzees in Uganda are one such group of imperilled great apes trying to survive under desperate conditions.
This 20-strong group are the focus of a long-term study into how wild chimpanzees adjust to living around people. The findings from this research help us to plan conservation strategies for great ape populations under human pressure. But now their survival is under immediate threat. Local farmers live in poverty and they cut down the forest to plant crops and sell timber. In the past decade the Bulindi chimpanzees have lost more than 80% of their forest home. Without urgent intervention the last remaining forest will also soon be lost. If we let that happen, this precious group of great apes will not survive. Their future is in our hands.
The Solution The Bulindi Chimpanzee & Community Project (sponsored by Friends of CSWCT, a US-based nonprofit organization) offers a solution to this urgent conservation problem. The good news is that villagers want to conserve remaining forests! They know the many environmental services the forest brings, but give two main reasons for cutting it down. First, they need wood for construction and cooking. Second, they need money for school fees so that their children get a good education. Sadly, the best way for them to raise funds is to sell trees for timber and clear forest to grow cash crops like tobacco.
This one year pilot project uses a two-prong approach to tackle this conservation problem head-on:
First, it will provide school tuition fees for children of households with forest remaining on their land, helping them meet one of their main financial expenses. By investing in local children’s education this project aims to empower the next generation of forest stewards, which will benefit both people and chimps.
Second, we’ll raise tree seedlings for woodlots in order to meet households’ future wood requirements, helping to relieve pressure on the natural forest. We’ll also raise seedlings of fast-growing foods that the chimpanzees like to eat, such as figs, to restore and enrich the natural forest.
Participation in the project is voluntary. But to participate, households must agree to conserve the remaining forest so critical to the survival of the chimpanzees. They’ll work with us to enrich local forests by planting the chimp food trees, helping to replenish their wild food supply.
By reducing conflict between villagers and chimpanzees and restoring harmony between them, the survival prospects for the Bulindi chimpanzees will be enhanced immeasurably.
We’re confident this innovative project will have a positive impact, establishing a conservation framework to enable the Bulindi chimpanzees to survive alongside their human cousins. Every aspect of this pilot project will be carefully documented and evaluated. By ensuring its success, we can extend the approach into neighbouring areas to conserve other groups of chimpanzees also in urgent need of help.