This week we at Volcanoes Safaris stand shoulder to shoulder with our conservation & tourism partners across Africa who are meeting in Kenya now to address the ivory poaching crisis.
Conservation and tourism are inextricably linked.
Protecting elephants and rhino means protecting jobs; protecting gorillas gives a sustainable income - education even - to remote communities.
The story of a tusk – 28KG / VOI RIVER / 30/5/14 gives a very moving account of one of the elephants whose tusks ended up among the 10,000 being burned this Saturday.
This is why we say elephants, rhinos - and even gorillas, chimpanzees and other animals - are #worthmorealive.
The drivers for poaching, the international networks that fund wildlife crime are the same, regardless of the country or the animal at risk. That is why we must work together, across borders.
"Why it makes sense to burn #elephant and #rhino #ivory stockpiles"
On 30 April Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta will set fire to over 10 tonnes of ivory in Nairobi National Park. This is the biggest ever burning of ivory.
By burning almost its entire ivory stockpile, Kenya is sending out the message that it will never benefit from illegal ivory captured from poachers or seized in transit. However, as the day of the burn approaches, commentators and experts have been lining up to condemn it. Some of the objections put forward are based on wrong assumptions; some deserve serious consideration.
Dr Paula Kahumbu, CEO of Wildlife Direct writes in the UK's Guardian newspaper about the four reasons why it’s the right thing to do.
#worthmorealive #Tweets4Elephants are two trending hashtags to follow on Twitter.
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Uganda: +256 (0) 414 346 464
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Tracking chimpanzees in their natural habitat, as they swing from the branches in the canopy high above the forest floor is nothing short of exhilarating. The chimps effortlessly cross and scamper through the trees above the gorge, and visitors on the other hand must cross the river using natural bridges in order to keep up with the chimps. So although the walk usually lasts only 2–3 hours, descending the steep gorge and crossing the log bridges over the river requires some agility and fitness.
Chimpanzee tracking is also available in nearby Kalinzu, a forest reserve 30 minutes drive from Kyambura Gorge Lodge where there is a community of about 40 habituated chimpanzees.
