And as always, we could use your help via donations, sponsorships, and spreading the word. You can follow the journey to build this Campus via Ellen’s Journals, social media, and The Ellen Show updates. This Campus is for the Fossey Fund - a separate organization - and it will serve as their first permanent headquarters. Not only do they address all threats to the gorillas - from human illnesses to habitat loss - but they also work closely with the surrounding communities to help assure locals and the gorillas can live together in harmony. We’re going to help the gorillas stay wild, while we humans learn and get inspired on the Campus.įossey Fund: The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund has been doing amazing work for over 50 years to assure Dian’s mission of saving the gorillas. Not a Sanctuary: The Campus has lots of living space for students and researchers… but none for gorillas. In addition, the funds from responsible tourism will support the local community for generations to come. Go2Africa Partners with Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund to Provide Four Immersive Experiences to Aid Gorilla Conservation in 2022. Helps the local community: Yes, people matter, too! This Campus will be a huge investment in the local community, with about 1,500 local jobs as part of the construction - half for women! - and nearly $5 million spent on local labor and materials. (Did you know that most scientific reports on Africa come from outside of Africa - we want to help change that!) We also aim to inspire millions of people to care not just about gorillas, but to take action towards a lifetime of conservation. Why else? In addition to saving the gorillas, we aim to train the next generation of African conservationists. Why? The goal of the campus is to provide the tools to The Fossey Fund to help save the gorillas, while inspiring everyone who visits to cherish gorillas and their conservation. When? The Campus groundbreaking was Februwith a completion goal of 2021, depending upon the weather and many other factors. Buildings include student housing, an education center, research center, conservation gallery, and researcher housing. What? The Campus will sit on 11 acres in Rwanda, with 50,000 square feet of state-of-the-art laboratories, a library, meeting space, interactive exhibits, classrooms, and housing. It’s officially called “The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund,” and we thought we should tell you more: It somehow seems disrespectful to Dian’s memory.The Ellen Fund’s first goal is to help secure a future for wild mountain gorillas by building The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund a permanent home. Note to management: we noticed on our hike that the plaques/markers at Karisoke are in a state of disrepair. It was meaningful for us, having already hiked to Dian Fossey’s Karisoke camp and now the site of her grave. There are fun interactive exhibits too, such as a game on how well you can imitate gorilla sounds (my husband has the gorilla happy sound mastered)! Interesting, informative, educational, and you can comfortably visit in a few hours or less. We loved the replica of Dian’s cabin, and the Gorilla Hall of Fame describing some of Dian’s favorite gorillas. It took 55 years for the Fund to have their first permanent home in Rwanda! The Ellen Campus is located adjacent to Volcanoes National Park, convenient for visiting after park activities. From 2 tents in the forest at Dian’s Karisoke camp, today’s facility represents a state-of-the-art research and learning center. Opened in June 2022, the Ellen Campus continues the conservation effort started by Dian Fossey in 1967. Don't miss this, especially if you want to see the 360 degree theater experience of trekking to see a mountain gorilla family. The entire complex is a model of conservation and environmental stewardship with regenerative wetlands, green roofs and native plants covering the entire landscape. It is an exquisite space, respectfully and beautifully designed to fit into the landscape and showcase Dian's life as well as interactive exhibits that will thrill both kids and adults alike. It pays homage to Dian Fossey, her work and her legacy of saving the mountain gorilla from extinction. They ask for a $20 donation to enter the Cindy Broder Conservation Gallery. The Fossey Fund is still responsible for funding the operations of their organization.and their budget has grown significantly with the opening of this magnificent campus. Please note that Ellen made a sizeable donation towards getting this new campus construction off the ground. I was able to spend several hours on the Ellen Campus of the Fossey Fund.
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