By Kate McLetchie | Executive Director
Thank you for playing an important role in conserving Tanzania’s rainforests! We are grateful to all 111 of you who have collectively donated nearly $8,000. Thank you! I have just returned from two weeks in Tanzania where I had the opportunity to visit a range of projects ARC is supporting and meet with local communities.
My travels first took me to southern Tanzania to the coastal villages of Kikomolela and Likwaya where I learned more about the REDD project these two villages and fifteen others in the region are undertaking. Communities are keenly aware of the need to conserve the local forest and are implementing everything from land use plans to fuel-efficient cook stoves to forest patrols to ensure less pressure is exerted on natural forest resources.
Next, my travels found me in the South Ngurus Mountains and Udzwunga Scarp where I learned about various income generating activities these communities are undertaking, including beekeeping, fish ponds, butterfly farms, animal husbandry, farming, and handicrafts. Such activities pay an integral role in conservation, providing local men and women alternative sources of income than traditional ones that strip the forests (i.e., charcoal production, timber extraction, etc.).
I had plenty of time to connect with field officers (TFCG has a staff of fifty-eight, with a majority based in the field) and head office staff in Dar es Salaam. Lots of great ideas generated and plans are underway to support even more conservation projects in 2012, including adding some new projects to GlobalGiving. Stay tuned!
If you would like to read more details about my trip you can check out these blog posts that were written in the field:
On the Road: South Ngurus and Udzwunga Scarp and On the Road: Kikomolela and Likwaya
And make sure to check out the pictures we’ve included with this report!
A reminder that Wednesday, October 19th is GlobalGiving Bonus Day! All donations will be matched at 30 percent. This is the perfect opportunity to let your friends and networks know about your support of this project and encourage them to make a donation (we have just over $2,000 left to raise and are hoping to reach this goal by the end of the year). And if you are looking for additional ways to support ARC please consider making a donation to our new health clinic project in Kikomolela Village that we just launched on GlobalGiving this summer.
Links:
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