Conserving Senegal's Chimpanzees through Education

In case you have not noticed, we increased our funding goal for this project, and I wanted to thank you for all your generosity in helping successfully raise funds that help conserve chimpanzees in Senegal and also contribute to the education and wellbeing of people that live alongside the Fongoli chimps.

I thought I would provide you access to something I recently wrote about someone in Fongoli that really was instrumental to the success of the chimpanzee research project and to the success of Neighbor Ape activities. This summer we lost Mboule Camara, the first field assistant at Fongoli, chief of our small village and native Fongolian. I wrote a personal account of some of my relationship with Mboule and what he meant to the Fongoli project, and I hope you'll read it here:

http://savannachimp.blogspot.com/

In reflecting on Mboule's life as I knew it, I felt as if it were also appropriate to write something about him and the kind of person he was in an update to this project. Mboule exemplifies the friendly and generous nature of almost everyone I have met in rural southeastern Senegal. I could truly not do what I do in terms of chimpanzee research without their aid, and the projects that Neighbor Ape has been able to do in the area in part helps repay such kindness but also is impossible without a community effort. Our relationship also goes such a long way to conserve the biodiversity of the area, and I believe that we have had a good impact on the welfare of girls' education as well.

Thank you again for your generosity!