Saving Bonobos and Lives-Reports From The Field!

BCI has learned through on-the-ground results that our community conservation approach is saving bonobos AND improving lives!

Along with our partners, we are saving lives at the health clinic located within the newly established Kokolopori Bonobo Reserve. Our clinic staff are making a difference for the Kokolopori community. In fact, they just performed the 150th surgery in the past 18 months. Our resident physician, Dr. Pondolo Saidi says, "We are saving lives...we've treated patients for appendixes, caesarian sections, hernias, ovarian cysts, tumors, and prostates."

To learn more, check out eyewitness accounts emailed to us on our new satellite phone from our Director of BCI Australia, Martin Bendeler! He just returned from a field site visit to Kokolopori.

BCI Receives Nkoyi Award for Outstanding Achievements!

BCI was chosen by the Congolese community of the Washington, DC Metropolitan area to receive the Honorary 2009 Nkoyi Merit Award of Goodwill for its "outstanding achievements in community development and nature conservation." The Nkoyi award is normally given to Congolese individuals who have demonstrated achievement in their respective field of work. BCI was selected as an exception to that rule.

The awards ceremony took place on Independence Day in honor of the 49th anniversary of DRC's independence from Belgium. The Congo's Ambassador to the USA, Dr. Faida Mitifu, gave the keynote address to an assembly of approximately 300 Congolese-Americans and expatriates living in the Washington area. BCI Executive Director, Michael Hurley proudly accepted the award.

Selected for excellence by Catalogue for Philanthropy

BCI was honored by the Catalogue for Philanthropy for excellence, innovation and cost-effectiveness. Check out our page on the Catalogue's new website at http://www.catalogueforphilanthropy-dc.org/cfpdc/nonprofit-detail.php?id=5905.

Bonobo Conservation Initiative | Catalogue for Philanthropy - Greater Washington

BCI Flag on the North Pole!

Doug Stoup, an explorer who ventures to the remote regions of the globe, recently took our flag (see photo) to the North Pole. Doug is an advocate for mitigating global warming and climate change. He experienced firsthand that global warming has a drastic unsustainable deteriorating effect on the poles and his planting the flag on the North Pole highlights the fact that protecting the Congo rainforest can reduce climate change and save the planet.

Doug began his extreme adventures back in 1999 when he skiied the highest peak in Antarctica. He was mesmerized by his surroundings of blowing snow over an uninhabitable landscape. His first adventure ignited a passion that he has continued to pursue for 10 years.

Doug is doing his part to educate the public though school programs about the effects of global warming and climate change. He encourages improving the health of our world and its diverse ecosystems, from the home of the polar bear in the Arctic to the bonobos’ tropical forest habitat in the Congo, which are connected through their dependence on the natural environment. Beginning at the grassroots level, he encourages individuals to contact their local government representatives and express their concern for global warming. He also encourages cutting down on the use of personal vehicles and to take advantage of public transportation and carpooling. Even little acts such as buying a reusable water bottle could cut down on waste that contributes to the deterioration of our planet’s health.

BCI would like to thank Doug for his involvement with BCI and commitment to making the world a better place.

Crista Johnson
Development Intern

BBQ for Bonobos, next Sunday, Aug. 9th!

Join the Bonobo Conservation Initiative for food and fun in Washington’s beautiful Rock Creek Park on Sunday, August 9th from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.

The cost is $10 per person and includes food & beverage (vegetarian option available); all proceeds benefit BCI’s mission to protect the bonobo, an endangered great ape, and its rainforest habitat. We are also asking guests to bring a dessert to donate for our bake sale.

Activities at the event will include face painting, balloon animals, masks, puzzles, outdoor games, Congolese music, special appearance by an ape character, and guest speakers from BCI USA and Australia and arctic explorer who took our flag to the North Pole!

Location:
Just follow signs and balloons to Rock Creek Park Picnic Area #2 on Beach Rd. past the Peirce Mill waterfall. See flyer for map. Closest Metro stop is Van Ness. Parking is also available.

Hope to see you there! Please share with friends, family, and colleagues.

Join the Kokolopori-Falls Church Sister City Partnership for Wine and Cheese on July 14th!

The Falls Church, Virginia, and Kokolopori, DRC, Sister City partnership is an innovative community-to-community program, the first of its kind between the US and the DRC. Kokolopori is the site of the Kokolopori Bonobo Reserve. Citizens of Falls Church have provided invaluable support for a micro-credit fund, health clinic, aid for Kokolopori schools, and other important livelihood programs.

You can join the partnership and meet Albert Lokosola, president of the Kokolopori-based partner organization, visiting from the DRC, on July 14 at 7:30 p.m. at Red, White & Bleu on 127 S. Washington St. For $25, you can sample South African wines paired with fine domestic cheeses and converse with Albert Lokasola. Proceeds will benefit programs in Kokolopori. Hurry! Space is limited to the first 40 respondents. Please RSVP to maryll@verizon.net.

For more information on the Kokolopori-Falls Church Sister City Partnership, please visit http://www.kokolopori-partnership.org.

Rescuing Bonobo Orphans & Combating the Bushmeat Trade

BCI and local partners have been the only or the most visible bonobo conservation entities in-situ across a large section of the bonobo habitat. We have therefore been on the front lines of the bushmeat trade, which has led to saving more than a dozen orphaned bonobos—and in the process, educating and forging partnerships with local and regional authorities, who were previously unaware of national and international laws against hunting bonobos.




Our most recent rescue was a bonobo from Monieka (see photo). A poacher caught her and wanted to sell her as a pet. Luckily, our staff on the ground brought her to safety and we sent her to a sanctuary in Kinshasa.