A PCLG workshop on linking ape conservation and poverty reduction took place in Masindi, Uganda from 15th to 19th November. Around 30 participants from a variety of ape range states in Africa shared their experience on engaging communities, generating income and reducing poverty; visited community enterprises and conservation programmes in the local area; and learned about opportunities associated with REDD, mainstreaming poverty and environment, and forest governance. The group was keen to continue collaborating as a great apes chapter of the PCLG, with ambitions to establish national level chapters in a number of countries. The members identified a wide range of follow up activities at national, regional and international levels from practical work on human wildlife conflict to policy advocacy.

Masindi workshop report

The presentations from the symposium are available to view below.
 

Overviews

'Linking great ape conservation and poverty: Experiences from Africa'
Dilys Roe, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), UK

'Linking great apes and poverty: the case of orangutans in Asia'
Terry Sunderland, Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Indonesia

Theme 1: Engaging poor communities in conservation

'Engaging communities in Cross River Gorilla conservation in Nigeria'
Inaoyom Imong, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Nigeria

'Engaging poor communities in conservation – what works, what doesn’t and why?'
Dominique Bikaba, Strong Roots (SRC), DRC

'Community interventions around the Volcanoes National Park'
Felix Ndagijimana, Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund/Karisoke Research Center (DFGFI/KRC), Rwanda

Theme 2: Income generation and revenue sharing schemes

'Participatory planning and scientific tourism in the Reserve de Faune de Lomoko Yokokala'
Jef Dupain, African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), DRC

'Conserving Uganda’s Productive Landscapes For Ecosystem Services: The Northern Albertine Rift Chimpanzee Corridor'
Lilly Ajarova, Chimpanzee Sanctuary & Wildlife Conservation Trust (CSWCT), Uganda

'Gorilla Conservation and Poverty: Experiences from Bwindi and Mgahinga Conservation area (BMCA), Uganda'
Agrippinah Namara, Consultant, Uganda

Theme 3: Learning from other experiences

'Linking Conservation & Development: emerging lessons from ICDPs in the Virungas'
Giuseppe Daconto, CARE International, Rwanda

'Making community forestry work for the poor: Lessons from Nepal and Tanza'
Tom Blomley, Acacia Natural Resource Consultants, UK

'What works for poverty reduction? Lessons from the development community'
Dilys Roe, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), UK

Theme 4: Linking to “upstream” processes in environment and development

'REDD and REDD+ Opportunities and Overview'
Maryanne Grieg-Gran, International Institute for Envionment and Development (IIED), UK

'Great Ape Conservation and REDD'
Johannes Refisch, UNEP/GRASP, Kenya

'Mainstreaming Environmental Issues into Development: How UNDP-UNEP PEI Uganda did it'
Salome Alweny, PEI Uganda, Uganda

'Forest Governance Learning Group: Overview of the Project'
Tom Blomley, Acacia Natural Resource Consultants, UK

'Uganda Forest Governance Learning Group: Who we are and what we do'
Bashir Twesigye, ACODE/Forest Governance Learning Group, Uganda

'Greg-Foret Cameroon overview and great apes conservation interest'
Eyébé Antoine Justin, IUCN/Central African Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE), Cameroon

'Outline for Field Day Visits'
Charles Erongot, Village Enterprise Fund (VEF), Uganda

Poster presentations

'Reducing Poverty in Communities Sharing a Habitat with Great Apes - Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH)'

'Conservation without Borders: Mountain Gorillas and Livelihoods - International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP)'

'Kibale Fuel Wood Project'

'REMODA'