HELPING PEOPLE SAVING GORILLAS 2 019 ANNU AL RE PORT FOSSEY At the beginning of the decade, there were just 880 mountain gorillas in the world. And community forests in Congo were nonexistent, leaving the majority of Grauer’s FUND 2010 gorillas without any formal protection. We launched our work to conserve community forests in Congo to help save Grauer’s gorillas. The Nkuba ConservatIon Area started with six DECADE 2 2012 families and 700 km of forest. IN 2014 Grauer’s gorillas were named 2017 We celebrated our 50th one of 25 Most Endangered Primates. anniversary, making us the world's longest-running and largest 2016 Fossey Fund trackers received organization dedicated entirely REVIEW Disney Conservation Hero Award. to gorilla conservation. Mountain gorillas were reclassified from critically endangered to endangered— 2019 one small step further from extinction. We celebrated 2018 the retirement of tracker We launched a campaign to Jonas Nubaha, 2018 create our first permanent home in who has been Africa, The Ellen DeGeneres Campus. with the Fossey Fund since Dian herself was at The decade closed with the news that the mountain gorilla population had reached Karisoke. 1,063. We almost doubled the size of the Nkuba Conservation Area to 1,300 km2. Thank you, Jonas, 2019 And we grew our field sta by almost 60% for your lifetime of since 2010. work in support of the gorillas of the Virunga. As we enter a new decade, we salute you, the people who help us change the game for gorillas. Your support enables us to be on the ground every single day ensuring a future for the species. It inspires our determination to improve the communities that surround gorilla habitats and to develop the next generation of scientists in Africa. We are FROM steadfast in delivering Dian Fossey’s vision to save gorillas from permanent extinction. We can celebrate our accomplishments and milestones because of the commitment THE and investment of our supporters. You help make this lifesaving work happen. As you review our annual report, you will see not only factual and financial updates, but more importantly, the impact you have had. Our collaborative approach helped mountain FUND gorilla population numbers continue to climb, and completely halted the poaching of Grauer’s gorillas in the community forests where we work in Congo. Our scientific studies are enhancing our understanding of how the changing climate affects the gorillas and the larger biodiversity of the region. And we continue expanding our work on the human side of conservation—in 2019 we increased our livelihood and food security initiatives with the aim of lessening pressures on the gorillas and their forest homes. Helping People, Saving Gorillas. This remains our focus and is, as you can see, yielding impressive and measurable results. We often refer to those early days when Dian made it her mission to save the mountain gorillas, setting up two small tents in the heart of the Virunga mountains—just one woman, determined to make a difference. Today, over 50 years later, more than 200 researchers, trackers and conservationists continue her work. The building of our first permanent home, The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, is underway in Rwanda. It is a symbol of our long-term commitment and, when finished, will be a center for conservation, education and inspiration. Our successes are real, but they are fragile. We must continue to push forward in our relentless pursuit to protect gorillas and the biodiversity of their habitats, and to support the communities that surround them. Together, we will continue to change the game for gorillas and, ultimately, for us all. We hope you enjoy reading about how you helped make a dierence in 2019. Judith C. Harris Tara Stoinski, Ph.D. Chair President and CEO Board of Trustees Chief Scientific Ocer PROTECTING GORILLAS, SAVING OUR PLANET Mountain gorillas are one of the world's few conservation success stories, growing from a few hundred individuals in the 1980s to their current numbers of more than a thousand. But news from around the planet is troubling. We are concerned about climate change, which is a very real threat to the gorilla populations we work to protect. Indeed, we’ve already seen differences in mountain gorilla habitat that are indicative of climate change, such as fluctuations in temperature and rainfall. These shifts can affect the gorillas’ food supply, cause thermal stress, increase the chances that they lose habitat to forest fires (as we saw during 2019 and beyond in Australia), and enable the emergence of new diseases for which the gorillas have little or no immunity. Climate change is also likely to have a significant effect on the human populations living near the gorillas, which in turn puts more pressure on the gorillas themselves. For example, as food and water supplies of local human populations are affected—such as in a drought that reduces crop yields—the already considerable pressures on the forest as a source of food and water are likely to increase even further. To save the gorillas, we need to look beyond the gorillas. We need to protect the fragile ecosystems of the forests and mountains where gorillas live and raise their young. And we also need to advocate on behalf of the gorillas' forest homes, which are literally the lungs of our planet and one of our best natural defenses against climate change. During a time when our planet’s species and fragile ecosystems are under threat, the gorilla conservation story gives us hope. We remain steadfast in our commitment to ensuring a future for gorillas, their habitat and the communities that surround them. In 2019, the Fossey Fund continued to build on our partnerships with neighboring communities so that gorilla populations remain healthy and their future remains secure. Baby gorillas love to play. Top left: Baby Uhiriwe swings from a vine. Bottom left: Baby Umukuru gnaws on his vine. Right: Up close and personal with 15-year-old Ishyaka of the Mutobo group. OUR Gorillas we monitor were injured or killed by human-related causes such GORILLA ZERO as poaching or snares. PROTECTION Acres of gorilla BY THE habitat protected: 350,000 Person hours spent protecting gorillas NUMBERS 150,000 and their habitats. The increase in the gorilla population shows that our people-centered approach to conservation is working. We provide daily gorilla protection in Rwanda and Decline in snares found in the the Democratic Republic of Congo; conduct scientific research on the gorillas areas we monitor in Rwanda, and larger biodiversity of the region; train the next generation of conservationists which we attribute to the in Africa; and help local communities thrive, for effective, sustainable success of our programs 40% targeting suspected poachers. conservation. Number of years our sta in the field has (combined) in service 1,300 to gorillas. In 2019, we were thrilled to have 10 surviving babies amongst the groups we protect in Rwanda. Top left: Kira, Top right: Sururwanda. Bottom left: Kira. Bottom right: Inararibonye. Successful conservation is made possible by solid scientific research. For more than 50 years, the Fossey Fund has been the leader in the field, studying all aspects of gorilla biology and the ecosystems in which gorillas dwell, contributing enormously to what we know about gorillas. Our Karisoke Research Center acts as a hub for researchers and students from around the world, whose findings advance our knowledge about these magnificent creatures and help us to better protect them and their habitat. For conservation to endure, we must also equip new scientists with the skills they need to succeed, which is why we continue to grow and expand our work training the next generation of African conservationists. 2019 SCIENCE AND TRAINING HIGHLIGHTS • In Rwanda, we added five new scientific staff, including three gorilla research assistants, one biodiversity research assistant and a post-doctoral student. • In Congo, we created our first biodiversity team to monitor plant and animal diversity in the forests where we work. • In collaboration with the Rwandan government, we expanded our research to include three new mountain gorilla groups to better understand behavior, feeding and ranging patterns of gorillas living throughout Volcanoes National Park. • We initiated studies of golden monkeys in Gishwati National Park—a completely different habitat from nearby Volcanoes National Park. These data will help us develop the first action plan for golden monkey conservation, which is being led by our own Deo Tuyisingize. • Our researchers worked with more than 50 collaborators to author 24 scientific papers on topics such as how gorillas grieve, factors influencing male reproductive success, gorilla habitat use and population growth patterns, amphibian and bird conservation, and bamboo regeneration patterns. • Our scientific work was featured in popular press outlets such as Smithsonian Magazine, Forbes and the Associated Press. • We supported 22 students from the University of Rwanda to conduct in-depth studies for their senior theses. • 313 Rwandan undergraduate students participated in our undergraduate field courses. • We offered internships to 24 recent university graduates to provide on-the-ground training. • 33 staff members received support to pursue their undergraduate and graduate degrees. “The Fossey Fund's program to train young African scientists is more than wonderful, useful, and helpful; it created in me a conservation spirit, it increased in me the desire to protect the ecosystem.” Eric Ndasyishimiye Former University of Rwanda student “We are thankful to you for your support. From this project I received two sheep and also got to participate in a sheep raising training, which helped me understand how to care for my sheep. I wish to earn some income from the sheep from selling manure and ospring and to stop relying on poaching for money when I need it." Fidele Hakizimana Community member In 2019, more than 20,000 people were helped by our community programs.