For those of you reading my latest blog, please don't worry. I am safe and the police are not targeting the general population. I live in an area that is pretty safe and although sporadic shots are being fired outside my office, the people around me are remaining calm and don't seem too worried which makes me feel better about the whole situation. Its hard to describe this feeling that despite the danger, life goes on. Its such a cliche but its true. What can you do but keep working, keep eating, keep sleeping? Even mundane things happen during extroardinary times. The plumber just called to tell me he found the problem with the water and he's going now to the main market to find the replacement parts. And the electricity just came back so I can send this via internet. This makes me so happy! Life goes on!
I know much of you have images of other war torn African countries but those are not representative of the situation here. In this case, it is a few desperate people crying out for change rather than an organized rebellion like currently in Tchad. If things ever progressed to that level I would leave.
The chanting for the afternoon prayer has begun at the mosque across the street, a welcome sound to counter the noises of guns and violence. I pray that the police too will kneel to the East, and ask Allah to hear their cries and provide respite. Inshallah! (If it pleases God)
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Mutiny! Pass It On
Last week it was the military, this week its the police...next week will it be the people? That is the question running through my head as I hear shots being fired not far from the office. Junior officers revolted a few weeks ago causing panic throughout the capital, looting gas stations and stores, and killing at least 4 people with stray fire and hurting many others. Higher up officers were taken hostage and the city became paralyzed. Gas stations quickly closed leaving most people without transport. Stores were shut and market stalls abandoned. I luckily had gone to the supermarket a few days before and stocked up on pasta and canned goods, and I was able to find one small store open to buy water and milk and other perishables. The mood was tense. From my balcony I could see red lights from larger ammunition fired from the barracks in the downtown area and realized how different and scary it is when you're not watching these lights on TV but they are in front of you in the distance.
The soldiers were mainly in the suburbs in their barracks but there were other soldiers in the downtown section who were also shooting random shots as well as larger ammunition. They had blocked the main entrance to the downtown and were shooting up in the air to deter people from entering the city. They were demanding that their salary arrears be paid, in the amount of 5 million guinean francs, (about US$1000 each), that their comrades be released from prison, that the price of rice (the main food staple) for all soldiers be diminished and that they get an upgrade. Their demands were met. Now, its the police's turn.
As I was heading into town to retrieve my visa extension from immigration so that I could legally stay in the country (what irony) I passed by the main police headquarters and heard shots fired, and saw people running out of the compound. The rest of the city however was functioning normally. At the immigration they told us to leave, that they were closing their offices, due to the police strike that had just been announced. What is so shocking is that life here continues on as normal and what with the soldiers striking a few weeks ago, and the national 2 month strike of last year where protesters were shot dead in the streets, people now seem almost blase about the current events. After the immigration office, I went to look for cloth to cover my couch, and hoped that the police would quiet down after letting off some steam. It seems unimaginable when reading about protests and demonstrations and shots being fired that life would continue on as normal but there I was shopping for fabric as if nothing was out of the ordinary, worrying about the lack of running water in my apartment building and hoping that tonight we would get the electricity early.
There are so many things to worry about, with the most important being daily survival, that such actions by the police seem to just be one more thing to add to the long list of problems that this country faces. After 3 weeks without running water in a 4 floor apt building, (I'm on the second floor) I too am beginning to understand the frustration and anger that will drive people to the streets to demand a humane and decent way of life. I will probably never truly understand the depth of desperation that will bring people to the point of willing to die for change but that was the motto last year of the youth who led the demonstrations demanding the removal of the president, regular electricity and water, and REAL CHANGE.
A minimum of 100 people died last year during the state of emergency that was imposed by the government after people were demonstrating. A curfew was put into effect and most people stayed in their homes for one month, venturing out only to get some food and water. Soldiers routinely invaded people's homes, stealing their belongings and raping women. Many other soldiers looted stores and terrorized people in the streets. When the unions, who were leading the nationwide strike, led a major demonstration march through the city, soldiers fired into the crowds, and those behind the wounded and dead caught them and carried them along with the wave of thousands upon thousands of protesters.
I am always interested in what sparks such mass protest. When is enough enough? In the case of Guinea, it was the release of one of the most corrupt men in Guinea by General Conte, who is the "elected" president. His good friend, a major businessman, had finally been charged with corruption charges and put in jail and then was released by the President. This launched a major uproar from the general population, which led to the major union groups calling for everyone to strike against the government. Throughout the country, stores, offices, everything was closed and government offices were looted and burned. After the initial protests, the General, named a new Prime Minister to lead a new government, which was one of the demands of the unions, but he named a close friend to the post, which set off another round of protests and mass demonstrations. Finally, the President named a consensus Prime Minister, and things calmed down, however this new Prime Minister, one year later has been a major letdown. He was completely ineffectual in achieving any meaningful change but rather heartily took part in the corrupt system and about a month ago he was sacked. A new one was named and this is what caused the soldiers to mutiny against the new government, since their requests from last year to the consensus Prime Minister now had to be heard with the latest PM.
Conte has been President since 1984 and has let this country degrade to the point where people have not had electricity and/or running water for the past 5 years in certain parts of the capital. He has enriched himself and his friends and openly prides himself on his corrupt ways. For those of my generation who grew up in the West, it is hard to imagine a country going backward, slowly disintegrating and falling apart, but that is what it seems to be like. Why this is happening is complex: corruption, instability in the region, demographic growth continually out pacing economic growth, colonialist heritage, etc etc. What is clear is that people are fed up, and they wonder what their brothers died for last year.
As oil and food prices continue to rise, the desperation will continue to increase. Oil prices rose 60% here last month from the fixed government price that had kept oil prices low but was causing friction with IMF policies and wreaking havoc with the exchange rate. Food and transportation prices rose accordingly. Now one of the poorest countries in the world has become even poorer.
The shots continue outside my office. I am still amazed that we continue to work, to cook, to move about while this is going on outside. The police protests are not as bad as the soldiers who were much more heavily armed and greater in numbers so I am not too worried. What makes me anxious is what will happen afterwards. If the military start reigning in the police, despite the fact that just a few weeks ago they were the ones rebelling, it could cause major strife between the civil society and the military and government. Most people hate the military for what they did last year. If the police are now against them, the situation can only worsen. I'm trying to stay optimistic that this rebellion will be quelled by meeting the demands of the police which, to no one's surprise, are identical to the soldiers, ie payment of salary arrears etc. However, what happens next? The government cannot meet the demands of the people so what will the people do? I fear they will want to finish what they started last year and through any means achieve the change they so desire.
The soldiers were mainly in the suburbs in their barracks but there were other soldiers in the downtown section who were also shooting random shots as well as larger ammunition. They had blocked the main entrance to the downtown and were shooting up in the air to deter people from entering the city. They were demanding that their salary arrears be paid, in the amount of 5 million guinean francs, (about US$1000 each), that their comrades be released from prison, that the price of rice (the main food staple) for all soldiers be diminished and that they get an upgrade. Their demands were met. Now, its the police's turn.
As I was heading into town to retrieve my visa extension from immigration so that I could legally stay in the country (what irony) I passed by the main police headquarters and heard shots fired, and saw people running out of the compound. The rest of the city however was functioning normally. At the immigration they told us to leave, that they were closing their offices, due to the police strike that had just been announced. What is so shocking is that life here continues on as normal and what with the soldiers striking a few weeks ago, and the national 2 month strike of last year where protesters were shot dead in the streets, people now seem almost blase about the current events. After the immigration office, I went to look for cloth to cover my couch, and hoped that the police would quiet down after letting off some steam. It seems unimaginable when reading about protests and demonstrations and shots being fired that life would continue on as normal but there I was shopping for fabric as if nothing was out of the ordinary, worrying about the lack of running water in my apartment building and hoping that tonight we would get the electricity early.
There are so many things to worry about, with the most important being daily survival, that such actions by the police seem to just be one more thing to add to the long list of problems that this country faces. After 3 weeks without running water in a 4 floor apt building, (I'm on the second floor) I too am beginning to understand the frustration and anger that will drive people to the streets to demand a humane and decent way of life. I will probably never truly understand the depth of desperation that will bring people to the point of willing to die for change but that was the motto last year of the youth who led the demonstrations demanding the removal of the president, regular electricity and water, and REAL CHANGE.
A minimum of 100 people died last year during the state of emergency that was imposed by the government after people were demonstrating. A curfew was put into effect and most people stayed in their homes for one month, venturing out only to get some food and water. Soldiers routinely invaded people's homes, stealing their belongings and raping women. Many other soldiers looted stores and terrorized people in the streets. When the unions, who were leading the nationwide strike, led a major demonstration march through the city, soldiers fired into the crowds, and those behind the wounded and dead caught them and carried them along with the wave of thousands upon thousands of protesters.
I am always interested in what sparks such mass protest. When is enough enough? In the case of Guinea, it was the release of one of the most corrupt men in Guinea by General Conte, who is the "elected" president. His good friend, a major businessman, had finally been charged with corruption charges and put in jail and then was released by the President. This launched a major uproar from the general population, which led to the major union groups calling for everyone to strike against the government. Throughout the country, stores, offices, everything was closed and government offices were looted and burned. After the initial protests, the General, named a new Prime Minister to lead a new government, which was one of the demands of the unions, but he named a close friend to the post, which set off another round of protests and mass demonstrations. Finally, the President named a consensus Prime Minister, and things calmed down, however this new Prime Minister, one year later has been a major letdown. He was completely ineffectual in achieving any meaningful change but rather heartily took part in the corrupt system and about a month ago he was sacked. A new one was named and this is what caused the soldiers to mutiny against the new government, since their requests from last year to the consensus Prime Minister now had to be heard with the latest PM.
Conte has been President since 1984 and has let this country degrade to the point where people have not had electricity and/or running water for the past 5 years in certain parts of the capital. He has enriched himself and his friends and openly prides himself on his corrupt ways. For those of my generation who grew up in the West, it is hard to imagine a country going backward, slowly disintegrating and falling apart, but that is what it seems to be like. Why this is happening is complex: corruption, instability in the region, demographic growth continually out pacing economic growth, colonialist heritage, etc etc. What is clear is that people are fed up, and they wonder what their brothers died for last year.
As oil and food prices continue to rise, the desperation will continue to increase. Oil prices rose 60% here last month from the fixed government price that had kept oil prices low but was causing friction with IMF policies and wreaking havoc with the exchange rate. Food and transportation prices rose accordingly. Now one of the poorest countries in the world has become even poorer.
The shots continue outside my office. I am still amazed that we continue to work, to cook, to move about while this is going on outside. The police protests are not as bad as the soldiers who were much more heavily armed and greater in numbers so I am not too worried. What makes me anxious is what will happen afterwards. If the military start reigning in the police, despite the fact that just a few weeks ago they were the ones rebelling, it could cause major strife between the civil society and the military and government. Most people hate the military for what they did last year. If the police are now against them, the situation can only worsen. I'm trying to stay optimistic that this rebellion will be quelled by meeting the demands of the police which, to no one's surprise, are identical to the soldiers, ie payment of salary arrears etc. However, what happens next? The government cannot meet the demands of the people so what will the people do? I fear they will want to finish what they started last year and through any means achieve the change they so desire.
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Outamba Kilimi National Park
As promised, I am now posting a positive experience of being in West Africa. While in the remote Northwest region of Sierra Leone I got to go visit the Outamba Kilimi National Park. The park is home to elephants, duikers, antelopes, monkeys, chimpanzees, and hippos among other things. I was fortunate enough to visit the Park twice and see hippos!
I also saw a cute little monkey eating a mango 
and some gigantic ants that form a highway of sorts. 
The park is located close to one of the communities where I am working and where we did the last workshop so the second time I brought some of the workshop participants, who came from further away and had neve been to the Park before.
They were very happy to see the hippos and had a fun time. 
The weather turned at the end of our visit and a huge storm rolled in...made for some dramatic pictures.
Walking around in the forest and seeing wild animals and huge trees or swimming in the ocean and seeing wildly colored fish and corals, these experiences are some of my most enjoyable and memorable. Visiting Outamba Kilimi National Park and seeing hippos swimming about is definitely one such occasion. Visiting the Chimp Sanctuary and seeing chimps, although not totally in the wild, was also a memorable experience. Being in the forest of the sanctuary, where the only noises are natural ones, was calming and beautiful. It is for this that I come to Africa and for this that I work to try to help protect these natural resources. It makes it all worth while...(until of course some new gross thing happens to me and then I wonder what I'm doing here!)
Do Not Scroll Down if Squeamish!!!
When I think of West Africa, I think of the beautiful nature and wonderful music, the warm and lively people. However the reality is all that and much more...the day to day life here is hard, not just for the poor, struggling to eke out a living on a dollar or two a day, but for anyone. The heat, the illnesses, the dirty cities, lack of electricity and running water, all make for a sobering experience. A few weeks ago, my life was at a low point. I had been travelling for a month straight, hitting three remote regions in Guinea and one in Sierra Leone plus visiting Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone. I was exhausted. When I say remote, I mean the middle of nowhere...the area I went to in Sierra Leone is called Tambakka. It is not too far from the border with Guinea but the roads are so decrepit that it takes about an hour and a half to drive (in a 4X4 truck) twenty miles. There are quite a few river crossings where you have to literally pull yourself across on a barge (see pic) and crevices in the road so deep that only a heavy duty truck can pass through.
Yet time and time again, I see old recylced cars, packed to the brim with people, animals, sacks of rice etc. traversing this crazy terrain. More often than not, I see these cars stuck either with engine failure or some other car trouble and people lying about waiting for a passing truck to take them (this can take days) or for the car to be fixed and then they can continue on their way (this can take days too). The patience that is necessary to live and survive here is enormous! Everything is more difficult.
Just going to buy some food at the market is an exercise in strategy. How to avoid the muddy market floors which double as drainage for the flow of water from all the rain, while looking at the produce, and haggling with the vendor...its stressful, there are tons of people pushing to get by through narrow corridors of stalls.
But the worst part of living here is the illnesses that exist. I haven't had malaria yet as I'm taking anti-malaria pills but the digestive issues are problematic. Fever and nausea coupled with the flip flop constipation/diarrhea, this occurs all the time. Its almost impossible to pinpoint what causes it...could be something I ate or drank. All vegetables have to be washed with a bit of diluted bleach to kill any bacteria. And then you have to contend with the mosquitos and other gross things that seem to find their way into or onto your body. If you are squeamish, do NOT read on! A few weeks ago, I found two big pimple like buttons, one on my butt and one on my side by my ribs. After a few days they started to really sting and turn white. I asked around and someone finally figured out what it was....WORMS GROWING IN MY BODY! EEEEEWWWWW!!!!!
I had had my clothes washed while in one of the remote villages and apparently, while clothes are hanging outside, flies deposit eggs that then find their way under your skin and grow into little white worms. That is why everyone here irons their clothes because the heat will kill any eggs that have been laid. The flies seem to know which articles of clothing are underwears and bras to inflict the maximum pain and suffering. Anyway, the first picture above was the worm in its developmental stage and here is what came out...the white worm thing next to the keys. That's how big it was!!! SO GROSS!
This was quite painful as the worm eats your flesh to grow into its final stage. That was what I felt as stinging. When the worm is in about day 2 you can feel it moving and then after about 4 days it starts to want to come out. That is when you carefully squeeze it out. The whole thing has to come out or else it will burrow further into your skin and then you have real problems!!!
This problem was then followed a few weeks later by a trail of big pink dots that ran down my ribcage on one side. I feared it was the worms again but since the worms show up only as one pimple like thing in the beginning this had to be different...someone guessed it could be the urine from a spider that leaked down my stomach...YUM!
All this to say, the realities of living in Africa are harsh and sometimes painful!!! But there are positive things to being here, like anywhere there are plusses and minuses...the fun exciting things will be in the next posting!
Friday, June 29, 2007
Interesting Developments
I've now been in West Africa for two months and have been very busy travelling in both Guinea and Sierra Leone. I have also been busy in Conakry trying to establish an acceptable living situation. As I'm staying here for about three and a half months, instead of the intended three weeks, I had to find an apartment and I finally did so a few weeks ago. With a stroke of amazing luck, I found a small house in a very quiet and calm neighborhood. The latter is almost impossible to find here as everyone lives outside...they cook, clean, hang out, play outside while making as much noise as possible it seems. Anyway, I only have one neighbor who is an elderly lady and her daughter and grand-daughter and they are nice and peaceful. 
I even have a view of the ocean from my small terrace which is a big bonus!
And after having travelled five days out of each week for four weeks straight I got to get some relax time in by going to the islands just off the coast near Conakry. Although it rained, it was nice to be in a boat, sleep on the beach and have a barbecue. Unfortunately, on the way back we had to stop to pick up a young kid that had sliced his pinky finger almost completely off...it was literally hanging by a thread of skin...our boat was faster than the one he was on so we took him with us back to the city. I can officially say the sight of blood does not make me faint but it was difficult to see him in such pain. 
I even have a view of the ocean from my small terrace which is a big bonus!Other developments are that I was finally able to see some chimpanzees!! I went to Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, and visited a chimp sanctuary, where captured chimps are taken before they can be re-introduced into the wild. They are kept in large forested areas enclosed by electric fences until they can form social groups that would allow them to sur
vive in the wild. A lone chimp cannot survive very long in the forest and needs a family of sorts to protect onself and to gain territory where it can live.
vive in the wild. A lone chimp cannot survive very long in the forest and needs a family of sorts to protect onself and to gain territory where it can live. 
And after having travelled five days out of each week for four weeks straight I got to get some relax time in by going to the islands just off the coast near Conakry. Although it rained, it was nice to be in a boat, sleep on the beach and have a barbecue. Unfortunately, on the way back we had to stop to pick up a young kid that had sliced his pinky finger almost completely off...it was literally hanging by a thread of skin...our boat was faster than the one he was on so we took him with us back to the city. I can officially say the sight of blood does not make me faint but it was difficult to see him in such pain. 
On a lighter note, during my many bumpy road trips throughout the interior of the country I have seen some interesting sites...the craziest perhaps was a recycled sedan packed with people inside and on top of the roof of the car, loaded with many other baggages, driving down a bumpy road at night, with the driver holding onto a FLASHLIGHT thru the windowless front of the car! I did a double take when I saw that one.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Why Are Chimps Important?
I've learned quite a bit about chimpanzees and their importance to humans while working on this project. Some of the stories about chimps told by the para-biologists and villagers are incredible! The latest story I heard was that chimps are liked by pastoralists (cattle owners) because when a cow is about to give birth, if chimps are nearby,they will "notify" a nearby village by making loud vocalizations that attract the attention of villagers. They also stay near the cow until humans come to protect it while its at its most vulnerable state. 
I also heard a story about how a male chimp literally jumped in front of a female to protect her from a hunter who was aiming his gun at her. Chimpanzees are 98.4% the same as humans. They have emotions similar to our own and use tools for gathering food. They are important to the health and survival of forests as they disperse tree seeds and help in forest regeneration. They are also an indicator species of habitat health. Today, the chimpanzee population is in the thousands and threat of extinction is real! They are only found in Africa and Guinea has one of the highest populations of wild chimps but this means only a couple thousand exist. It is difficult to estimate entire populations of chimps as they are not static animals but it is clear that they are severly threatened due to loss of habitat (farming and forest fires from slash and burn agriculture practices), capture for sale to foreigners (both for zoos, scientific purposes and also for pets) and the bushmeat trade.
I also heard a story about how a male chimp literally jumped in front of a female to protect her from a hunter who was aiming his gun at her. Chimpanzees are 98.4% the same as humans. They have emotions similar to our own and use tools for gathering food. They are important to the health and survival of forests as they disperse tree seeds and help in forest regeneration. They are also an indicator species of habitat health. Today, the chimpanzee population is in the thousands and threat of extinction is real! They are only found in Africa and Guinea has one of the highest populations of wild chimps but this means only a couple thousand exist. It is difficult to estimate entire populations of chimps as they are not static animals but it is clear that they are severly threatened due to loss of habitat (farming and forest fires from slash and burn agriculture practices), capture for sale to foreigners (both for zoos, scientific purposes and also for pets) and the bushmeat trade.
Knowing where chimps exist is based on what they leave behind, notably nests, dung, and knuckle prints. Chimps build new nests every night out of leaves and branches that they place in trees. The picture at right is of a day old nest. My guide was one of the para-biologists. He took me on his motorcycle deep into the bush to try and see chimps. Its very difficult to actually see them as they are very weary of humans and can detect them coming from a long way off. We rode on the motorcylce for about an hour on tiny goat tracks with major crevices and holes and tried to avoid as many branches as we could. 
I am not the best bicycle or motorcylce rider and so i was definitely a bit out of my comfort zone but we finally arrived at the base of a mountain and began our search. After two hours of climbing up and down steep slopes of two mountains, we saw at least 15 nests and some prints but no chimps. As the sun was starting to set, my guide needed to pray and so we left the forest and headed back to the village. Most of Guinea's population is muslim and so they must pray five times a day, starting at around 6 am as the sun rises and ending at around 7 pm as the sun sets.
I am not the best bicycle or motorcylce rider and so i was definitely a bit out of my comfort zone but we finally arrived at the base of a mountain and began our search. After two hours of climbing up and down steep slopes of two mountains, we saw at least 15 nests and some prints but no chimps. As the sun was starting to set, my guide needed to pray and so we left the forest and headed back to the village. Most of Guinea's population is muslim and so they must pray five times a day, starting at around 6 am as the sun rises and ending at around 7 pm as the sun sets. As we arrived in the small village at the base of the mountain, we were informed that chimps had just been heard on the third mountain over. So at least I was in their midst!!! I'm going to keep trying but I think the best way to see them will be to camp out in the mountain for a few days near a water source or near fruit trees. 
It is currently mango season and about 75% of trees here are mango trees due to the fact that villagers protect them as they are an important food source. Chimps love to eat mangos too so its a good time to try to find them by hanging out by mango trees. I can't tell you how many mangos I've eaten but let's just say a lot! They are so abundant they're literally rotting on the side of the road. Everyone and their grand mother is selling them, eating them, carrying them in bowls on top of their heads.
It is currently mango season and about 75% of trees here are mango trees due to the fact that villagers protect them as they are an important food source. Chimps love to eat mangos too so its a good time to try to find them by hanging out by mango trees. I can't tell you how many mangos I've eaten but let's just say a lot! They are so abundant they're literally rotting on the side of the road. Everyone and their grand mother is selling them, eating them, carrying them in bowls on top of their heads. Fruit gathering, as well as water and firewood gathering is primarily a female activity, as is child carrying! 
Little girls care for their younger siblings and are seen clutching them to their backs usually wrapped around by cloth. There are children everywhere and how they love to have their photos taken, especially when they realize I have a digital camera and that they can then see themselves. The photo blog will be next!!!
Little girls care for their younger siblings and are seen clutching them to their backs usually wrapped around by cloth. There are children everywhere and how they love to have their photos taken, especially when they realize I have a digital camera and that they can then see themselves. The photo blog will be next!!!So What Am I Doing Here?
I came to Guinea to work on the Chimpanzee Conservation and Sensitization Program (CCSP). 
In addition to an extensive public awareness campaign about the importance of chimpanzees, the CCSP includes a sustainable development component which is what I and my colleague Jim Tolisano are working on along with JGI staff here in Guinea and Sierra Leone. This component has three phases that focus on natural resource management and planning as well as small business development. The areas where we work have high chimpanzee populations that are threatened primarily by loss of habitat from farming and forest fires. 
The goal is for communities to learn how to collect data and analyze information on the state, use and importance of their resources, and to prioritize them so as to better manage their resources for the long term. Additional activities that reduce the agricultural pressure on the land are encouraged through small business incentives.
In addition to an extensive public awareness campaign about the importance of chimpanzees, the CCSP includes a sustainable development component which is what I and my colleague Jim Tolisano are working on along with JGI staff here in Guinea and Sierra Leone. This component has three phases that focus on natural resource management and planning as well as small business development. The areas where we work have high chimpanzee populations that are threatened primarily by loss of habitat from farming and forest fires. 
The goal is for communities to learn how to collect data and analyze information on the state, use and importance of their resources, and to prioritize them so as to better manage their resources for the long term. Additional activities that reduce the agricultural pressure on the land are encouraged through small business incentives. The first phase was a workshop training community leaders (aka para-biologists) and other villagers who had a basic reading and writing skills (very very basic) to collect data on their natural resources using surveys and transects. This occurred in two counties in Guinea and one in Sierra Leone. The para-biologists interviewed people from surrounding villages to find out what resources they use and their overall condition, resources that used to exist but are no longer found, socio-economic data, and also info on chimpanzees. 
They also went into forests and did transects. Last year, I came here for the second phase and lead workshops on how to develop an Eco-Development Plan, which builds on the data they collected and elaborates the natural resource management goals, activities, opportunities, needs and risks of participating communities.
They also went into forests and did transects. Last year, I came here for the second phase and lead workshops on how to develop an Eco-Development Plan, which builds on the data they collected and elaborates the natural resource management goals, activities, opportunities, needs and risks of participating communities. This time around, I am leading workshops in small business development. The project has financing for micro-enterprises and the best projects submitted by the communities will be funded. People working on development or conservation projects are often discouraged due to lack of results, over ambitious projects, lack of funding etc etc. I am very happy and proud to say that I think this project has been successful. In this last workshop, I asked the Para-biologists to tell me what they had done since the last workshop. They elaborated how they had reunited the community leaders of their villages and surrounding villages to discuss the management goals of the community. Having surveyed the land and people, both the para-biologists and the communities had a better understanding of what resources they had and their condition. After discussing the wants and needs of the communities they were able to prioritize the resources important to them and in some cases chose areas to reforest that would serve as chimp habitat. 
Others talked about how the Eco-Development process was in and of itself a type of public awareness campaign and changed people's attitudes about chimpanzees. Still others talked about how the process reinforced linkages between communities and strengthened intra-personal relations. The para-biologists are all agriculturalists and they either farm or have cattle. They all have a direct impact on the land around them and are the only ones that can initiate and enforce change in land use. I'm happy to say that they are doing so despite confronting difficult obstacles. I am optimistic that with the small business and community projects that this will continue with direct benefits to the community as well as to the chimps.
Others talked about how the Eco-Development process was in and of itself a type of public awareness campaign and changed people's attitudes about chimpanzees. Still others talked about how the process reinforced linkages between communities and strengthened intra-personal relations. The para-biologists are all agriculturalists and they either farm or have cattle. They all have a direct impact on the land around them and are the only ones that can initiate and enforce change in land use. I'm happy to say that they are doing so despite confronting difficult obstacles. I am optimistic that with the small business and community projects that this will continue with direct benefits to the community as well as to the chimps.
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