Partnership + progress
Photo © Bonobo Conservation Initiative In June of 1998, Sally Jewell Coxe and Alison Mize launched the Bonobo Conservation Initiative along with a small group of bonobo enthusiasts.
Twenty-five years later, what started as a brainstorming session in a living room in Washington, DC has evolved into a movement in the DRC with hundreds of communities engaged. Together with our Congolese partners, we have established the Kokolopori Bonobo Reserve and the Sankuru Nature Reserve—and the Bonobo Peace Forest continues to grow! All of this incredible progress is thanks to you.
Photo © Bonobo Conservation Initiative 25 years and counting … 25 years and counting
Photo © Kokolopori Bonobo Research Project As we reflect on the past 25 years, we are laying the groundwork for the next 25—and beyond!
We've been hard at work preparing the Bonobo Peace Forest for sustainable financing using the UN's REDD+ carbon credit framework. REDD+ means that the local communities will directly benefit from protecting their forests and wildlife. We are so excited for this new chapter in the Peace Forest story!
Today, we celebrate all we've accomplished so far:
Establishing two nature reserves spanning 9 million acres of rainforest
Pioneering a new paradigm for community-led conservation in the DRC that is replicating on its own
Raising awareness about the importance of our sister species in the DRC and around the world
And we’re only getting started!
But we're only getting started! Now it's all about growing and sustaining the Bonobo Peace Forest and working together to ensure that bonobos will be with us for generations to come.
Thank you SO MUCH for making this milestone possible. Your support makes the world safer for bonobos and all who share their rainforest home.
Most of all, we give thanks to the bonobos themselves, who provide never-ending inspiration—and show us humans that it is possible to live in peace.
Tokolonga elongo! Together, we will win