“Good conservation puts people first,” said Jean Marie Vianney Gatabazi, governor of the northern province of Rwanda, as the first shovels entered the ground. “Dian Fossey was Ellen’s hero growing up, and I love the idea of these two powerful women working towards the same goal – the protection of one of our closest relatives, the mountain gorillas.” The new campus will help the gorillas and the surrounding community,” said Portia de Rossi, Director of The Ellen Fund. “The Ellen Fund is so honored to support the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund in their dream of finding a permanent home in Rwanda. Tara Stoinski Fossey CEO, Portia de Rossi, Belize Kariza of RDB “We are especially grateful to the Rwandan government and all the partners who have worked to protect the gorillas and this important forest in Volcanoes National Park and thus helped make this new facility a reality.” From left: Dr. “The new campus truly takes our long and successful legacy in Rwanda into a very exciting future,” says Fossey Fund President and CEO/Chief Scientific Officer Dr. “I am so proud that as our team and programs at Karisoke continue to grow and succeed, that we are finally able to build a permanent home for this important gorilla conservation work,” says Felix Ndagijimana, who heads the Fossey Fund’s programs in Rwanda, after first joining as a research assistant in 2004. Also in attendance were some 200 guests, including national and local officials from the Rwandan government, Fossey Fund staff and board members, community leaders, local organizations and other partners. Portia de Rossi attended the event on behalf of herself and Ellen DeGeneres. Full construction on the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, named in honor of a lead gift by American celebrities and conservationists Ellen DeGeneres and her wife Portia de Rossi, is planned to start this summer, with completion expected in 2021. Now, work has begun on a transformative new space for our 130 staff in Rwanda, our daily gorilla protection and research programs, and our outreach to more than 14,000 Rwandans each year through education training, and other community programs. Our Karisoke Research Center was founded by Dian Fossey in 1967, starting with just two tents in the forest, and has operated from impermanent and inadequate spaces ever since. 12, 2019, marked one of our most important yet, as we broke ground on a new permanent home for all of our activities in Rwanda. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund is the world’s longest-running and largest organization dedicated solely to gorilla conservation, and has seen many historic milestones over the years.
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