Restoring forest ecosystems in equatorial Africa

Protecting ecosystems also means preventing the transmission of diseases between wild and domestic animals, and sometimes even between animals and humans: so-called zoonoses. In Uganda, our teams are hard at work fighting rabies, a disease that is still too prevalent in rural areas.
👉🏽 Our latest campaign in the communities of Kiko, Kasenda and Reteera means:
✅ 248 dogs vaccinated in 3 days
✅ Free vaccination for local residents
✅ Strong local mobilization, with a central role played by children in raising awareness
Despite the intense rains, the mission protected human and animal families from this deadly disease.
An initiative designed to reduce the risk of zoonotic disease transmission between domestic animals, wildlife and humans. 🌱 This work is part of our global commitment to a better future between humans, animals and nature.

Dear Difteur-ses,

65 years ago, on July 14, 1960, Jane Goodall, then aged 26, arrived in what is today Gombe National Park in Tanzania.

Her mission, to observe and better understand our closest living relatives: wild chimpanzees.

Armed with a pair of binoculars, a notebook and an unwavering passion for animals, Jane set out on a journey that would revolutionize science and our relationship with animals.

Her approach was revolutionary for its time: she gave chimpanzees names.

With a great deal of patience, she discovered that chimpanzees, to fish for termites, made and used tools (which at the time was the very definition of Man). Jane also discovered that chimpanzees could be carnivores and practiced warfare, overturning established beliefs.

This was the beginning of a new era in primatology! This study of the Gombe chimpanzees continues to this day, thanks to your support. In tribute to these discoveries, we celebrate World Chimpanzee Day every July 14.

The young girl with a passion for animals has now become an environmental activist who stops at nothing. At 91, she never ceases to deliver her message of hope for a peaceful coexistence between humans, other animals and our shared environment.

Thank you for your support!

At Difteur-ses,

As you know, everything is interconnected in the living world: humans, other animals and our environment.

At the Jane Goodall Institute we believe that women have a full role to play in preserving ecosystems.

We are very proud of our programs to promote women's empowerment around two axes:

- access to health and health education: education, family planning, feminine hygiene items.

- awarding scholarships reserved for young girls.

We know that when girls have access to education and healthcare, they can take their future into their own hands. This not only improves their well-being, but also contributes to the reduction of natural resource consumption and the sustainable development of communities.

In Uganda, for example, we help young girls to improve their health, education, reduce gender inequalities and seize economic opportunities, while engaging communities to move beyond personal and immediate needs to focus on future and sustainable needs.

All this thanks to you! Thank you!

Dear Difteur-ses,

In Tanzania, we've been running an ambitious project for 5 years now: restoring and protecting the coastal forests of eastern Tanzania.

During these five years, thanks to the exceptional work of our teams on the ground in Tanzania, we are proud to have:

- Protected and regenerated over 500 hectares of coastal forests.

- Sensitized hundreds of young people.

- Trained farmers in agro-ecology (and thus avoid shifting cultivation).

- Created 25 woodland plots of around 1 hectare each to guarantee an alternative source of firewood (5 woodland plots per village).

- Strengthened village forest patrols by reactivating village natural resource committees.

All this thanks to your support, thank you!!

Dear supporters,

Thanks to your support, the Jane Goodall Institute continues its global approach in Burundi, putting local people at the heart of its actions.

In 2024, awareness-raising and protection efforts led to a major breakthrough: for the first time in 30 years, no bush fires destroyed the vegetation of Mount Ganza in 2024! A victory for the environment and local communities.

Thanks to you!

Dear difers,

As you know, man, animals and our shared environment are interconnected.

Restoring the equatorial forest in Africa therefore also means fighting against wildlife trafficking and collecting poached animals. 🌳

This is how our teams in Congo took in Mozambique, a young female gorilla from the western plains.

His rescue, the fruit of close collaboration between local authorities and NGOs, bears witness to the explosion in poaching. 🛟

Our Tchimpounga sanctuary, historically specialized in chimpanzees, has all the expertise to enable Mozambique to rebuild for the first 2 years before she joins her people in a center dedicated to gorillas. Her resilience and gentleness are an inspiration to us all!

Dear difteurs,

We look forward to this new year by your side! Especially as the next planting season is about to begin.

In the meantime, thanks to you, the inhabitants of several Burundi villages in the Mont Ganza region have been offered fruit trees for their own consumption: 2,000 avocado seedlings (the species chosen by most of the inhabitants, who will be able to resell the unconsumed harvest surplus) have been distributed.

This is also what protecting biodiversity is all about: accompanying local populations for sustainable development that benefits everyone. Thank you!

The whole Jane Goodall Institute France team sends you its best wishes ✨

Cher difteurs,

A few weeks ago, Jane Goodall was at Unesco in Paris for an exceptional conference: Speech For History.

Following in the footsteps of Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II and Claude Lévi-Stauss, she delivered a Word for History. In front of numerous officials, scientists and activists, she stressed the importance of our conservation projects in Africa.

Together we can build a better world for future generations!

For proof, in the regions where we intervene thanks to you, deforestation is receding. By helping us to protect forests, you are protecting biodiversity and participating in the development of local populations.

Dear captains, in addition to protecting the Mont Ganza community forest, our project involves ensuring the continuity of the ecological corridor necessary for the genetic diversity of the local fauna.
Thanks to you, we were recently able to maintain 2 kilometers on the edge of the Vyanda nature reserve, one of the last refuges for chimpanzees in southern Burundi.
Thanks to you, every member of the community lives in harmony with their natural environment! Thank you.

Dear captains, 
Your support over the past year has enabled significant advances in our project to restore an ecological corridor in Burundi.
Over the past year, you have helped to:

A big thank you for your generosity in creating a better world between humans, other animals and our shared environment!

Successive floods hit our activities during November, December and January. 

The nursery managed by the Jane Goodall Institute France, thanks to your invaluable support, was partially washed away by the overflow of the small Gasango river in the commune of Rumonge.
Thanks to a natural barrier on this river, the majority of the bags were laid down by the torrent and not washed away. We were able to recover and restore them. Nevertheless, around 3,000 of the nursery's 20,000 trees were completely washed away.

On the other hand, further south, in the commune of Nyanza, not far from the border with Tanzania, on the edge of the chimpanzee ecological corridor, a second nursery with 30,000 trees was completely washed away by the overflowing Mushara River. Unfortunately, only around 50 trees were able to recover.

These floods have caused a great deal of damage: to homes, crops, road infrastructure.
Unfortunately, scientists' predictions say that the waters of Lake Tanganyika will reach their highest level in May 2024.
But with the hope of a fairer world for people, animals and nature, we're not giving up!
Thank you for your support dear Captains, thanks to you, our team on the ground has been able to repair the damage of these floods and will be able to ensure the continuity of our action on the ground!!
Together, we can.
Together, we will succeed! 

The materialization of the limits of the last chimpanzee habitats in southern Burundi constituting their ecological connectivity continues. 
Communities maintain nurseries for the production of indigenous trees: so far we are producing 335,000 indigenous trees. 30,000 of these are thanks to the direct support of the Jane Goodall Institute France.
These trees will be used to restore degraded habitats and agricultural plots. Communities are also organizing forest patrol activities to discourage illegal tree-cutting and animal-hunting activities.
Thank you Captains, all this is possible thanks to your support! 

Consultations with local communities and scientists have determined which species will be planted:

- Maesopsis eminii
- Markhamia lutea
- Ficus sp
- Anisophyllea
- Syzygium guineensis
And this on the localities of Nyazalac and Mabanda initially.
What a joy to see this project come to fruition thanks to you! Thank you Captains!

Hello,
Our ambitious ecological corridor project is coming to fruition as planned.
Thanks to the support of the first Captains, nearly 33 hectares of forest will be able to be restored in Burundi! 
Sincerely, thank you!!
As the project has been validated by the country's national authorities, we are currently in contact with the authorities in the various districts to select the best species to sow and plant.
Local populations are indeed at the heart of this project; People, animals and our environment: everything is interconnected!
We look forward to coming back to you with great news to share!
See you soon,
Asante sana!!
The Jane Goodall Institute France team