Environment & Sustainability

Bonobos - Our Closest Kin GNV-052

Part 2 of our journey to Salonga focuses on Congolese anti-poaching patrols and attempts to wean the local community from the bushmeat trade. In the dramatic conclusion of Salonga: Africa's Biggest Rainforest we focus on Congolese eco-guards and the recent controversy of how they deal with poachers. Rare antelopes, monkeys, and even leopards are all on the menu and unfortunately goods for the commercial market. Conservationists are also trying to wean the local community from the bushmeat trade by promoting a more sustainable way to survive. A film by Olivier Grancher, Katya Katondolo, Andrew Tkach, Patrice Citera. GNV-051 "

Salonga National Park is Africa’s biggest rainforest. Its surface is larger than Belgium, the Congo’s former colonial ruler. An estimated 80,000 elephants once roamed Salonga’s forests. After decades of poaching, only elephants 1,800 remain, but the forest is largely intact GNV travels to the heart of Salonga, to see how rangers and conservationists are trying to save this biological treasure. A film by Olivier Grancher, Katya Katondolo, Andrew Tkach and Patrice Citera. GNV-050

"What are the strategies employed by Watamu’s Turtle Watch to save endangered sea turtles: promote alternative livelihoods in an area that is severely overfished, pay fishermen who return turtles they inadvertently caught in their nets, clean plastic debris from beaches before it's ingested, and relocate turtle nests from heavily trafficked beaches to more secluded spots. It’s part of Turtle Watch’s comprehensive community-based conservation model. A film by Thuku Kariuki. GNV-046

Pangolins are toothless, gentle creatures that feed on insects using their tongue. Unfortunately for pangolins, their protective scales are made of keratin, just like the rhinos’ horns. Used in traditional Chinese medicine, pangolin scales command a black market price of $6000 a kilogram. Up to 2.5 million pangolins are trafficked to Asia every year, where their meat is also considered a delicacy. In Kenya, pangolins can be found in the Massai Mara, Tsavo, and Samburu reserves. But they won’t be around much longer if nothing is done to save the world’s most trafficked mammal. A film by Samuel Waweru & Humphrey Odhiambo. GNV-048

They have a fearsome reputation in Kenya, but crocodiles are now being raised by the tens of thousands for the international skin trade. The Tana River Delta’s traditional communities are allowed to harvest the eggs, which are then grown by Mombasa's and Malindi’s booming crocodile farms. But is the community benefiting from the trade, and who is looking out for the animals’ well being? A film by by Raabia Hawa. GNV-045

They have a fearsome reputation in Kenya, but crocodiles are now being raised by the tens of thousands for the international skin trade. The Tana River Delta’s traditional communities are allowed to harvest the eggs, which are then grown by Mombasa's and Malindi’s booming crocodile farms. But is the community benefiting from the trade, and who is looking out for the animals’ well being? A film by by Raabia Hawa. GNV-049

It’s one of the rarest antelopes in Kenya, uniquely adapted to its watery home. Splayed hoofs and a slick coat allow the Sitatunga to silently navigate through watery swamps and thick reeds. Because Sitatungas are so elusive, no one had managed to capture high-quality films of Kenya’s Sitatunga until this project. Sitatunga is shy and secretive and in great danger. Their future depends on protecting wetlands, which many Kenyans believe are just wastelands. Now one community in Nandi County is trying to protect the Sitatunga to safeguard their own economic future. A film by Margaret Wacera. GNV-039