A big THANK YOU from all of us at GCF and from all giraffe in Africa. Giving Tuesday and the start of the holiday season has been a busy time and also a fantastic fundraising success. So, we would like to take this opportunity to thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for standing tall with us for giraffe! We would not be able to do what we do without your generosity and support.
And, if you have not given yet, don’t worry – there is still time to make a difference!
The holiday season is meant to be a time of joy and of spending time with people who are important to us. With so much negativity in the world right now, it is important to focus on these little pockets of happiness. While war and conflict dominate the headlines, when values and morals do not seem to matter much anymore, giraffe can still bring a smile to our faces and some light to our hearts. And knowing that there is a community of people out there who are determined to do good – for giraffe and our planet – certainly gives us hope.
With your help, our passionate GCF team is making a difference for giraffe and here are just a few examples of how we are doing this.
Together we are a voice for giraffe.
What is new?
Twiga Tracker Update: Akagera & Masai Mara
The Twiga Tracker initiative is the largest GPS satellite tracking study ever conducted on giraffe. By tracking almost 500 giraffe of all four species in 17 African countries, we have collected an incredible amount of data that helps us and our partners to save giraffe and their habitat. Most recently, we added two more populations to our long list of tracked giraffe. Together with the Kenya Wildlife Service, the Wildlife Research & Training Institute and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute we pioneered GPS satellite tracking of giraffe in the Masai Mara National Reserve and adjacent conservancies. It is the first time that endangered Masai giraffe are tracked remotely in the increasingly busy landscape of the Greater Masai Mara Ecosystem. Read more here.
In another first, and in collaboration with African Parks, we deployed trackers in Akagera National Park in Rwanda. There is much to learn about giraffe movements and how these iconic animals use their habitats in these very divers ecosystems and the data will inform the development of effective long-term conservation strategies. Read more here.
Impact Reports: NW Namibia & Uganda
In a forever faster moving world, few people are taking the time to read detailed and long reports. As an action-focused organization, GCF has taken this to heart, and we are moving towards impact reporting. Check out our latest two impact reports for Northwest Namibia and Uganda, which give you a brief overview of giraffe numbers and our conservation actions.
Uganda supports the largest populations of critically endangered Nubian giraffe in the wild and since 2013 we have partnered with the Uganda Wildlife Authority to monitor and conserve these giraffe. The numbers speak for themselves.
In NW Namibia, GCF runs the longest-running giraffe conservation monitoring programme in Africa. We continue to learn more about giraffe, their movements and how they use their habitats. Have a look at the distance Jackson walked in a year – he sure is an explorer! – and find out how many new calves we have spotted.
Aerial Survey in Chad
Last year, a new previously unrecorded population of giraffe was discovered in the Koundjourou area in Chad. In an aerial survey of the region, conducted in partnership with Wings for Conservation, the team spotted 51 critically endangered Kordofan giraffe and various other wildlife species that hadn’t previously been recorded in the area. With only 2,300 Kordofan giraffe left in the wild, this is an important discovery.
KEEP & Outreach
There is always room to do more and better! Our Namibian environmental education team has worked incredibly hard this year and has taken over 3,200 Namibian children into the bush for a fun-filled, educational day to experience nature. However, determined to reach and inspire even more young people, we raised funding to print and distribute our GCF Nature Workbook to primary schools all over the country. The first print run of 10,000 copies of this valuable education resource has already been distributed and we are now printing more.
We need your help!
Game Farms in South Africa
GCF is conducting a detailed assessment of giraffe in RSA to gain a better understanding of their conservation status, including distribution, abundance and taxonomy. No matter if there are 100, one or no giraffe at all on your property, we would love to hear from you. Your contribution will help the conservation of giraffe in South Africa and throughout the continent.
Be a voice for giraffe and please complete this short survey.
