Chimpanzee Conservation and Sensitization Program (CCSP)

Since August 2005, the CCC has been a partner in the CCSP funded by USAID. The CCSP is a collaboration between the Jane Goodall Institute, Pro Natura, The Humane Society International, Guinée ecologie, the CCC and Tacugama chimpanzee sanctuary in Sierra Leone. Through the CCSP, the director has presented numerous educational workshops on chimpanzee conservation to stakeholders within Government and environmental NGOs, trained environmental educators on chimpanzees’ protection and created a mass media campaign involving billboards, stickers, posters and radio spots, following a validation workshop with all the stakeholders in Guinea. The CCSP is a regional program for Guinea and Sierra Leone. The CCC’s director is acting as program manager for Guinea and the Tacugama chimpanzee sanctuary’s director is acting as program manager for Sierra Leone. The CCC has also been doing interpersonal awareness campaigns in the villages around the PNHN, using sensitization materials produced under the CCSP. These programs were focused on chimpanzee’s protection but also covered environmental education and wildlife laws in Guinea and within the PNHN.

Radio

In 2004, Xavier Dufail, a French engineer working in a recording studio, wrote and recorded with a local artist, Bademba Diallo, four radio spots of three minutes each. It is a catchy tune that addresses logging, habitat destruction, the pet trade, and the bushmeat trade. They were created in French and three local languages, Soussou, Peul and Malinke. It has been broadcast in five rural radios (Kindia, Boke, Labe, Faranah, Kankan), between two and five times a day, every day for three months. The impact of these spots was bigger than expected and we could hear people singing the song when they saw the stickers around. To hear the radio spots, click here.

Stickers

To Kill, Eat, Capture, Buy, Sell or Own a Chimpanzee is ILLEGAL

Stickers with slogans were created and continue to be distributed throughout Guinea. Ms. Rebecca Rose offered to print 500 stickers created by Estelle Raballand that had an image of a chimpanzee behind bars and the slogan "Killing, Eating, Capturing or Buying Chimpanzees Is Illegal" -- all of these stickers were distributed in 2003 and they were in great demand.

Chimpanzees, leave them in the forest!

Additional stickers, funded by the Disney Conservation foundation, were created and distributed in 2004 with the slogans: "Chimpanzees -- Let Them Remain in the Forest" and "Killing, Eating, Capturing, Owning or buying Chimpanzees Is Illegal". Two different kinds of stickers were printed, weatherproof bumper stickers and papers stickers. Both designs were well understood and reinforced the radio message. Guineans are big fans of stickers so we quickly ran out of them. We'll reprint them using some of the available funds left from the USAID grant ($2,000).

Posters and Video Spots on TV

Posters were donated by PASA, which we put up around Faranah (the closest city to the CCC). A 3 min video spot was created over the summer of 2004, based on bushmeat footage used by PASA. The director made 3 versions of it, including an African version targeting the pet trade. Part of the French version was broadcast on national French television in November. The broadcast of the African version on Guinean national television is very expensive and we're hoping to get the funding that will allows us to pay for numerous broadcasts of it. The tape has already been used by another sanctuary, in Cameroon, and shown on Cameroon national television. A friend of the CCC in Guinea is currently undertaking an interpersonal education program in the Guinee Maritime area. She's targeting the bushmeat trade and has also been putting posters all over this region. She's been using PASA's education package as a base for implementing this program.

In 2003, a team of Peace Corps Volunteers working around Faranah will be given materials to use in their villages. If funding allows it, we'll air the bushmeat tape on Guinean television and do a radio campaign. We're hoping to get funding for an education campaign through the bushmeat crisis task force. An education officer needs to be hired and trained.