Have you seen the oscar-nominated documentary VIRUNGA yet? You should! It is a film with the tense drama, tear-jerking emotion and spectacular imagery of a Hollywood blockbuster, but it is fact not fiction. It features the courageous men and women (and their families) that protect the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo …
Category Archive: Stories from the Field
Jul 31
Celebrate World Ranger Day 2014
World Ranger Day on 31 July celebrates the remarkable men and women who work to protect our endangered wildlife and threatened ecosystems. With the illegal wildlife trade burgeoning, poachers and smugglers are better funded and have more sophisticated weapons. threatening wildlife and rangers alike. An estimated 1,000 rangers have been killed in the last 10 …
Jul 14
A home away from home in Lombok, Indonesia
In our latest vEcotour experience Dr. Helena Baird’s beautiful “home away from home” in Indonesia as she volunteers with vEcotourism’s partner, marine protection organisation JARI “Volunteering in a developing country is more than just the work itself” Helena explains, “it’s an entirely immersive, challenging and uplifting experience. I have almost been in Indonesia for six …
Jun 30
Get ready for the Kwita Izina gorilla naming celebrations in Kinigi, Rwanda with vEcotourism.org
On 1st July 2014 Rwanda will host the tenth annual ‘Kwita Izina’, a gorilla naming ceremony for each born in the Volcanoes National Park during the year! This year, if you are not able to attend, take a guided virtual tour (vEcotour) with primate expert Ian Redmond during last year’s event when he was given …
Jun 18
Get up close and personal with wild red colobus monkeys on Zanzibar
vEcotourism ambassador Ian Redmond recently touched down on the beautiful island of Zanzibar for a 24-hour whirlwind visit. Trekking through the island Ian encountered various interesting landscapes which vEcotourism will shortly be shaping into a full-fledged multi-pano, multi-hotspot vEcotour. As a taster, we have put together a quick vEcotour of Jozani Forest in Zanzibar’s only …
Jun 16
Help launch the good ship Yosina and protect threatened Indonesian marine ecosystems
Encompassing the greatest diversity of coral reefs and fish in the world, the unique Coral Triangle area between Indonesia, Philippines and Papua New Guinea faces serious threats from pollution, trawling and drift-nets as well as damaging and illegal cyanide and dynamite fishing. Seeing the destruction for themselves, in 2001 the Chimp-n-Sea Wildlife Conservation Fund (vEco’s …
Jun 11
vEcotourism engages with Ugandan students at Makerere University
Ugandan vEco blogger and photographer, Mark Olokotum (a.k.a. Mark O!), broke new ground this past Friday, June 6th, as he introduced students of the Department of Biological Sciences at Makerere University, Uganda, to the wonders and possibilities of vEcotourism. Introduced by vEco Tour Guide and Content Developer, Jackson Efitre, Mark O dazzled the group with …
May 30
Helena’s first vEcotour: JARI HQ, Lombok, Indonesia
vEco is proud to present the first ever vEcotour from JARI volunteer, Dr. Helena Baird! As you will see from the tour Helena is no doubt as talented a panoramic photographer as she is a marine ecologist. “JARI, or “Juang Laut Lestari”, is a small but fiercely motivated locally-run NGO based in Lombok, Indonesia” explains …