Communities for Red Colobus (C4RC) - Wildlife Ranger Challenge 2023
Communities for Red Colobus (C4RC) is taking on the Wildlife Ranger Challenge to raise awareness of the vital role our 7 rangers play in protecting The Gambia's Ecosystem , and supporting an estimated 300 livelihoods.
My story
Rangers are Africa’s unsung heroes. They hold diverse roles as conservationists, teachers, community support workers, leaders and much more.
The Wildlife Ranger Challenge, organised by Tusk, is a celebration of solidarity, connection and camaraderie for the ranger profession. Culminating on 16th September 2023, the campaign raises vital funds for Africa's biodiversity guardians.
The Communities for Red Colobus (C4RC) project employs seven rangers who are supported by Lamin Saho, the project manager. The ranger team work in the Central River Region of The Gambia and are tasked with securing the largest known population of endangered Temminck’s red colobus monkeys (Piliocolobus badius temminckii). C4RC was developed in 2020 with a vision to build local capacity for primate conservation and to develop community livelihood initiatives to reduce the dependency on forest clearance for charcoal production.
The rangers contribute to a range of activities including research, education and awareness campaigns, primate surveys, forest patrols, the development of red colobus ecotourism and the propagation of native and non-native trees.
Project oversight is provided by Dr Mic Mayhew from the University of Cumbria in the UK and a group of international primatologists who are part of a coordinated effort to restore red colobus species across Africa.
Support from the WRC would secure employment for the rangers, expand the scope and reach of C4RC project and secure a brighter future for red colobus during this vital transition period.
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Introducing Communities for Red Colobus (C4RC)
Aug 2, 2023, 4:10:08 PMLet me introduce you to one of the rarest primates in West Africa, the Temminck's red colobus monkey, and describe the vital work of the C4RC ranger team who have dedicated their lives to protecting this species. The recipe for success is to place the local communities at the heart of all activities and to convince them that they need a healthy resilient forest ecosystem to thrive just as the colobus do. However the Central River Region is one of the poorest areas in The Gambia and historically local people have exploited the forests for charcoal production and timber sales. The ranger team deliver a range of initiatives such as primate ecotourism to generate revenue for the local communities and to offset any losses from protection of the forest. In just three short years the rangers have reversed the fortunes for the red colobus populations and changed community views and behaviours towards the primates. Poaching and illegal logging are now well controlled, a ranger training programme offers employment for local youths and wildlife clubs have been rolled out across all the schools in the project area. As Abdou and his team prepare for the marathon in September, we would appreciate a small donation to meet the ongoing costs of C4RC. £30 would buy Abdou a new pair of walking boots to use on patrol in the forest; £60 would buy a new GPS unit to support research and primate surveys and a generous contribution of £100 would purchase a portable projector to enable Meta and the other C4RC educators to deliver environmental education in our schools and communities. Thank you!
Support a unique conservation initiative empowering and uniting wildlife rangers across Africa.
Apr 27, 2023, 12:17:10 PMWildlife rangers operate on the very frontline of conservation across Africa, routinely making personal sacrifices to put their lives on the line to protect the continent’s magnificent wildlife and habitats. Yet they are so much more than just law enforcement officers: rangers are teachers, community support workers, mediators, researchers and so much more. Unfortunately, resources are not keeping pace with the scale of the challenges they are trying to tackle. For the fourth year running, the Wildlife Ranger Challenge sets out to redress this, by raising critical funding to cover operating costs, including salaries and equipment, for over 10,000 rangers. This will help them protect threatened wildlife and some of the continent's most vulnerable areas, while also protecting communities and securing coexistence with wildlife, as well as providing for their own families.
