A two part series about Danielle's visit to the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Part I: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Kigoma, Tanzania
I arrived in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania excited to catch a flight to Kigoma, a region in the northwestern part of the country to visit a Jane Goodall InstituteTanzania project working with small farmers to promote sustainable agriculture. Unfortunately Precision Air, one of only two airlines that flies to the remote region, has suspended all flights for the next several weeks and the other airline is all booked. It’s the first major hiccup after traveling for the last month, so I really don’t have anything to complain about.
I did get a chance, however, to meet with JGI staff here in Dar and learn more about their work not only in Tanzania, but all over the world.
Pancras Ngalason is the Executive Director of JGI Tanzania and he explained how the Institute has evolved since it began in the 1970s. They’ve gone, according to Ngalason, beyond research to address questions of livelihood.
JGI started as a center to research and protect wild chimpanzee populations in what is now, thanks to their efforts, Gombe National Park. But in the early 1990s JGI realized that if it didn’t start addressing the needs of the communities surrounding the park, their efforts to conserve wildlife wouldn’t work. JGI first started by planting trees in the region, but soon found that communities cut them down, not because they wanted to, but because they needed them for fuel and for making charcoal. It was at that time, says Ngalason, that we "thought beyond planting trees" and more about community-based conservation.
JGI started working with communitiesto develop government- mandated land use plans, helping them develop soil erosion prevention practices, agroforestry, and production of value-added products, such as coffee and palm oil. They like to say that their products are "Good for All" —good for farmers by providing income, good for the environment by protecting natural resources, and good for the consumer by providing a healthy product.
They’re also working training community health practitioners about reproductive health and HIV/AIDS prevention, educating youth, establishing micro-credit programs, and working with UNICEFand USAIDto supply clean water to communities.
"These are services," says Ngalason, "people require in order to appreciate the environment," and ultimately helps not only protect the chimps and other wildlife, but also helps build healthy and economically viable communities.
Part II: Building Roots in Environmental Education
After my initial disappointment of not being able to travel to Kigoma, Tanzania to visit the Jane Goodall Center’s projects in Gombe National Park—thanks to mechanical problems on Precision Air —I decided that there was still a lot to learn about the Institute’s work at the Dar headquarters. Nsaa-Iya Kihunrwa, the Director of JGI’s Roots and Shoots program, explained further how the Institute’s work has evolved over the last 15 years.
JGI first started working with school children in the early 1990s through Roots and Shoots, a program that trains students and teachers about conservation. They’re striving, according to Mr. Kinhunrwa, "to create a generation of conscientious adults" who care about the environment.
Through Roots and Shoots, JGI has worked with the Tanzania Ministry of Education to train teachers to use environmental themes in their classrooms. When children are learning about fish and other foods, for example, teachers are now using experiential learning—taking kids to fish markets, for example—to identify breeds and varieties and talk about conservation. These new ways of learning help students make the connections between what they eat and the health of the planet.
These skills will help train the next generation of farmers, teachers, laborers, and businesspeople in Kigoma and elsewhere in Tanzania not only to be more aware of environmental issues, but to also become conservationists and help preserve wildlife and biodiversity in the area.
You can view this post and others at the Worldwatch Institute's Nourishing the Planet blog.