The end of the Year of the Gorilla?
Jan 1, 08:53 PM

In 1959 George Schaller ventured into the habitat of mountain gorillas in the volcanic Virunga Mountains. There he and his wife Kay lived in relative isolation studying the mountain gorillas for an entire year. Dr. Schaller penned his experience in a lovely book entitled “The Year of the Gorilla.”

In 2009 UNEP (United Nations Environmental Programe) adopted the same name to focus media attention and conservation for all species of wild gorilla. The finite nature of the campaign has been a double-edged sword. On one side UNEP has focused singular attention on threats facing wild gorilla. As an artist and conservationist the Year of the Gorilla was far too short. It took me a few months to find out about the campaign and a couple to get involved and then a few more to navigate bureaucracy and at about at month nine and ten did I figure out the best ways to move artwork and reach people. It has been an enormous learning experience, one that I hope to repeat in the future. Working with Ian Redmond and traveling to Germany were certainly highlights, but I hope the cause behind the Year of the Gorilla will not be limited to the year 2009 alone. I hope UNEP’s efforts will have jump-started a continued campaign of gorilla protection and conservation in the wild.

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