The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund will be a permanent, specially designed facility for scientists who are helping to save one of the world’s most at-risk species.
The developments were announced as DeGeneres received a stunning 60th birthday surprise from her wife, actress Portia de Rossi, a gift she said is an incredible support for building the facility in Rwanda. De Rossi surprised DeGeneres, whose birthday was January 26th, during a taping of The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
“I’ve always been passionate about helping animals,” DeGeneres said. “These gorillas are so incredible and so closely linked to us, sharing 98 percent of our DNA. There are only 880 of these majestic creatures left on this planet. I’m beyond excited to get to work with the Fossey Fund to support their work and help protect these amazing animals.”
Rwanda has welcomed the gorilla conservation boost with Clare Akamanzi, the CEO of RDB tweeting, “The Rwanda Development Board welcomes this excellent conservation initiative. We will support the Ellen DeGeneres Wildlife Fund to meet its objectives in Rwanda. Welcome!”
DeGeneres has always said the person she would most like to interview would be Dian Fossey was she alive.
As a girl, DeGeneres devoured every word of a January 1970 cover story on Fossey in National Geographic that detailed how she set up a research camp in the Virunga Mountains of Rwanda in 1967.
Fossey, who named the camp Karisoke, immediately began studying several dozen gorillas, devoting her life to research on their behalf. Karisoke has since become the world’s centrepiece for gorilla research and conservation, producing much of the scientific knowledge about this species.
While not yet finalised, plans for the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund currently call for a multi-acre project in shadow of Fossey’s beloved Volcanoes National Park.
The campus will help expand science, research and conservation activities; enhance educational programs; and engage people from Rwanda and the world to join the effort on behalf of wild gorillas. Its design will include laboratories, classrooms, meeting space, an interactive exhibit focusing on Fossey’s work, and housing for visiting researchers and students.
“Fossey Fund leaders are currently exploring funding options for the rest of the project, which not only will build on our successful fieldwork, but also will strengthen our deep connection to Rwanda as we train the next generation of African conservationists,” reads the statement.
The campus will support the Rwandan government’s strategic priorities, serving as an important hub for the newly established Centre for Excellence in Biodiversity Conservation and Natural Resource Management.
MASS Design Group, which has offices in Boston and Kigali, Rwanda, is designing the campus using sustainable architecture, local resourcing, and environmentally responsible practices.
Fossey started wildlife exploration in Africa in 1963 and later settled in Rwanda’s volcanoes where she was murdered in 1985 from her mountain cabin at the camp but her work continued through the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, which was established by Fossey herself to raise money to support her conservation efforts.
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