Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund
Ellen DeGeneres’ long-awaited dream, of opening a gorilla fund campus, comes to reality in February 2022, after the campus commences and opens up for the public visit. This has been her dream charity work, towards gorilla conservation. Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund is located in Kinigi region, just at the outcast of Volcanoes National Park, which is roughly 2 hour’s drive from Kigali city, which is the habitat area for the gorillas, the major tourist attraction for Rwanda, as majority of tourists come to Rwanda, for gorilla trekking.
This has been Ellen’s dream offer, and this came over, after her Rwanda gorilla safari visit four years ago, as a surprise vacation offer, by her wife, Portia de Rossi, gifted the daytime host with a gorilla conservation center to celebrate her 60th birthday.
On getting to know more about the gorillas, and their conservation, this struck her minds, and made her think more about the gorilla’s future and their well-being. This was a life changing safari in her life, and she decided to do something special towards the conservation move. She did not do this alone, however, with a lot of support from many donors, and her show, she managed to raise funds for the project.
The gorilla conservation move, has lasted for more than 50 years, the Fossey Fund has been working to help conserve wild gorilla populations and support the people who share their forest home. It started with two tents that our founder, Dian Fossey, erected in the forest in 1967, but now has grown to a bigger institute.
The spread is named the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund after the late American primatologist and conservationist.
“Dian Fossey has always been a hero of mine, and so it’s been the honor of a lifetime to support this project,” DeGeneres said in a press release sent to The Post.
“To see my name alongside hers on the walls of this beautiful campus, and to know I’m doing my part to protect endangered gorillas and continue Dian’s legacy, is simply amazing.”
This is not just a campus, but more of an institute of awareness towards culture and nature conservation.
Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla, includes three main buildings—the Sandy and Harold Price Research Center, the Rob and Melani Walton Education Center, and the Cindy Broder Conservation Gallery—as well as housing for visiting students and researchers. The Ellen Campus will serve as a gateway to conservation for the many stakeholders with whom we work, helping to create the next generation of conservationists.
“From the outset, the mission of this project has focused on creating a space to engage the many stakeholders in conservation—students, scientists, tourists, conservation partners, community members—to advance our collective goal of saving gorillas and more broadly, the planet. It is our hope that people who visit the Ellen DeGeneres Campus will leave inspired to make a difference, just as Dian Fossey did.” Dr. Tara Stoinski, president and chief scientific officer, Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.
The fund sites approximately 15 acres of land for the projects and consists of eco-friendly facilities built with locally sourced materials, and including housing for visiting students and researchers.
In addition to its role as a hub for scientific discovery, the campus is open for tourism, to add on your Rwanda tourism experience, after gorilla trekking, whereby you can spend some good time here, exploring the beautiful campus, grab a coffee at the café or buy local gifts.
You can reach us, to have this arranged and included on your Rwanda gorilla safari.
