The centre is situated in the north of Lopé National Park, in surrounding major habitat types of savannah, gallery forests, bosquets and marantaceae forest, with the Ogooué River nearby.
To date there are 399 bird species and 41 mammals (including 15 primates) identified for all of Lope National Park.
Since 1990 WCS has been involved in training activities based in Lope NP. The Training Center was built and became operational in 2003-2004.
• Gabon National Parks Office.
• International Center for Medical Research in
Franceville.
• Gabon Ministry of Water and Forests.
• Elf.
• Gabon National School of Water and Forests.
• Gabonese universities.
Empowering people to lead the way in the
protection of Gabon’s biodiversity is one of the
greatest challenges to conservation within the country.
Name : Dr. Kathryn Jeffery
Title : Scientific and Training Officer
Email :
kjeffery[AT SIGN]wcsgabon[DOT]org
Address :
Wildlife Conservation Society,
BP 7847,
Libreville,
Gabon.
For more information, see www.wcs.org/africa
Wildlife Conservation Society International
Conservation,
Africa Program,
2300 Southern Blvd.,
Bronx, NY 10460, USA
The Wildlife Conservation Society's International Conservation program saves wildlife and wild lands by understanding and resolving critical problems that threaten key species and large, wild ecosystems around the world.
• Site-based conservation
• Research
• Training and capacity-building
• New model development
• Informing policy
• Linking zoo-based and field-based conservation
Contributions to this project can be sent to the WCS Africa Program in NY (address above)
Lope Conservation Training Centre ©Julian Easton
WCS is committed to ensuring that Gabon's National Parks are protected by well-trained nationals who can implement effective park management, biological monitoring, research, and anti-poaching patrols. The Lopé Training Centre aims to address these issues by improving scientific capacity amongst Gabonese and other central African conservation professionals through site-based field courses and workshops, targeted at university students, conservation professionals and protected area staff.
The Centre focuses on capacity-building at a local and national level, by providing a wide range of resources to encourage comprehensive scientific development and permit opportunities for training in many theoretical, practical and analytical aspects of biodiversity conservation. Visitors can make use of an IT suite with internet access, a reference library, and a field laboratory, with full logistical support available for easy access into Lopé National Park. Locally trained field assistants possess an extensive knowledge of the Lopé landscape, and the Centre also employs a workforce of 11 support staff.
Conservation programs cannot succeed in the long-term without professionally trained nationals working and co-operating with NGOs, academic institutions and governmental bodies. Empowering people with the necessary skills to lead the way in the scientific study, management and protection of the biodiversity and natural resources that exist in Gabon is one of the greatest challenges to conservation within the country.
Lessons in navigation ©Fiona Maisels
Twice a year students from the National School of Water and Forests carry out short field studies at Lopé, where they can apply theoretical concepts in ecology to real-life management issues. In addition to gaining skills in useful field methods such as radio-telemetry and line transect sampling, they are also guided through the complete process of scientific inquiry, experimental design, data collection, analysis and report-writing.
Other training sessions are run throughout the year focusing on specific areas relevant to biodiversity conservation and park management, such as ecological and socioeconomic monitoring methods. In 2005, courses and workshops will be held by the WCS central African protected areas monitoring program and the Living Landscapes program, as well as by the African NGO Reseau des Botanistes d'Afrique Centrale. Staff from several Parks will be given first aid training, and in addition local staff will be encouraged to participate in regular seminars and attend courses in English and IT skills.