Going Viral: IGCP Launches New Interactive Website

Unveiling a new era for communicating its work to practitioners and the public alike, the International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP) has announced an entirely new website, which goes “live” on Tuesday, August 25^th.  Opening during the UN Convention on Migratory Species designated Year of the Gorilla, the new site promises greatly enhanced interactivity, a fresh new look and improved navigation.  Visitors will now be able to read the IGCP’s gorilla blog on the site, as well as follow and comment on the ups and downs, challenges and successes, passions and commitments of its staff and partners in their work to save the world’s approximately 700 remaining mountain gorillas, which live on the misty slopes of the Virunga Volcanoes Range and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest areas bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda.  The site can be accessed at www.igcp.org.

“The fresh approach to this new site not only celebrates Year of the Gorilla, it also brings mountain gorilla conservation and our work closer to the people, both locally and internationally,” enthused IGCP Communications Officer Jamie Kemsey.  “With dedicated Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr pages, as well our blog and many additional new features and pages, IGCP is poised to communicate to a broader audience and communicate more effectively.  This will get more people involved, and in the end, spread knowledge and bring greater benefit to the mountain gorillas, and the local communities which are our partners in this vital conservation initiative to save them.  We are excited about the new site’s possibilities and future growth, and will work with our visitors and partners on continuing this growth even after Year of the Gorilla ends in 2010.”

The site’s dedicated Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr pages, launched in July, already have a growing roster of followers, friends and viewers.  IGCP plans to continue reaching out to this new audience, updating them on a more regular basis through these methods and also on the site itself.  The site’s pages have new color, an updated look and an “everything” design, whereby the entire site is readily available and easy to navigate on each individual page through a simple click.   “More visits and more followers will greatly enhance our work at IGCP,” stated Kemsey, “and we are ready for it.  I am excited to start using this new tool, which will help us keep current and keep progressing in the ever dynamic world of mountain gorilla conservation.”

With roots going back to 1978, IGCP was officially formed in 1991 as a partnership between three of the world’s oldest and most respected international biodiversity conservation organizations – African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), Fauna & Flora International (FFI) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).  IGCP is headquartered in Kigali, Rwanda.  For more information, contact Jamie Kemsey at jkemsey@awfafrica.org.