Conservation Activism in Africa: The Bateleurs, “Volunteer pilots flying for Conservation in South Africa” and The Conservation Tragedy in the Congo.

Please join us at 7:00 p.m. at the Canyon Community Center on Saturday, February 16, 2013 for a presentation by Rockville’s own Michael McBride on the subject of conservation activism in Africa.

A member of the Explorer’s Club and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, he has more than 40 years experience as a wilderness guide and bush pilot flying the wilds of Alaska. He’s a master guide, licensed Coast Guard captain, and has strong expertise in marine biology. Michael is a Nationally Certified Yoga Teacher. He has served as a Smithsonian National Board Member, a Trustee for The Nature Conservancy and Wild Foundation board member. He was awarded a Legislative Citation for Practical Activism. He was an Advisory Board member and pilot for Lighthawk, “Volunteer pilots flying for conservation in America” and a founding patron of Bateleurs, “Volunteer pilots flying for conservation in Africa” and is an elected member of the Africa Game Rangers Association. He is a poet and author and his Kachemak Bay Wilderness Lodge has won a score of international awards and is listed in the NY Times Best Seller “1000 Places To See Before You Die.” Web site: alaskawildernesslodge.com.

The Frankfort Zoological Society (FZS) in Germany was awarded a $5million grant from the European Union in 2011 to create a Master Plan for the reconstruction of two war torn National Parks in the Congo. The Upemba Park was created in the 1930’s during the Belgian colonial era and the Kundelungu Park before independence and the renaming of the country to Zaire. Both once teemed with animals that represented the best of Africa.  The tourism infrastructure as been burned and looted and the animals killed. Michael McBride was invited to participate as a member of the FZS team and came with some African and international experience in the protection of large animal migration corridors and trans boundary parks creation. Michael is currently working in the Congo towards the restoration of these two war-torn National Parks,Upemba and Kundelungu, especially to create a protected elephant migration corridor between them.  One way is which Michael McBride has contributed to conservation in Africa is through the creation of the Bateleurs, “Volunteer Pilots Flying for Conservation in Africa.”

In this lecture Mr. McBride will detail his work with the national park rangers in Congo and present a slideshow of these Upemba and Kundelungu National Parks of Congo.

Please join us for this informative presentation by one of our “locals.”