2012-WWB-AFR

archived

The College of African Wildlife Management (CAWM)-Mweka is uniquely qualified to develop a bushmeat awareness program in Tanzania based on their leading role on this issue and technical expertise. Bushmeat exploitation is one of the greatest threats to African wildlife. In 2001, CAWM held a session on the bushmeat crisis at their international conference on "African Wildlife Management in the New Millennium". As a follow on, in May 2002, CAWM and the Bushmeat Crisis Task Force organized a “Bushmeat Training Development Workshop” that brought together experts from eastern Africa to discuss the illegal and unsustainable trade of bushmeat in the region. Based on these efforts, in FY2008 and FY2009 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) supported CAWM and the Africa Biodiversity Collaborative Group to establish the USFWS MENTOR Fellowship Program. The USFWS MENTOR Fellowship Program, an 18 month post graduate diploma program held at CAWM, used a team approach to build the capacity of eight emerging eastern African conservation leaders to address bushmeat challenges and lay the foundation for implementing bushmeat solutions. Out of MENTOR emerged the Bushmeat-free Eastern Africa Network (BEAN), who will work with CAWM on this bushmeat awareness project. BEAN is an evolving regional network engaged in implementing grassroots solutions to address bushmeat exploitation. CAWM-Mweka is the leading regional wildlife college for Anglophone Africa. It has trained conservation leaders for the past 49 years. Following the Arusha Manifesto in 1961, the College was established in 1963 as a pioneer institution for the training of African wildlife managers. Since this time, the College has been a leader in providing quality wildlife management training in Africa, and has trained over 3,000 wildlife managers from 28 African countries and 18 non-African countries. The College has received a number of awards and accolades including the prestigious UNEP Sasakawa Environment Prize. It has been declared a center of excellence as a Wildlife Training Institute by the East African Community. The overall goal of the proposed project is for the College to apply their teaching and outreach skills on the bushmeat issue using entertainment-education to increase appreciation of wildlife and reduce the bushmeat trade by individuals and communities in the Kilimanjaro, Tanga, Arusha, and Manyara regions of Tanzania. Through a partnership, CAWM will work with PCI Media Impact, BEAN and Radio Kili FM to design and pilot local radio dramas and assess their impact. CAWM has a long-standing relationship with Radio Kili hosting weekly environmental radio programs. The development of radio dramas is a next step in their outreach plans. This project builds a sustainable model as the College will be trained in new communications methodologies as well as bushmeat mitigation strategies that they can use for teaching their students now and in the future.

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