EPA Administrator Regan inaugurates U.S. Embassy air quality monitor in Maputo, Mozambique
Dominique Goncalves and Greg Carr (mtexpress)
From 1977 until 1992, the southeastern African nation of Mozambique tore itself apart in a violent civil war. The newly established communist government cracked down on militarized opposition with aid from Cuba and the Soviet Union. More than 15 years of continued conflict and roughly 1 million deaths resulted in a tense stalemate and delicate peace.
Amid famine, wartime atrocities and innumerable casualties, ecological repercussions wreaked havoc to the Mozambican environment.
Prior to the conflict, the Gorongosa National Park drew hunters, sightseers and adventurers from across the world, serving as the main attraction for what was then the colony of Portuguese Mozambique.
From 1920 until the outbreak of the civil war, Gorongosa was home to dozens of African species, including elephants, rhinoceros, cheetahs, leopards, lions, hyenas, impala, hippos, zebras and wildebeest.
During the war, however, those populations were decimated as soldiers on both sides hunted big game for food and slaughtered hundreds of elephants, selling their ivory on the black market to raise money to build their weapons caches. As a result of that unfettered preying, natural predators suffered widespread starvation.
In a sense, the violence and famine that plagued Mozambique’s people struck its wildlife as well. By 1992, an estimated 95 percent of Gorongosa’s natural populations had vanished.
In 1995, an international coalition formed to coordinate efforts to restore Gorongosa to its former glory.
Since 2004, as the political climate stabilized further, the rehabilitation project has gained momentum.
Now, the wilds of southeastern Africa come to rural Idaho. Sun Valley resident Greg Carr and Mozambican scientist Dominique Goncalves will present an exclusive preview of their upcoming film “Gorongosa: Park and People,” which is currently in development.
Carr and Goncalves have both been working at Gorongosa to restore the park.
In 2004, the Mozambican government invited Carr to help manage the effort. He is currently president of the Gorongosa Oversight Committee.
Goncalves, a native of Mozambique, earned her Master of Science degree from the University of Kent and now serves as manager of the Elephant Ecology Project at Gorongosa.
After the screening, both Carr and Goncalves will be available for a conversation with the audience to discuss their efforts to revitalize the park and improve the lives of the people of rural Mozambique.
The event is free and open to the public. It will take place in the Lecture Hall of the Community Library in Ketchum at 6 p.m. on Jan. 3.
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