IDA-Africa Raises $72,000 for Great Ape Conservation

First annual national fundraising and awareness tour claims success 

BEAVERTON, OR - October 30, 2004 - IDA-Africa, a leading U.S. non-profit organization dedicated to saving the last of the Great Apes through education and conservation, today announced that it has raised over $72,000 during its first annual United States speaking and fundraising tour. An additional $10,000 was promised by supporters over the next year towards IDA-Africa's Adopt-a-Chimpanzee Program. Funds raised will go to IDA-Africa's Sanaga-Yong Chimpanzee Rescue Center in Cameroon, West-Central Africa to support the well being of 43 chimpanzee residents who have been exploited or orphaned as a result of the illegal multibillion dollar bushmeat industry. 

Dr. Sheri Speede, an American veterinarian, and founder/director of In Defense of Animals - Africa (IDA-Africa) and the Sanaga-Yong Chimpanzee Rescue Center, was the featured speaker during the three month coast to coast event. The six city tour began in Seattle Washington and ended July 31st in Washington D.C. with stops in Portland, San Francisco, Denver and New York City. Attendances during stops were often at maximum capacity with several locations supporting "standing room only" accommodations.

Topics, which ranged from IDA-Africa's ongoing commitment to educating the indigenous people of Cameroon against the dangers associated with bushmeat and the need to conserve resources, to insights into the complex lives of Great Apes, were covered. 

"The sad truth is that if we don't succeed in curbing the bushmeat trade soon, it will be too late for wild chimpanzees and gorillas," said Dr. Speede. "The success of this tour demonstrates the public's strong interest and sense of urgency that is needed for saving our primate relatives and remaining rainforests".

IDA-Africa will continue to host this annual campaign with the next tour scheduled for the summer of 2005.