|
In a half-hour documentary Our Planet: Forgotten Forest,
CNN’s nature filmmaker Gary Streiker traces armed poaching
gangs who kill elephants for meat.
In a region controlled by rebel forces in the northern Democratic
Republic of Congo, Streiker combs the unique habitat where
rainforest blends into open savannah. If the poaching continues
leaving elephants in diminishing numbers, chimpanzees and
other local wildlife could be next, leaving local people
in a deeply impoverished environment as revenue from tourism
dries up, he says.
CNN’s documentary looks at how Swiss photographer Karl Ammann
is working with village chiefs, rebel military commanders
and conservationists, trying to develop ways to stop the
poaching. One of his ambitious projects is to develop a
special market for ‘elephant friendly’ coffee.
Because of civil war and economic collapse, thousands of
coffee growers in the region have lost their only source
of income. Ammann is enlisting European coffee importers
to offer special high prices to local growers on the condition
that their communities refuse to co-operate with poaching
gangs and report them to the authorities.
Our Planet: Forgotten Forest discovers how by protecting
elephants, the villagers will once again be able to sell
their coffee and begin to revitalise their communities
The show airs on 27 July at 2:30 pm and 7:30 pm with further
repeats on 28 July at 12:30 pm, 10 August at 2:30 and 7:30
pm and 11 August at 12:30 pm Singapore time, says a release.
Click for more Tube Talk
|
