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Explorer Festival 2018: 11-17 June 2018 at the Nat Geo headquarters, Washington DC
Explorer Festival 2018: 11-17 June 2018 at the Nat Geo headquarters, Washington DC
Photos by Taylor Mickal and Rebecca Hale - National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society (Nat Geo, Society or NGS/NG) festival is an annual gathering for all explorers (current and former NG grantees, fellows, NG staff, donors and partners). During this event, a series of sessions take place. To cite some:
- Exchanging the explorers’work from different places to save our planet (earth),
- Meeting with the Nat Geo staff (including the project officers, grant directors),
- Understanding the Nat Geo structure and what the Society is doing at their headquarters and worldwide,
- Learning, networking and having fun.
From the 11th to 17th of June 2018, the NG explorer festival was held in Washington, D.C at the National Geographic headquarters. Around 160 explorers participated, forming a community of ecologists & conservationists, photographers, oceanographers, archaeologists and storytellers among others. Each of this category falls under one of the three lenses of the NG: changing planet, wildlife, and human journey.
While this event takes place every year; it was my first time to attend the NG festival. I met new people in my area of conservation, I shared my work and learnt from the successful work to save the planet earth.
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Kwita Izina events - along with the annual naming ceremony for the mountain gorilla in Rwanda
Kwita Izina events - along with the annual naming ceremony for the mountain gorilla in Rwanda
Kwita Izina 2018: 4th-5th September 2018
''Kwita Izina'' is in Kinyarwanda and means ''give a name''. For the mountain gorillas, this ceremony takes place every year in Rwanda - around September. The gorilla naming ceremony was launched by Rwanda Development Board, the current institution managing parks in Rwanda. The idea for the ''mountain gorilla naming'' was in place in 2005, so to increase awareness about the conservation of mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Each year, new baby gorillas are named: a number of people are selected (generally celebrities) to give names, which reflect the baby gorilla attitude, names reflecting the country's present development and future positive trends for the country. For instance, a baby gorilla was named ''Amahoro", which means ''Peace''.
These events take place in Rwanda, and basically there is one week in early September reserved for this. First a conference on ''Conversation on Conservation'' along with a tourism exhibition, takes place in Kigali, one night gala dinner on networking/fundraising and one day in Kinigi (at the base of volcanoes, home for the gorillas), for giving names.
I had a chance to participate in these events, when I was back from my MSc in 2016, and I could also present my Thesis as a poster presentation - and I was a winner of the best poster for the MSc students :)
In 2018, also a ''Year of the Bird'', BirdLife (my employer) collaborated with National Geographic Society, East Africa - to showcase the essence of the ''Year of the Bird'', and especially contribute to boosting awareness on ''why birds matter''. We had a booth and with the assistance of one member of the Rwanda Safari Guides Association; guests to our stand could understand the bird migration patterns, birds of Rwanda and where to find them, conservation status and we also offered brochures and booklets on conservation. I am always happy to stand as a ''Nat Geo Explorer'' and spread the world about ''keeping the planet in balance'' ;)
At the naming ceremony ground in Kinigi - Musanze, north Rwanda. Photo by Kwita Izina 2018
Presenting after break out sessions - Kwita Izina 2016. Photo by KI 2016
Me and M. Laure Rurangwa, the two Nat Geo Explorers at the stand for the ''Year of the Bird'' - Exhibition, KI 2018. Photo by Chloé Cipolletta
At the Nat Geo booth, guests were excited with such particular attention to birds :). Photo by me (PA)
And I was one among the four winners - best posters! Photo by me
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