Rwanda gorilla campus welcomes 40,000 visitors including schoolchildren
The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund in Rwanda has reached a milestone of 40,000 visitors since its inception. The facility serves as both a research center for mountain gorilla conservation and an educational hub for local Rwandan students.
Why it matters
The project highlights the intersection of celebrity philanthropy, wildlife conservation, and community-based education in Africa.
When actress Portia de Rossi surprised her wife, television host Ellen DeGeneres, with a 60th birthday gift in 2018, she helped fund a major conservation project in Rwanda. The project improved wildlife protection and gave local people more chances to learn about the environment. By September 2023, the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund had welcomed more than 40,000 visitors to its site outside Volcanoes National Park. During the same period, the educational centre hosted more than 7,500 Rwandan schoolchildren, giving them access to practical science lessons and conservation training. The project began as a gift inspired by DeGeneres' long-standing admiration for pioneering primatologist Dian Fossey.
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