Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund Receives $10,000 from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

UNITED KINGDOM -- The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, an organization working to save mountain gorillas from extinction, announced today it received a $10,000 donation from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for its "Gorilla Century" campaign. The campaign is raising funds to ensure mountain gorillas are not pushed into extinction.

"The staff of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund's London office was certainly delighted to start the campaign with the donation from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation," said Greg Cummings, Director of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. "This campaign is a fitting tribute near the end of the century when mountain gorillas were 'discovered'; the turn of the decade when they faced their greatest threats; and the turn of the year when peace returned to Rwanda. In addition to the Foundation's support, the 'Gorilla Century' campaign also acknowledges the 45 individuals, foundations, corporations and zoos that have given generously in support of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund's efforts over the past decade."

With this grant, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation joins other Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund supporters, including Sigourney Weaver, Leonardo DiCaprio, Michael Crichton, David Gilmour, Mike Oldfield, Douglas Adams, Michael Palin, Richard Leakey, Ray Harryhausen, Sir Arthur C. Clarke, Richard Adams, Nathan Myhrvold and David Shepherd.

The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund is an organization dedicated to protecting and saving the endangered gorilla species. Currently, the biggest threat to gorillas, chimpanzees and many other endangered species is the commercial trade in bushmeat. The growth in urban markets coupled with modern transport, weapons and access to more remote areas (often by means of logging trucks), means that bushmeat is now a multi-million dollar business.