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Remembering Koko's Legacy
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In case you missed my note a week or so ago, I wanted to be sure you saw it. I know you loved Koko as much as we did and want to see her legacy live on.
Read on, and please consider making a gift today ...
Though it's been nearly 3 months since Koko left us, most days are still hard for me and the staff. But the outpouring of love and support from our "greater ape" community has given me great comfort.
Please be assured that we are fully committed to carrying on our work and realizing Koko’s legacy here at The Gorilla Foundation, which is why I'm writing you today asking for your generous support.
My dedicated staff and I are dedicated to achieving conservation and care through communication. Signing with Koko was life-changing for me and so many others. Giving gorillas a voice made it obvious that we CAN stop the slide of gorillas into extinction — and that we CAN dramatically improve their lives in captivity.
But we can only do this with your help!
Here's our new 3-part strategic plan – which focuses on expanding interspecies communication for the benefit of both captive and free-living gorillas (and other great apes, who are equally intelligent and emotional, and equally endangered):
| 1.t Interspecies Communication 2.0 Gorillas who have spent their lives interacting with humans — either at zoos, or in sanctuaries like ours — deserve to be able to communicate clearly with their caregivers about their needs and wants, and to let the world know that their species is worthy of saving from extinction. We are building on over 40 years of unique interspecies communication data, knowledge and staff expertise, to continue advancing our ability to "talk" with great apes, and to provide a service that helps anyone interested in great ape welfare do the same. |
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| 2.t The Koko Signing App We've been asked (and have promised) for years to put sign language and gorilla natural gestures in the palm of everyone's hand, with Koko as the teacher. Now we have finally developed a prototype to do just that, and this year we need your support to turn the prototype into a product — one that can be used by schools, zoos, sanctuaries, to promote conservation and care through communication. In addition to looking up Koko's (and your) favorite signs, the app will include some of our most powerful videos and e-books, such as Koko's Kitten and Michael's Dream, and a new children's book, A Wish for Koko, recently written as a tribute to Koko. The embedded e-books and videos will link to Koko signing videos to accelerate sign language comprehension, and to enable translation without subtitles. Moreover, other institutions will be able to upload videos of their gorillas signing and gesturing for a collaborative learning experience, and to foster many new gorilla ambassadors worldwide. |
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| 3. Supporting New Gorilla Sanctuaries & Care For some time, we have been planning to further develop and expand the 70 acres of land we have leased on Maui, as a climatically appropriate and state-of-the-art gorilla sanctuary, but we simply haven't had the resources. Now that Koko has passed, we are focusing on optimizing the design to enable the Maui Sanctuary to become a resource for those gorillas in captivity who are not suited to zoo life, and need your support to reimagine this incredibly important project. We are also working to partner with and support selected African sanctuaries whose managers see the benefits of our interspecies communication tools, and of the use of interactive video to educate and inspire folks living in gorillla habitat countries to save the species. I hope you’ll help us boldly move forward with these vital programs and support Koko’s legacy with the most generous gift you can afford. As always, I am so grateful for your compassion and your support! With eternal Koko-love, |
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Conservation & Care through Communication
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Share Koko's Legacy
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Thank you! |
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