Bright Boye Kumordzi
Country of origin: Ghana
Education: I hold a Bachelors degree in Natural Resources Management, and I am about to defend my PhD (Wildlife Management) from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (KNUST) Kumasi, Ghana. For my PhD, I worked on the Ecology and Taxonomy of Elephants in Ghana. I also hold a certificate in Ethno-ecology communitybased conservation and participatory video, and a certificate in Business and Entrepreneurial development.

Prior to coming to UNEP-WCMC, I was a research assistant with the Department of Wildlife and Range management of KNUST. In this position I helped with design and conduct of the student project. I was also involved in several wildlife conservation projects across Ghana notably; the General Faunal Survey of 24 Global Significant Biodiversity Areas (GSBAs), the Ghana-Ivory Coast trans-frontier elephant corridor project and Digya elephant conservation project. I have also initiated projects in wildlife domestication and commercial production as schemes for rural poverty alleviation as well as reducing the 'bush meat' crisis in Ghana.

At UNEP-WCMC, I will be working with the Species Programme on international wildlife trade issues in Africa, and Ghana in particular. I will be studying the UNEP-WCMC and CITES trade databases towards developing a database to help in the monitoring and effective management of Ghana wildlife trade. I will take the opportunity to explore the dynamics of international wildlife trade and examine its contribution to species loss in Africa.

“This is clearly an outstanding opportunity for me to feel, experience and speak for conservation. I consider it a privilege to be part and learn from the family of international conservationist, and a chance to have a bird eye view of international biodiversity issues. I recognise that it is an occasion for me to equip myself with tools aimed at providing local solutions to global problems.”

Zahor El-Kharousy
Country of origin: Tanzania
Education: I attended the University of Dar es Salaam where, in 2002, I graduated in BSc General, specializing in Marine Biology with Chemistry. During the three years there, I was involved in fieldwork that ranged from seaweed farming in the east coast of Zanzibar, to profiling the thermocline of lake Tanganyika. In 2006, I completed a Masters of Science programme in fisheries biology and management at the university of Bergen. The programme involved both coursework (where I attended classes in subjects like fisheries management, responsible fish capture, biomass estimation, and fish behaviour), and thesis write-up. The title of my thesis was acoustic identification of sand-eel using multi-frequency methods, where the possibility of using multi-frequency acoustic methods in sand-eel identification during biomass surveys in the North Sea, was tested and proven.

In 2003, I was a trainee in scientific and awareness raising cruise in the east coast of Africa, where awareness on what is termed as a "living fossil", the coelacanth species was raised in five countries. Different ecological data were also collected. Other acquired skills include underwater reef fish and invertebrate data collection.

Before coming UNEP-WCMC, I was working in department of fisheries and marine resources Zanzibar's Marine Conservation Unit, as the focal person in the world bank funded Marine and Coastal Environment Management Project (MACEMP), where my work involved coordinating the three existing marine conservation areas, as well as suggesting new areas that needed protection, with the aim of increasing the marine conserved area from 4% to 10% by the end of the project in 2010.

At the moment I'm working to see why shrimp culture both as an alternative livelihood activity, as well as a foreign currency earner, is not taking off in the African countries with the potential as it has done in Asia, and go further to see the possibility of promoting sustainable shrimp farming in Africa. I am also planning to do a gap analysis to review the marine protected areas in East Africa and recommend areas in need of additional protection.

“Working at the UNEP-WCMC is giving me the opportunity to learn about global biodiversity conservation from experienced and well-informed people who are as keen to pass on their expertise, as they are passionate in biodiversity conservation. It also gives me the chance to make contact with so many conservationists around the world and exchange ideas with. My time at the centre will also benefit me in acquiring new skills in analysis, report writing and scientific presentations.”

Ivo Ngome
Country of origin: Cameroon
Education: Masters Degree, Geography (Environment and Development), University of Buea, Cameroon. Thesis: A Gender Analysis of Threats and potentials within the Barombi Mbo Reserve, Cameroon, 2006. Bachelor Degree in Geography; thesis: The Ecological Status of the Forest of Mount Kupe, Cameroon, 2003.

Since 2003 I conducted research on environmental conservation and sustainable development. My studies explored conservation threats and potentials within a number of Cameroon's most fragile protected areas, functioning of agro-ecological systems in all ten provinces of Cameroon, comparative analysis of rural and urban attitudes toward conservation in the context of material poverty. I participated in the field research, which supported environmental impact assessment of the Chad-Cameroon Pipeline. As a research assistant at a Bakassi Peninsula Project I conducted a baseline survey, data processing and contributed to assessment of ecological and human development dimensions in this remote, ecologically sensitive and materially poor region of Cameroon that is likely to undergo intensive oil exploration and production during the next decade. I continue work with the project manager on preparation of the relevant research publication. I presented outputs of my studies at the International Conference on Energy, Environment and Disasters in Abuja, Nigeria in 2006. My recent publication Land Tenure Systems and Protected Sites in Southwest Cameroon: Effects on Livelihoods and Resources is available on line http://www.africafiles.org/article.asp?ID=12499

Framework for evaluating the socio-economic costs and benefits of protected areas to local communities in Cameroon. The main goal of the project is to assess the effect of protected areas on the socio-economic condition of immediately affected communities. Based on my field research data and secondary data available from literature and statistic sources I intend to elaborate a set of indicators highlighting linkages of conservation, its socio-economy impact and sustainable development prospective. In my study I rely to a large degree upon the information accumulated in the UNEP-WCMC World Database on Protected Areas. In my vision, the essence of the project is to interweave conservation with sustainable development. I hope that the authoritative knowledge on the "people side" of environmental conservation and correspondent indicators will become a part of the information resources that UNEP-WCMC makes available for conservationists worldwide and in my region in particular.

“At UNEP-WCMC I interact with minds that have reasoned out the most outstanding concepts of global biodiversity conservation and take every chance to tap from them. With everyone at the Centre doing what they have a passion for, the joy of conservation is evident. It is a unique opportunity for me to position myself in conservation issues and bring out the best that is in me.”