We traveled down to Kartong again this past weekend not only to work more on our sea turtle conservation story, but also to help out two of our best friends in The Gambia, Geri and Maurice – who run a truly peaceful eco lodge, ‘Sandele‘, in Kartong – on a campaign to raise awareness of how the ebola crisis in three other West African countries is adversely effecting tourism, and the socioeconomic balance, in #ebolafree Gambia.
Jason Florio, Helen Jones-Florio, Geri & Maurice Philips – Kartong village, The Gambia, West Africa. Image by Landing Jatta
I met this wonderfully inspiring, indefatigable couple in 1998 on one of my first trips down here, when they were then running a small hotel called Safari Garden. The forthcoming campaign involves the 32 full time staff employed by Sandele, and the numerous family members their wages help to support.
Later in the day, we hung out again with ex-hunter turned sea turtle conservationist, LJ, as he took us to meet a couple of local guys, who continue to hunt, to enable us to get a fully balanced picture of our ongoing turtle conservation story.
Looking back over some of the marvelous work that our young Gambian students produced, during their Photos Tell Stories Photography Workshops, earlier this year. After running through theory in the classroom, Jason then sent the students out into the field. They came back with some very impressive work – considering the majority of them had never used a camera before – which we exhibited, to a packed gallery, at Alliance Française, here in The Gambia, in May.
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This weekend we will be going back down to Kartong, near the border of Senegal, to carry on with our story about the turtle conservation project, which we started last weekend, where we released 20 turtles into the Atlantic Ocean – an wondrous experience. More on that soon…
Aperture Gallery – 547 West 27th Street, #4, New York December 3, 2014 – 6:30 PM
One day left to get your bids in!
Jason was very fortunate to be chosen to take part in the inaugural RISC(Reporters Instructed in Saving Colleagues) training course in New York, in 2012, and therefore honored to have one of his ‘Makasutu‘ portraits in the upcoming RISC Benefit & Silent Auction – which features the work of 46 photographers, a short program by RISC founder Sebastian Junger and Magnum photographer Susan Meiselas. Proceeds from ticket and auction sales will help RISC train and equip more freelance conflict journalists in emergency medical response. Bidding opens today – November 19 – online and ends at the benefit.
‘As a response to the increasing dangers they face worldwide, RISC trains journalists to treat life-threatening injuries in the field. The RISC Benefit and Silent Auction… . Proceeds from the auction and event will help RISC train and equip more conflict journalists in emergency medical response.’ RISC Auction
Some of the prints available to bid for at the RISC Auction – courtesy of Paddle8 auctions
Other contributing photographers, to the auction, include: Richard Mosse, Tim Hetherington, Mike Kamber, Brendan Hoffman, Manjari Sharma, Seamus Murphy, Erica Larsen, Roger Ballen…
There is a real need for the kind of training that RISC gives to photojournalists – for free – who work in some of the most dangerous conflict zones in the world. Please help support their cause – either by bidding or sharing about the auction.
We wish all success, for the final day of the auction tomorrow, to Sebastian Junger and all those involved in RISC Training.
Over the weekend, we made our way down to Kartong – the last village before the border of the Casamance – Southern Senegal, to stay with old friends, Maurice and Geri, at their eco lodge, Sandele. The main purpose of our visit was to interview LJ – an ex- local bush meat hunter, who had a ‘come to conservation‘ moment earlier this year.
LJ now volunteers full time to protect the fragile turtle population and helps to sensitize his fellow villages not to slaughter turtles for meat and poach their eggs. It’s a tough task, considering that there is precious food money to be made from the meat of the majestic fully grown reptiles – they can live to be 80+ years! LJ knows… being one of those people who thought little of wiping out mature turtles with a sharp knife, or raiding nests for eggs to sell or make omelets from, for his family.
We had the honor of releasing 20 Leather Back turtles… an incredible experience, as we watched the tiny reptiles hurtle innately, over the sand, towards the gargantuan Atlantic Ocean. We were awestruck yet fearful… these are ‘lucky’ ones, to have survived the land predators (from hunters, to wild dogs, crabs, birds, and red ants, raiding the pre-hatched eggs), but the baby turtles have many more marine predators awaiting them. Their overall survival rate to maturity is slim.
LJ stood nearby, with a look of paternal proudness and more than a little trepidation. However, he hopes that in fifteen years time, he will be on the same stretch of beach to protect at least one of the female turtles, from this particular hatching, as she returns inherently to the place of her birth, to lay her eggs deep the sand, before heading right back out to sea once again.
We’ll be following closely the progress of LJ – a truly inspiring and dedicated man you will ever hope to meet – and the turtle conservation project, in Kartong, and surrounding coastal area. So, please do check in again (or you can subscribe to updates – simply add your email address in the left hand column). And, if you would like to find out more about how to support the conservation of the turtles – this is a volunteer position for LJ, so we know that any help would be much appreciated – please contact: enquiries@sandele.com
PHOTOS TELL STORIES - documentary | filmmaking | photography | travel | Dogs 