The Revealed

Category: About the project, Activities of The Revealed | Date: Nov 09 2009 | By: therevealed

Brief guide for those undecided whether to engage in social networking

Miroslav Bobek

When Facebook (FB) changed its main page again some time ago, it was another change to the worse. It is getting on the verge of the tolerable to be constantly fed with information about someone’s results of quizzes, such as “Are you submissive or dominant in sex?”, especially with graphic representation of the results as the fuel indicator in the car (full tank in this particular case), coupled with a regular dose of hearts and beers people keep flooding you with.

FB is based on sharing of brief texts, links, photos, short videos, as well as aforementioned funny and “funny” applications. Unfortunately, there is an apparent drift towards superficiality fostered by Facebook owners and their redesigns of the main page. This trend may eventually drive many of us away. For the time being, though, it is worth staying on board. Let me explain using the development of the Revealed’s profile on FB at www.facebook.com/odhaleni.

► FB has revealed who our fans are. Obviously, it is a limited view but certainly more representative than information we can gather from chats and discussions on our website or from more or less accidental personal encounters.

► FB has brought us new supporters and helped increase awareness of our project in general through precisely targeted advertising we invested in. Btw, it was the very first time that I considered spending money on online advertising not just as appropriate but as a very good investment.

► FB allows us to offer bits of content that we would not post on our official website (the less broadcast on the airwaves) but that are worth sharing. For instance, our Cameroonian colleague sent us an image of himself sitting in the TV studio and talking about our joint project. FB is the place to post it. And when we post footage of Czech superstar Lucie Bila recording gorilla fairy tales in the studio, success is guaranteed. Having her on FB brings us new fans and increases awareness of our project.

► FB helps us know what our audience is interested in. Most in demand are images of cute baby gorillas or other animals, and celebrities. This is good to know and explore – but not to let it drive your efforts!

► FB facilitates direct communication with our fans – we ask them individually or en masse about things we would like to know, for instance when to end an online charitable auction. What time they will be able and willing to take part in the final bidding?

► When we started consulting our planned steps with the fans, we inevitably also started to establish closer personal relations with them, and many of them have become our FB friends. This may be inspiring but also time-consuming… In general, FB offers a fundamental opportunity to get in touch with those who work on similar projects do something we might be interested in. Despite the changes in FB and its drift towards superficiality, our fans and FB friends keep sending us a constant flow of relevant information we would otherwise have to laboriously search for – which we almost certainly wouldn’t. (Hello, Paul Kahumba :-)

► Our FB fans are happy to provide their own content for our purposes. They mainly upload photos and videos – and when we announced a photo competition, they submitted loads of amazing images. We asked for hi-res versions of the best entries and made large prints for an auction.

► Some fans have started supporting us by sharing our announcements, such as that about the so-called donor sms messages on behalf of our project. Some of the users included information about the sms donations permanently in the footer of their e-mails to disseminate it among their contacts.

► Many fans have answered our call and sent a donor sms or bought something from our shop to support our activities. However, we have had a rather negative experience with addressing people directly with an offer to buy our merchandise. Sale over FB does not work for us and rather discourages our fans.

► Yet I see the Revealed’s FB profile as more important than the official website. The website carries more extensive materials, but these could be located anywhere because we always notify of them on FB anyway. This may be a rather extreme attitude stemming from the fact that FB is relatively new and from the great amount of time I devote to it. On the other hand, it is undeniable that the world wide web is changing. I fear umbrella projects like WildlifeDirect will soon be marginalized by FB, unless they reposition themselves. because everyone can now compile their own alternative to WildlifeDirect in FB or other social networking environment.

To sum up: An FB profile is worth having, primarily because of the valuable feedback you are getting. It may well happen that the feedback will cause you to start doubting what you are doing. You may as well end up producing tabloidish content. Most likely, though, the interest your content will generate and comments and information from users will encourage and inspire you. You may even raise some funds or at least spark greater interest in your project. In the first place, though, you will be riding the wave of “new” internet and “new” media – and gearing for the future which will be marked by yet more social networking and personalised content. However, it requires you to devote a substantial amount of time to FB every day and think about the message you are sending out and messages others are sending to you. And you will have to face an ever increasing number of sex activity gauges, hearts, and beers. So, think twice before joining…

PS: Things may change soon. Google Wave is coming (wave.google.com)…

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Category: About the project, Activities of The Revealed, Book of gorilla fairy-tales, CD with gorilla stories | Date: Oct 31 2009 | By: therevealed

Hi everyone,

We have not written quite a long time, because we had a full plate of our project in the Czech republic. We organized a lot of partial activities which help us to support gorillas in wild, for example exhibition of photos called Phenomenon The Revealed. This exhibition travels around the whole Czech Republic and it reached even Moscow in Russia!

In cooperation with Czech Radio we recorded and produced a CD with Gorilla Fairy Tales. The main protagonist of fairy tales is one of the most famoust czech celebrities – singer Lucie Bílá. Since you have read the last comment we have also prepared the book of Gorilla Fairy Tales for commercial sell. We get also the offer to make russian edition of these fairy tales. We will write details about all these activities soon, do not worry! :-)

Furthermore we have worked on our own Facebook page (you can look here), we have joined the donation sms called DMS. People from the Czech Republic could send sms in a value of 30 Kc (=approximately little bit more than 1 Euro). 27 Kc from each DMS is intended for gorilla conservation. And at last we have prepared an auction of our photos and one oil painting of gorillas (btw. this painting is gonna be the cover page of the forementioned CD). People in the Czech Republic could join the auction till this Friday and suggest as much money as they want to pay for the production. You can have a look on the process of the auction here.

Everything what we gain from these activities is intended to western lowland gorilla´s conservation in central Africa. Our immediate purpose is to publish Gorilla Stories Book and other educational material focused on conservation for children and distribute it in Congo-Brazzaville. Other aim is to support Ecogaurds protecting the Reservation Dja in Cameroon agains poachers. They need the basic equipment – shoes, tents and so on.

So as you see, we have had “full hands of work”… But now, we are back and we will continue to keep you posted! :-)

Your Jana and Miroslav - The Revealed Team!

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Category: Activities of The Revealed, Central African Republic, Forest Elephants | Date: Jul 22 2009 | By: therevealed

Radioservis and The Revealed produced puzzles with Forest Elephants from Dzanga Sangha. Profit is intended for equipment of ecoguards working in Dja Raserve in Cameroon. You can buy the puzzles in our e-shop.

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Category: Activities of The Revealed, Central African Republic, Forest Elephants | Date: Jul 20 2009 | By: therevealed

Miroslav Bobek et al.
Interview with Andrea Turkalo. Part III

There are always several BaAka, local Pygmies, at Andrea Turkalo’s camp who work for her as guides and scouts. The camp is also regularly visited by Bantus armed with automatic rifles who guard the reserve. Although the Dzanga clearing looks like paradise on Earth, it is not completely safe for wild animals. However, the situation is much worse elsewhere.

Before zoologists discovered Dzanga Bai, did Europeans know about it?
Probably yes, because this place was colonised by many years by the French. Before independence, this area was also exploited for ivory and other forest products, like rubber and copal, which is used in making perfumes. The French exported hundreds of tons of ivory out of here from the end of the last century until the 1960s. If you know the book Heart of Darkness by Joseph Konrad, he describes the situation when the Belgians and the French had a concession system and basically mandated that pepople collect ivory and other forest products. If they did not collect it, they were whipped.

But elephants, to say nothing about other animals, continue to be killed here…
There are different levels of poaching in this part of the world. There is game poaching for local consumption. People go out and set snares and catch antelopes, go home and they go home in the evening and eat the animal. That’s sustainable. That’s like what the BaAka do with the net hunting. They kill an animal, divide it up and eat it. That can go on for a long time without affecting the total population because what they are taking and what is reproducing is at the same level. Elephant poaching is a whole different situation because it is done by people who have the means to buy big guns and send people out with munition to kill animals.

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Category: Activities of The Revealed, Central African Republic, Forest Elephants | Date: Jul 10 2009 | By: therevealed

Miroslav Bobek et  al.
Interview with Andrea Turkalo. Part II

Dzanga Bai appears to be from a different time and world. Against the backdrop of the forest, you can see dozens of elephants: females, their offspring of various age, as well as a long-tusked males here and there. Together with them scores of forest buffaloes and antelopes… This remote place in Central African Republic is where American zoologist Andrea Turkalo has been conducting her research for nearly twenty years.

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Category: Activities of The Revealed, Bushmeat, Cameroon, Ecoguard, Live stream/video | Date: Jun 17 2009 | By: therevealed

Miroslav Bobek et al., 17 June 2009

The Dja biosphere reserve in the south-eastern Cameroon is guarded by four units of rangers called “ecoguards”. This sixty-strong force is supposed to protect more than half a million hectares of tropical rainforest. With worn-out shoes and no tents or communication technology they confront hordes of armed poachers.

Djoum is more than 250 km from Yaoundé. While the first three-fifths of the distance is a nice drive along a good tarmac road, the rest is a dirt road navigable only for 4×4 trucks, and sometimes not even for them in the rain season. Djoum is the seat of the subprefect, it has a health facility, primary schools and a lyceum, a large market, and most of the area is covered by mobile phone signal. Most importantly for us, though, one of four units of the ecoguards who protect the Dja biosphere reserve is stationed there.

“Everyone eats bushmeat,” ecoguard Tomi told us when we first met. “And almost everyone hunts. We cannot be overly strict with people but rather try to convince them to kill fewer animals and avoid hunting the most strictly protected species.”

Whereas three years ago, we had problems finding and photographing bushmeat in Yaoundé, it was completely different in Djoum this time. We were offered bushmeat for lunch even in the auberge we were staying in.

“Do you have some other kind of meat?” we asked.
“No,” was the answer.
“Can’t you get us chicken or something?”
“Sure, but… chicken is not meat, is it?”

Photos from the patrol are available in the article On duty with ecoguards.

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Category: About the project, Activities of The Revealed, Book of gorilla fairy-tales, CD with gorilla stories, Cameroon | Date: Jun 04 2009 | By: therevealed

Miroslav Bobek, 4 June 2009

“She’s playing the young quite well! And the peacock, too…” producer Honza Jiran noted when choosing an actor for the French rendition of the gorilla fairy tales among 10 short-listed native speakers with more or less extensive acting experience. He eventually selected the one who interpreted the young and the peacock so nicely - Mélanie Ruppe.

After the success of the gorilla story book among schoolchildren in Cameroon (see Related Links in the category Book of gorilla fairy-tales) we decided to record a French rendition of the same as another way of helping children in Africa realise that gorillas deserve protection and that they, too, can help. (We should note that many people in Central Africa continue to perceive wild animals, including gorillas, as nothing more but a source of meat… I remember how surprise children in a forest village were to find out when browsing our book that a gorilla can have a name just like a human.)

We prepare a publication of the book of Gorilla Stories for Congo. Without public subvention we can not develope this idea further. We would be glad if you contribute to achieve these efforts.

• The Revealed charitable account finances protection of western lowland gorillas and educational activities in al countries where this subspecies of gorilla lives in the wild. To support the cause, you can send your donation to 555 555 552/0800, IBAN: CZ35 0800 0000 0005 5555 5552 or donate through wildlifedirect.

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Category: About the project, Activities of The Revealed, Central African Republic, Gorillas in wild | Date: May 21 2009 | By: therevealed

M. Bobek, J. Jirátová, P. Hanzelková, 21 May 2009

Three years we observed gorillas in Prague Zoo. We wanted to present their stories so that people identify with them and understand how important is to help conservation of gorillas in wild. Like this we get to Africa. Within the project The Revealed we try to bring informations about african wildlife and its conservation but also raise funds for that purposes (as I wrote below, we published the Gorilla stories book, we supported educational project in villages north of Dja and now we would like to equip the ecoquards in Djoum).

During our trip to Africa we made a lot of  interviews with people who work in field and here is one of them… An interview with primatologist Daniela Hedwig.

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Category: Activities of The Revealed, Cameroon, Gorillas in Limbe Wildlife Centre, Live stream/video | Date: May 09 2009 | By: therevealed

Jana Jirátová, 9 May 2009

Thanks to our merchandise sale we have supported a primate sanctuary Limbe Wildlife Centre in Cameroon. During our last expedition into Cameroon and Central African Republic  we get to know Adjibolo - the second youngest gorilla in the LWC. 

We have presented her story in Live Webcasts from LWC and a few days ago on our websites together with the rest of the troop that occupies the small enclosure. Now you have a chance to see here closely. We have produced a short video for you from materials that we have brought back from Africa. It clearly shows that Adjibolo is lively and playful despite her tragic fate. 

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Category: Activities of The Revealed, Bushmeat, Cameroon, Ecoguard | Date: Apr 30 2009 | By: therevealed

Miroslav Bobek, 30 April 2009

 “Yesterday, a road patrol seized gorilla hands and pieces of gorilla meat,” we were told by ecoguard Tomi when we stopped by the ECOFAC office in Djoum. We are back in Cameroon, south of the Dja biosphere reserve. We are in an area that generously supplies Yaoundé and other cities with bushmeat. Twelve ECOFAC officers stationed in Djoum are supposed to throttle or curb the supply. As our photo report suggests, it is a futile effort…

(You can expect more on the topic plus very sincere  interviews with ecoguards after we return from Africa.)

ATTENTION! THE CONTENT HEREINAFTER IS NOT SUITABLE FOR VIEWING BY CHILDREN!

It is dark outside and we are hiding with ecoguards in a hut some fifteen kilometres to the east of Djoum. Tomi is waiting – and we are waiting with him.

Hunting of some species (apes, elephants, crocodiles etc.) is strictly prohibited, while others can be hunted for private needs. Violations of the law are punishable with hefty fines and prison sentences. The boy in the checked shirt has been caught red-handed before but being juvenile, he escaped unpunished.

Ecoguards are now state officers. That grants them a salary and pension but not sufficient equipment. They wear worn-out shoes and uniforms (with the exception of Tomi who bought a new uniform with his own money).

The owner of the bushmeat has been caught three times before. And he is again carrying meat either for sale or for a client. Clients are usually well-off people from the city who order bushmeat from village hunters. They give the hunter ten shells and ask for pieces of game. The hunter can keep the remaining five shells as a reward… 

The consignment includes even the most strictly protected species. Bushmeat is not just a subject of trade but most often part of the daily diet. When we asked pre-school children in a Baka Pygmy village whether they had ever eaten gorilla meat, four fifths of them raised their hands.

A poacher hunted the game early in the morning but in the hot tropical climate, it is already attracting flies. Ecoguards will sell it later in the afternoon in a public auction. The proceeds will go to the state coffers.

Bushmeat is cheap in Djoum but the price grows on its way to Yaoundé or another large city. Countering the illegal trade are ecoguards as well as patrols of the Ministere des Forets et de la Faune and gendarmerie.

“I didn’t know this was forbidden,” said the driver. He probably lied; yet there is a certain difference between him and the poacher whom the ecoguards caught two hours ago.  They seized the game from both of them, checked their papers, and handed them subpoenas.

You can see more photos from our reportage on The Revealed website.  

Help us to fight against busmeat trade! Help us to educate local people! Your donation supports our conservational efforts…

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