UN Year of the Gorilla 2009 Fund-Raiser Skates-Off at Natural History Museum London

As part of the United Nations International Year of the Gorilla (YoG) 2009 celebrations, a troupe of skaters dressed as primates are to take to the rink at the Natural History Museum in London on 15 January FROM 10am TO 12am. The public are welcome free of charge as spectators and the Museum’s Balcony overlooking the rink will be available for press photographers.

This two-hour event to raise awareness and funds for human-kind’s closet and most threatened relatives, with teams of young skaters from London rinks volunteering to take part on behalf of their close cousins the gorillas.

The YoG was formally launched by His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco at an international wildlife conference in Rome a few weeks ago.

The skate-off in London marks the first awareness-building and fund-raising event of the new 12 month-long campaign and opens an appeal to the corporate sector to get involved and sponsor gorilla projects in the field in the ten African countries which are their range states.

Several governments have pledged funding for the Year including Germany and Monaco as well as companies including the tourism firm Abercrombie & Kent.

Justin Wateridge of A&K said: “The world’s gorillas are very much skating on thin ice as a result of habitat destruction, conflict and poaching. By the end of the year we hope this UN-led international campaign will have made their future more secure and the prospects for their long term survival that little bit brighter. We are pleased to support it”.

Robert Hepworth, Executive Secretary of the UNEP-Convention on Migratory Species which is coordinating the Year said: ”In countries such as Rwanda and Uganda, gorillas are at the centre of a tourism industry that is generating essential income and livelihoods for thousands upon thousands of poor and marginalized people”.

 “So it is time to unpack those blades and make a sharp point for the gorilla and its continued survival and for the people of Africa. In doing so the event will not only contribute to great ape conversation but the conservation of countless other species who share and co-exist in gorilla habitats and who also contribute to human well-being,” he added.

Ian Redmond OBE, YoG Ambasador added “Gorillas may be on thin ice metaphorically, but the conservation of gorillas can help slow global warming that really is thinning polar ice and glaciers worldwide.  Why?  Because gorillas are keystone species in the Congo Basin forests.  The health of the planet depends on the three great tropical forests of Amazonia, Congo and SE Asia.  The health of those forests depends on the survival of gorillas and other primates who disperse seeds for the next generation of trees.  This is why the Year of the Gorilla is so timely, because forests must be included in the new UN climate deal scheduled for agreement in Copenhagen, Denmark in late 2009”.

For More Information on the Year of the Gorilla Please Contact Ms.Veronika Lenarz, UNEP/CMS Secretariat, on Tel: +49 (0)228 8152409, e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

For the Natural History Museum event please contact Sarah Nuttall, UK –Based UNEP-CMS Fund Raiser, on Tel:  01403 733 878 or 0790 20 11 734  or  e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it