In the Democratic Republic of Congo in Central Africa, huge numbers of people living there have been forced to relocate because of a civil war.! Some 375,000 of them are thought to have taken shelter within the rainforest of the country?s Virunga National Park, home to more than half of the world?s remaining population of mountain gorillas.

All of these people need wood every day to burn on their cooking fires, to build their houses and to make tools.! The trees they cut down are making the area of pristine forest in the Park smaller and smaller.! Aid agencies and the United Nations purchase wood to supply these people with what they need, so that they do not have to cut down more of the forest, but this cannot be a long-term solution.! Instead, people are being trained to look after the protected areas and being given a stake in looking after these very special habitats for the future.

Who's for dinner?!

With so many very poor people living in the DRC?s rainforest, it?s not surprising that some turn to poaching to feed themselves.! But some of the most spectacular and most endangered large mammals on the planet, including gorillas and forest elephants are on the menu and could soon be wiped out.! It?s tragic to think that these amazing creatures are being eaten as 'bush meat', but it?s also tragic to think that people are so poor and so hungry that  they have to set out to kill such beautiful creatures to survive. In a very poor country, where sources of meat like cattle and chickens are not plentiful and are expensive, it actually makes sense for hunters to venture deep into the jungle to hunt and kill gorillas for their meat. !A hand-sized piece of pre-cut and smoked gorilla meat costs about US$6.! You can even buy gorilla hands for about US$6 each, too!!