Bwindi Porters Association Food Project
Donation protected
We've always believed travel can be a force for good, but with international travel put on hold by the coronavirus pandemic, the impact on local communities dependent on tourism has been devastating.
In the meantime, we've put our heads together and come up with a way to tackle an urgent need in the Uganda tourism community that involves most of our travelers - the Porters Association of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. While most porters are subsistence farmers, the bulk of their income comes from assisting visitors as they track the mountain gorillas of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. The salary and tips they receive help them feed their families, send their children to school, and even save for a larger plot of land or to open a small shop. Without tourists, they have no income stream and as the porters are a separate association not affiliated with the UWA, they are not receiving support or salaries during this time. The situation is becoming dire and many of the porters and their families are very hungry.
Wilderness Travel and our partners on the ground are preparing to make a significant food delivery to the porters association once the lockdown in Uganda is lifted and we can drive a vehicle to Bwindi. We are hoping our past guests who visited Uganda will consider assisting us in these efforts. WT is donating the vehicle, fuel, driver salary, and stipend for the multi-day trip to Bwindi and back. We're asking your help with donations to purchase staples such as beans, rice, maize-meal (posho), sugar, cooking oil, and bars of hand soap. Our goal is to raise US$1,500. As Uganda is still in lockdown, we don't know exactly when we will be able to take a vehicle and the food supplies to Bwindi, but we will keep you updated on this process with details, numbers, and photos.
WT is not an NGO, nor do we have a non-profit arm, so these donations will not be tax-deductible.
Stay well and take care,
In the meantime, we've put our heads together and come up with a way to tackle an urgent need in the Uganda tourism community that involves most of our travelers - the Porters Association of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. While most porters are subsistence farmers, the bulk of their income comes from assisting visitors as they track the mountain gorillas of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. The salary and tips they receive help them feed their families, send their children to school, and even save for a larger plot of land or to open a small shop. Without tourists, they have no income stream and as the porters are a separate association not affiliated with the UWA, they are not receiving support or salaries during this time. The situation is becoming dire and many of the porters and their families are very hungry.
Wilderness Travel and our partners on the ground are preparing to make a significant food delivery to the porters association once the lockdown in Uganda is lifted and we can drive a vehicle to Bwindi. We are hoping our past guests who visited Uganda will consider assisting us in these efforts. WT is donating the vehicle, fuel, driver salary, and stipend for the multi-day trip to Bwindi and back. We're asking your help with donations to purchase staples such as beans, rice, maize-meal (posho), sugar, cooking oil, and bars of hand soap. Our goal is to raise US$1,500. As Uganda is still in lockdown, we don't know exactly when we will be able to take a vehicle and the food supplies to Bwindi, but we will keep you updated on this process with details, numbers, and photos.
WT is not an NGO, nor do we have a non-profit arm, so these donations will not be tax-deductible.
Stay well and take care,
Organizer and beneficiary
Wilderness Travel
Organizer
Berkeley, CA
Lyndsay Harshman
Beneficiary
