Recently we launched our new campaign, celebrating conservation heroes from around the world who are doing amazing work with Bristol Zoological Society to protect some of the most threatened species and habitats on the planet.

Our Philippines spotlight introduced you to just a handful of our inspiring team members who entered the world of conservation through many different avenues. As a conservation charity active in nine countries, we're now excited to turn the spotlight to Equatorial Guinea, where dedicated individuals are making a lasting impact through our projects.

Isabelle Rogerson, Equatorial Guinea Programme Manager

I came to conservation through a less traditional academic path. I initially studied Literature and Philosophy for my BSc, but it was during university that I discovered anthropology – a subject that fascinated me and changed my direction. Through my MSc in Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, I had the opportunity to carry out fieldwork in Mozambique and Côte d’Ivoire, observing baboons and chimpanzee tool sites. That experience gave me my first real taste of conservation in the field. It was the connection with people, and the joy of working outdoors in nature, that ultimately inspired me to pursue a career in conservation.

My role is Equatorial Guinea Programme Lead, which means I oversee all the diverse conservation projects we are implementing in the country. I am also the Project Manager for one of these projects, which focuses on human-elephant coexistence.

Bristol Zoological Society has worked in Equatorial Guinea since 2018, and our work has focused on a diverse range of species, including gorillas and more recently, the Critically Endangered African forest elephant. Elephant crop-foraging is a significant issue in the country, and we are implementing two projects, both looking at finding different ways of helping communities around Monte Alén National Park to coexist peacefully with elephants.

I hope that the future of conservation will continue to see a shift towards more incorporation of indigenous peoples’ knowledge and experience into conservation projects, and that Bristol Zoological Society’s projects can be part of that movement.

Carolina Hernandez, Equatorial Guinea ECF Project Manager

I started my career as a wildlife veterinarian, and I chose to move to conservation because I saw the need for animals to have a future. It doesn't matter how much good you can do rehabilitating an animal, they're still impacted in the wild and they need a habitat in which they can survive. That’s why I chose to work with communities, because they are the ones who play the most vital role in protecting the habitats that wildlife need to survive.

I currently work as the Project Manager for the Elephant Crisis Project, which focuses on human-elephant conflict mitigation to promote coexistence. This work is directly linked to conservation, as we implement various deterrent methods to prevent elephants from entering villages, damaging crops, and triggering retaliation from local communities. A key part of the project also involves creating alternative livelihood opportunities that reduce pressure on wildlife, particularly elephants.

The next step for the project is to continue with these methodologies, improve them, and spread them around different communities, not only communities that are near Monte Alén National Park, but also communities that are farther away, which can be affected too. The elephants do not recognise boundaries, and they just move around where they need and where they can find food. We are also trying to implement a new alternative crop that is known to be non-palatable to savannah elephants. This will allow us to assess its impact on other species and evaluate its potential as a viable crop for communities living near the park, helping to reduce crop damage caused by elephants.

For the future of conservation, I hope that at some point humans can cohabitate with the rest of the animals without having any conflict, to see how important it is to live and share with other species, because humans cannot live without nature and we cannot keep destroying and attacking it.

We need to learn how to progress and how to share the same land that many of these species have inhabited way much longer than humans.

Regina Nchama, Equatorial Guinea ECF Project Community Liaison Lead

I got into the world of conservation because ever since I was a child I have loved being in the forest, which is why when the time came to choose a profession I opted for forestry and conservation. I'm the conservator of Monte Alén National Park, one of the protected areas around Equatorial Guinea, and at the same time I serve as a community liaison for a project run by Bristol Zoological Society, which is operating in the park.

For the future of this project, I hope that there will be a noticeable difference in the national park and its conservation thanks to the efforts made.

For the future of conservation, I hope to see greater harmony between humans and wildlife, something we are actively working toward every day. Achieving this balance will support our long-term goals, allow us to monitor progress effectively, and help address the ongoing challenge of human-wildlife coexistence. I often refer to this specifically as human-elephant conflict, as elephants are usually the species causing the most significant crop damage, which in turn creates tension within affected communities.

Juan Cruz Ondo, Equatorial Guinea ECF Project Field Operations Manager

I chose to work in conservation because it deeply resonated with me, and I wanted to contribute meaningfully to this important effort at a national level. In my current role with the Bristol Zoological Society project, I coordinate and monitor all activities in one of the projects, focusing primarily on human-elephant conflict mitigation methods and the development of livelihood-focused initiatives.

This project has a great impact on our conservation efforts because we are trying to find a solution between humans and wildlife, while also promoting livelihood-focused initiatives that generate income. The next step for the project is to implement these measures across different villages, where there are complaints about the devastation caused by elephants, and also to raise awareness about effective strategies that can help mitigate such conflicts.

For the future of conservation, I hope we can work toward raising awareness on a global scale. A widespread shift in consciousness would be crucial, as a worldwide appeal for change could profoundly influence conservation efforts and lead to more sustainable coexistence between humans and wildlife.

Cristina Avomo, Equatorial Guinea ECF Project Bee Workstream Lead

I chose to work in conservation because of the needs I see in my country and in the world today. Above all, what shocked me was the slaughter of animals. My current role focuses on conflict mitigation, specifically, implementing methods to reduce human-elephant conflict, which directly supports the conservation of elephant populations in the Congo Basin.

The next step in this human-elephant coexistence project is to expand our methodologies to additional villages, reaching more communities beyond those near Monte Alén National Park, particularly those also affected by elephant incursions.

For the future of conservation, both in my country and in the Congo Basin, I hope that people will grow to empathise more with animals and the environment. Human actions are at the root of the challenges we face today. If communities can begin to understand that the environment holds value beyond just being a source of food, and that animals are not simply resources, then there is hope for a brighter, more sustainable future.

Imelda Edita, Equatorial Guinea ECF Project Alternative Livelihoods Lead

I chose to enter the conservation field because, as an apprentice new to this field, I was inspired by the dedication of the project team and those around me. Their commitment motivated me greatly. My background is in agronomy, focusing on soil management and crop production, and I am here to contribute by helping maintain elephant habitats, to prevent elephants from moving into human territories and damaging farmland.

My role involves teaching farmers how to cultivate chili peppers, aubergine, and okra to see if these crops can deter elephants from destroying valuable crops like cassava. We hope that these plants will act as a natural deterrent, protecting the main crops and allowing future harvests to thrive.

Francisco Ekang, Equatorial Guinea GEF Field Operations Manager

I initially chose the Environmental Sciences programme because it was relatively new and not much had been explored in the country yet. As I studied, I realised that overexploitation of our natural resources would create a long-term problem. That's why I gravitated toward the world of conservation, to ensure the continued existence of natural resources for future generations.

I currently work as a manager on Bristol Zoological Society’s project on human-wildlife coexistence, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and administered by the IUCN. My main responsibilities are coordinating tasks and ensuring that project activities are delivered in line with daily and monthly work plans.

The next step for this project will be implementing community workshops, where we'll cover the mitigation measures for elephant crop-foraging in a more practical way and raising awareness in communities around how to be safe around elephants. This will help people understand how to prepare these mitigation measures and apply them in their communities.

For the future of conservation, I personally want to achieve a balance between communities and wildlife, so that on the one hand people can live and can learn to coexist with these animals, since animals like elephants are important to ecosystems.

Basilisa Obono Owono, Equatorial Guinea GEF Project Assistant

I'm a project assistant for Bristol Zoological Society’s GEF-7 human and animal coexistence project. My job focuses on working with the community monitors who record incidents of crop-foraging by elephants and other animals in farms around the village. Another significant part of my role is managing and maintaining the camera traps which we have placed in farms to record evidence of elephant crop-foraging, and analysing the data found. 

I chose to work in conservation because I enjoy protecting animals like elephants, whose numbers are declining in Equatorial Guinea and who are at risk of extinction.

For the future of conservation, I hope for good results for the GEF-7 project in Equatorial Guinea.

Robustiano Gaspar Esono, Equatorial Guinea GEF Project Assistant

I'm working as a Project Assistant on Bristol Zoological Society's human-wildlife coexistence project.

As part of the next steps for this project, we’re planning to do outreach in the communities where we work to raise awareness about the importance of conservation. Many people in our villages don’t yet understand why conservation matters — they mainly use natural resources for food, to sell, or to make money. Our goal is to visit each village, talk with people, and help them see the value of the plants, animals, and biodiversity in our forests. We know it's not an easy task, especially as changing the mindset of older adults is different from speaking to young people, but we hope to make a difference, even little by little, so people can start seeing these species not as a threat, but as a treasure or an asset.

Looking to the future of conservation, we hope that people across the country will have a better understanding of conservation. Right now, many still see nature as something only to use. But once they see why protecting it is important, it can benefit both current and future generations. If we conserve now, our children will still be able to enjoy what we have today. But if we don’t act, those resources could disappear. We want everyone to work together to protect the forests and biodiversity we’re lucky to have — not just for Equatorial Guinea, but for the whole world, because the health of the planet depends on it. We want conservation to reach everyone, especially in countries where few people fully understand the importance of protecting our natural resources, both our forests and our biodiversity.

Bernabé Esono Ekang, Equatorial Guinea GEF Project Assistant

I’m a final-year student in Forestry Engineering at the National University of Equatorial Guinea. Conservation wasn’t my first choice, I chose this path partly because my father wanted one of his sons to study something related to forests. When I moved to Malabo, I also had a cousin studying Environmental Sciences, and that influenced me too. Those two things led me to study Forestry Engineering, and over time, I grew to love it. Now, I consider myself a conservation enthusiast.

I’m working as an assistant on the GEF-7 project with Bristol Zoological Society, which focuses on coexistence between wildlife and local communities around Monte Alén National Park. My role is to assist with the rapid response units activity, which involves community members being trained to deter elephants which have entered people’s farms. This activity is particularly important because the rapid response units aren't just there to move elephants, they also do outreach and education work in their communities. For example, they introduce farmers to non-harmful methods to deter elephants from crops, as well as teaching them about how important these animals are for our ecosystems.

For this project, I think the next step should be to train more people to join these rapid response units, since this method is still in a pilot phase in Equatorial Guinea. I’d also like to see these units expanded into more towns.

For the future of conservation, I think the most important thing would be for everyone, especially governments, to take the protection of biodiversity seriously. We've already seen that the degradation of many parts of our ecosystems is disastrous for the planet. Governments have a key role to play in taking conservation seriously, to help create a better world.

At Bristol Zoological Society, we always love sharing conservation stories and the journeys of not only those who work for the Society, but also those who partner with us, study with us, support, and visit us.

Note: Interviews with the Equatorial Guinea team have been translated from Spanish.

Find out more about our conservation projects in Equatorial Guinea below.