Saving Grey Crowned Cranes in Rwanda

The anti-IWT initiative

RWCA take a holistic approach to tackling key conservation issues. Their main focus is to protect the endangered grey crowned crane, a species threated by poaching and habitat loss. To do this, RWCA uses community outreach programmes alongside crane rehabilitation to raise awareness of threats to the species, stabilise their population, and improve local livelihoods.  

RWCA primarily work with local communities around important crane habitats – Rugezi marshland and Akagera National Park. These communities have high levels of poverty and it’s RWCA’s aim to tackle the dual problems of illegal trade and habitat loss at its source through activities such as education, law enforcement and supporting alternative sources of income.

Education campaigns

Community campaigns are carried out in strategic locations, such as market places, in order to target the most amount of people. The campaigns hope to increase awareness of grey crown cranes and to change traditional beliefs surrounding their use and status. Key conservation messages are promoted alongside quizzes and competitions, with each event reaching up to 1000 people.

RWCA have also created a comic in collaboration with the International Crane Foundation to educate and inspire school children on the need to care for the environment. A key message in the comic is not to take crane eggs or chicks and the comics have reached over 20,000 young children who have pledged to protect the grey crowned cranes.

In addition, an Educational Arts Programme has been set up for children living near Rugezi marsh to promote the protection of the grey crowned crane. A total of seven Youth Environmental Clubs have been started in communities near Rugezi marsh and Akagera National Park. These clubs meet each week to learn about the environment, with a particular focus on the grey crowned crane and their habitat.

Community conservation agreements

These agreements require community members to commit to conservation actions in return for benefits. Conservation actions include protecting crane breeding sites or providing information on illegal activities.

Community Conservation Champions

These champions are recruited from communities at biodiversity hotspots throughout Rwanda. There is now a network of 30 champions, who volunteer to conduct field visits, record crane sightings and work with other local stakeholders to protect the species and deliver key conservation messages. Over 100 community events, reaching more than 11,000 people, were held in 2019.

Marsh Rangers

RWCA have recruited over 30 men and women Marsh Rangers from within communities around Rugezi marshland. The rangers patrol the marshland, monitoring the crane population and reporting on illegal activities, as well as educating community members on key conservation messages. The latter is particularly important given most people aren’t aware that their actions are illegal. The rangers also work with local leaders to increase law enforcement efforts and raise awareness of existing laws related to conservation. Annual workshops with the rangers, local leaders and conservation champions also provide a space to discuss any challenges to do with conservation that have arisen within the community.

Crane rehabilitation

RWCA has worked with the Rwandan Government to register all captive cranes in the country, with many individuals released back into the wild in Akagera National Park. RWCA has also set up a sanctuary for the birds that weren’t healthy enough to be released, called Umusambi Village.

Inclusion of gender, age and ethnic groups

Outreach campaigns aim to target as many people as possible.