EXECUTIVE SUMMARY | PROJECT MANAGER

Foreword

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY | PROJECT MANAGER The Last Dance

Dear Friends and Supporters,

2020 has passed. Happy New Year 2021!

This year was physically, psychologically and emotionally intense. It has been challenging, to say the least. This unique year will have left its mark on most of us. This being said, by being mindful of ourselves and others, and maintaining our motivation to fulfillour cause, we can be hopeful of a positive and happy 2021. We have been pushed to an unprecedented level of individual and collective anxiety and depression, at times, even frustration and anger. The strains of this year necessitate an equally unprecedented level of self-care. We all must make the individual effort to restore ourselves, align our mind and body, and keep expressing our love for people, nature and ourselves. We must approach each day with an open-minded attitude, willing to learn new things and challenge our ideas. Even when we feel we lack the strength, we must continue to make every effort for our cause. We must forgive ourselves for the small mistakes that we’re all inevitably going to make. Finally, we must make time for ourselves, and to ensure that we allow ourselves time to laugh and smile. Take a break from your phone and the news. Instead, read a book; play or listen to music and dance; play a game or make sport; simply appreciate art and nature. By taking these simple steps, we can rest each night and start each new day with renewed energy and motivation. Taking stock from this most unusual of years, these constitute our New Year’s resolutions for 2021.

A lot can be learned from The Last Dance, the incredible documentary about legendary basketball player Michael Jordan. Jordan not only excelled in his sport but placed it at the forefront of culture and had an unprecedented level of influence. From this documentary, one key aspect of his personality shines through as the reason he was able to achieve this: MJ focused on the present. Though he had learned

from the past, he did not let it hold him back. He had no fear of the future and instead made each moment as good as it possibly could be. The results of this were undeniable – at the end of his Chicago Bulls career, he and his team remained at the top of the game, winning the NBA title for a record 6th time. We don’t all have to be Michael Jordan, but we can learn from this attitude and put it into practice in our daily lives.

Though it may be a stretch to compare the NBA playoffs to our challenges here at Limbe, it is fair to say that 2020 was a fierce opponent. However, we are extremely proud of the achievements of this last month in particular, and we will gladly take it as our trophy. It repays our months of effort to ensure sufficient funds, manage the centre day-to-day, develop our vision, start new projects and increase our visibility.

Here is a brief preview, a list of our achievements:

-Pandrillus launched the second education #ProtectWildlife campaign in partnership with the PSMNR and the RDFOF. This program highlights the biodiversity of the protected areas of the South West region and showcases the work done in Limbe to save the African grey parrotfrom extinction(p.11, 23-24 & 26);

-We integrated the male chimp Jacob to

Ngambe and Mayos in the special care and rehabilitation section for chimps (p. 12-13);

-We started the integration process of 2 adult males (Papa and Nanga) into the Mainland group. This will be one of the biggest challenges for 2021, requiring a high level of behavioral expertise from our team; -We kick-started a major project for 2021, dividing the gorilla enclosure. We have almost completedphase 1: renovation of the night den(p. 19-21); -We organised a Christmas Nature Club for the children of the staff(p. 24-25); -We displayed the 4 billboards highlighting the original creative work by artist Toh

Bright as part of the Art4Nature programme (p. 24-25, 27-28);

-We successfully released the 3rd and 4th flock of African grey parrots(p. 16-18); -We awarded the top-performing 3 workers for the last two quartersof 2020(p. 30).

There will always be months that are particularly busy, but particularly productive, and this was December 2020. Just like at the end of a hard-fought and tiring game, we now need to be proud, look back and realize our accomplishments, take some rest, and get prepared for next year. This is Our Last Dance. The Holiday Season came just at the right time! We hope you will enjoy this report, keep following and supporting us in 2021, and do your best to be happy!

We wish to thank all of you who placed your trust in our programmes. We rely more than ever on donations and every coin gives us a little more fuel to keep moving forward. And that is what we need: keep our sight on our goal, keep taking the next step. You expect us to do so, and we expect it of ourselves. We will keep fighting together for Nature. It is not a straight line and time has its own way. But in the end, we can make a difference.

Thank you, as ever, for your unfailing support.