6/10/10
Gorillas at Melbourne Zoo are connected more and more closely with their wild cousins, via a strong link between the Zoo and the Jane Goodall Institute.

Two years ago this week Dr. Goodall visited the Zoo to launch a joint campaign, ‘They're Calling on You', to raise funds for gorilla conservation by calling on the community to donate superseded mobile phones.

The campaign also aims to raise awareness about the devastating impacts of illegal coltan mining in gorilla habitat.  The mineral coltan is used in most mobile phones, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is currently the major source of the international supply. 

Refurbishing and recycling the donated phones helps limit the demand for coltan.  Phones unsuitable for refurbishment are recycled locally, but those suitable for refurbishing are sold inexpensively overseas, in developing countries with established recycling programs.

Melbourne Zoo Director Kevin Tanner said today ‘This is Australia's first zoo, and there is no better way of highlighting our 148^th birthday today than focusing on one of our major conservation partnerships.

‘Jane Goodall is also celebrating a special date this year - it is now 50 years since she arrived in Africa to begin her ground-breaking chimpanzee research.

‘Funds raised via mobile phone recycling are vitally important to the Jane Goodall Institute's work in the DRC, helping to fund JGI's costs of keeping rangers in the field to protect gorillas in their native habitat', he explained.

‘Our Zoos Victoria Wildlife Conservation and Science team are working closely with JGI and allocating additional funding to expand this effective partnership.

‘Conservation is very much at the heart of everything we do here at the Zoo. Jane Goodall is a world-leading authority on primates and their conservation, and we are delighted to be working with her and her organisation', he said.

Kevin Tanner also thanked the Yarra Road Primary School for their ‘birthday gift' of 360 phones, representing one for each child in the school.

He also welcomed Gap Adventures as a new corporate partner, which will collect phones from staff and clients for this project.

The campaign to date has had some impressive results: more than 28,000 phones have been collected at Melbourne Zoo, raising more than $40,000; 175 organisations have registered as donors; more than 60 Victorian schools have donated phones; the largest corporate partner donation to date is the Bendigo Bank, with 561 phones.

Donors can download a postage-free mailing label from the Zoo's website http://www.zoo.org.au/Calling_on_You or drop them off at Melbourne Zoo, Healesville Sanctuary, or Werribee Open Range Zoo.