Poaching and loss of habitat have been threatening the existence of mountain gorillas since the 1960s. In 1966, a brave woman named Dian Fossey sacrificed her health and safety in order to study mountain gorillas in Zaire (Congo) and later on in Rwanda where she founded the Karisoke Research Center in 1967. It was there that she was able to deliver vital information about mountain gorillas to the scientific community and the organizations that supported her studies. Despite the laws banning the killing of these gentle animals, poachers still continue to capture and kill them without fear of the law as they bribed the local conservators who in turn, looked the other way.

Fossey fought hard to save her new animal friends, but her efforts were not enough to protect the species she has spent thousands of hours studying. In 1977, poachers captured and killed a gorilla Fossey was particularly fond of and had named Digit. Digit’s death, heartbreaking as it was to Fossey, did not break her spirit. Instead, it had sparked her rage and strengthened her commitment in protecting each and every one of the mountain gorillas in the area. She founded an organization in 1978 that aims to protect gorillas and their natural habitats in Africa. Initially called Digit Fund in honor of her slain gorilla friend, the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund collaborates with government agencies and international partner organizations to implement education, training, and development drives in particular regions. These initiatives are meant to teach people about how gorillas help maintain balance in the rainforest’s ecosystem and how their loss can affect not only the rainforest, but the people who rely on it as well.

Dian Fossey was murdered in 1983 and the foundation was renamed in her honor. Despite the death of the group’s great leader, the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund continues to save gorillas by helping people find alternative sources of income and teaching them the value of ecotourism.