The African Rainforest Conservancy (ARC), works to conserve and restore

African rainforest Although tropical Africa is mostly familiar to the West for its rainforests, this biogeographic realm of Africa is far more diverse. While the tropics are thought of as regions with hot moist climates, which are caused by latitude and the trop ...

s, particularly focusing on the Eastern Arc mountains of

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

located about southeast of

Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It has three volcanic cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: above sea level and ab ...

. These lush mountains are among the oldest and most biodiverse in the world. The forests themselves are in jeopardy from local logging, used mostly in the surrounding villages for fuel. In addition,

poaching Poaching has been defined as the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights. Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set a ...

activities endanger several rare species. ARC works to protect these mountains by training the community to be caretakers of the forest, developing the many sustainable business opportunities that exist in the region. Concurrently large scale train planting projects work both to reforest denuded native trees and create timber plantations in non-rainforest areas that can be managed sustainably for generations to come.

Biodiversity

Despite the fact that 70% of the original rainforest cover has gone, the Eastern Arc mountains hold thousands of species that have not yet been named as well as the highest density of endangered animals anywhere in the world. These findings were presented by a group of scientists in the

Journal of Biological Conservation A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...

.Science Direct
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References

Animal welfare organisations based in Tanzania {{africa-stub