The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund is on the ground, in the forest, every single day, studying and protecting gorillas. Find more on the campus, its innovative design and its local impact here.įor images from the dedication ceremony, visit: here. The Ellen Campus has been named one of Africa’s 10 most anticipated architectural projects and featured on 60 Minutes and in Architectural Digest. Formerly an agricultural site, the Ellen Campus features a regenerative, biodiverse landscape of 250,000 plants from 120 different species. Support from numerous generous donors contributed to the project, including actor and conservationist Leonardo DiCaprio, who supported the creation of a 360-degree theater and computer lab. It includes three main buildings – the Sandy and Harold Price Research Center, the Cindy Broder Conservation Gallery and the Rob and Melani Walton Education Center – as well as housing for visiting students and researchers. The Ellen Campus’ eco-friendly design takes inspiration from Dian Fossey’s original tent camp at the Karisoke Research Center in Rwanda more than 50 years ago. It opened its doors in February, and since that time has hosted more than 5,000 visitors, including almost 2,000 primary and secondary school students and teachers from nearby schools. Construction began in 2019 and provided jobs and training for 2,400 local construction workers, nearly a quarter of whom were women. The campus will do more than inspire a generation of conservation activists in Rwanda, it will model new ways for global conservationists to bind ecosystems and communities in support of one another.The Ellen Campus features classrooms, laboratories, exhibits, meeting space and student housing in 4,100 m 2 of building space over 12 acres. For this campus, that meant the prioritization of local labor, customized fabrication of furniture and fittings created by Rwandan artisans, and environmental stewardship that aligns with the goals of conservation and habitat protection. ¨When new buildings, landscapes, and institutions are conceived in the way that the Fossey Fund and Ellen DeGeneres have imagined-to have as much impact as possible-reciprocal opportunities are created. "The campus demonstrates how new infrastructure can catalyze conservation and species protection,” said Michael Murphy, MASS Design Group Founding Principal, and Executive Director. This shift is not just important for the Fossey Fund, but for the region and the world.” “The beauty of the campus elevates people’s thinking about conservation, helping them realize how important conservation is. Tara Stoinski, the Fossey Fund’s President and Chief Scientific Officer. “From the outset, the mission of this project was focused on creating a space to engage the many stakeholders in conservation-students, scientists, tourists, conservation partners, community members-to advance our collective goal of saving gorillas and more broadly, the planet,” said Dr. An extensive living laboratory was created on the former agricultural site through the planting of more than 250,000 native plants and the use of green roofs, rainwater harvesting, and a constructed wetland for wastewater treatment. Local labor and materials were used throughout design and construction to minimize the campus footprint, develop an immersive reforested landscape, and ensure job training and economic return to the local community while creating a modern facility for public use and education.Īdjacent to the Volcanoes National Park on the border of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the campus has three main buildings: the Sandy and Harold Price Research Center, the Cindy Broder Conservation Gallery, and the Rob and Melani Walton Education Center, as well as housing for visiting students and researchers. The 12-acre campus models MASS’s “Purpose-Built” methodology, which balances and evaluates capital infrastructure alongside a project's mission, design, and feasibility. The new multi-building campus is a $15 million investment that anchors the region as a conservation hub for ecological preservation and education in Africa. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, The Ellen Fund, and MASS Design Group celebrated the opening of The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Fossey Gorilla Fund in a ceremony at the campus this week. #PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE PROJECTS The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Fossey Gorilla Fund / MASS Design Group The campus, positioned in the Virunga Mountains of Rwanda is a global model for ecologically responsible design and construction.
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