Children of the Hills

Rwanda sits in Central Africa, measuring around 10,000 square miles. Its mountainous landscape has earned the country its nickname, the Land of a Thousand Hills. The mountain gorilla is one of four sub-species of gorillas. They roam the dense jungles of Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, spending most of their time at high elevations foraging for food. With just 1,000 mountain gorillas alive today, the animals remain endangered. Illegal poaching, disease, habitat loss, and the effects of war and civil unrest in the region continue to pose a great threat to these animals. The guides, trackers, and rangers in Volcanoes National Park are experts on mountain gorillas and the landscape, and they ensure safe encounters with the animals. Rwanda is an agricultural nation, and farmland surrounds the Virunga Mountains where the gorillas live. Farmers depend on the land for their livelihoods, creating a delicate balance between the people and the gorillas whose habitat has been encroached upon. One of the first things you notice on a trek is the proximity of the cultivated land and the jungle – in many areas, just a small rock wall separates the two. The gorillas will often emerge from the forest and roam across the farmland. The government reinvests proceeds from tourism activities into these local communities to show the people that they can also benefit from sharing the land with the gorillas. While it is not easy, and may not be perfect, Rwanda serves as an example that we can continue to coexist with the wildlife around us. I sought to use this series to highlight the stories and faces of those who call these hills home.