We were honored and thrilled recently when the Disney Conservation Fund awarded our Bee Project with support for 2023 and 2024!!  
​
Since 2020, we have been working with Citizen Scientist farmer-beekeepers who live along the border of Kibale National Park and who maintain apiaries that, in conjunction with trenches, intend to serve as natural barriers against elephant crop-raiding. 

We gather data about honey bee health in order to try to understand whether these “bee fences” can be effective over the long term at maintaining good neighborly relations between the elephants (who are terrified of bees!) and the communities of subsistence farmers just outside of KNP.  ​Thanks to Disney, we will continue gathering data about the bees while also expanding the project to collect survey data about elephant incursions.  Our Bee Project Team, will begin tracking all incidents of elephant crop-raiding and interviewing affected farmers, both in areas protected by bee fences and in areas without them.  With this information, we hope to gain more insight into just how successful are our fierce winged guards at keeping the peace!

We also have been working with Citizen Science beekeepers in a region more arid than the rainforest conditions of Kibale National Park, adjacent to Queen Elizabeth National Park.  The QENP beekeepers are collecting the same kinds of information about bee health as the KNP beekeepers - ability to maintain healthy temperature and humidity using BroodMinder™ devices, data from physical hive checks (e.g., number of combs where the queen bee has laid brood eggs, number of combs where the bees have gathered and stored pollen, number of combs filled with honey, presence or absence of pests like ants or beetles).  Our hope is that by collecting data from a more arid region, we can isolate the effects that rainfall may have on bee health - especially as rainfall seems to be increasing around KNP as a result of climate change.

We are so grateful to the Akron Zoo for supporting this expansion of our Bee Project into QENP and to the other amazing organizations who also support our Bee Project, the National Geographic Society, the Oklahoma City Zoo, and IDEA WILD!

Are you fascinated by bees? Do you love elephants? The Kasiisi Project Citizen Science project "Bees on Guard" contributes to the conservation of both these species around Kibale National Park, Uganda in partnership with local beekeeping co-operatives, the Busiriba Beekeeping and Conservation Association and Conservation to Coexist.
​
Elephants are magnificent and  fascinating, but also enormously destructive, bringing them into frequent conflict with their human neighbors. When faced with the destruction of an entire maize crop, subsistence farmers, struggling to make ends meet, are not supporters of elephant conservation.

This is where bees come in. African honey bees, tiny as they are, have ferocious stings and elephants avoid them. When farmers string beehives along wires, forming "Bee Fences" to defend their fields, elephants look elsewhere for food. But in order to deter elephants bee colonies need to be strong and healthy, a challenge during the wet season.

 Active apiaries require regular maintenance and  dealing with bees fierce enough to drive off elephants requires the right equipment, with costs beyond the reach of these beekeepers. This  is where you can help. You will be in great company. National Geographic, Akron Zoo and Oklahoma City Zoo have all assisted us in  getting this program off the ground,  but now we need to reach more farmers.
​
We are running a GoFundMe campaign to raise the money needed to train and equip 15 more beekeeper associations so that their  apiaries support healthy bee colonies, produce honey to supplement family incomes, and are active enough to save the lives of elephants.

• Please Click here to make a donation.

​If you wish to make your donation a gift we can help there too. Just e-mail us at ​elizabethaross@me.com and we can send your recipient a card.

​The Kasiisi Project proudly announces the winners of the 1st Annual Kibale Conservation Youth Art Contest. We asked children ages 5 to 18 to learn about Uganda’s Kibale National Park and express what they’ve learned by drawing, painting or sculpting one of the magnificent species that call the Park home. We were dazzled by the artists’ creativity, the variety of chosen wildlife, large and small, and the powerful messages that accompanied each piece.

Looking for fun and unique ways to connect kids with nature and wildlife during school closures? We’re here for help! Throughout the summer, we'll be sharing at-home activities and online learning resources to help bring Uganda's wildlife into your home.​

The Kasiisi Project's Improved Cookstove Initiative is one of 10 finalists selected  from over 200 entries to Solution Search's Climate Change needs Behavior Change competition. Two prizes of $25,000 will be awarded to the Judges' Choice (selected by Solution Search's panel) and People's Choice (recipient of most votes).