Gorillas in Our Midst

Did you know that the average adult male gorilla eats between 40 and 50 pounds of food a day? Amy Vedder's website has more intriguing information like this. Rene Ebersole is on the faculty of the NYU School of Journalism. She is also a senior editor at Audubon Magazine. More about Gorton High School >>

Author Rene Ebersole will enrich Donna Cooke’s 9th grade English class’ literary experience by discussing her book, “Gorilla Mountain: The Story of Wildlife Biologist Amy Vedder.” Ms. Ebersole will talk to the Gorton High School students from 7:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m., and 10:15 a.m. -1:00 p.m., at the school, 100 Shonnard Place in Yonkers.

Rene Ebersole’s articles on science, nature, and the environment have appeared in such publications as National Wildlife, Audubon, Wildlife Conservation, Current Science, and National Geographic Explorer. Ebersole emotes that science writing is “one of the coolest jobs on the planet,” each story is an adventure and an opportunity to meet an inspiring person who is making a difference. In addition to writing books, Rene works as a senior editor for Audubon Magazine.

“Gorilla Mountain: The Story of Wildlife Biologist Amy Vedder” is about Amy Vedder, a wildlife biologist whose motto is: discover, involve, protect. She founded the Mountain Gorilla Project while living and working in Rwanda. Currently, Vedder is the Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society, Living Landscapes Program, New York Coordination Team.

The Living Landscapes Program is an innovative concept for conservation in the 21st century. By looking through the eyes of animals - and following them beyond borders - this initiative develops better ways for people and wildlife to share the earth's living landscapes. The program's approach explicitly places wildlife at the center of conservation strategies, but recognizes that few places on earth remain free from human influence. The program develops and tests wildlife-based conservation strategies that take into account human impact, and link monitoring of wildlife directly to assessing conservation progress. By pursuing a common set of strategies and approaches at sites across the world, the Living Landscapes program promotes inter-site research and learning and develops models of conservation project management that are broadly applicable.