Christmas Giving

By John Freeman on 1 December 2006

Stung by news from the Congo’s Virunga National Park on the depressing fate of hippos being hunted by poachers, I had a hunt around on the Net and located a web site which enables donations to WildLifeDirect (www.wildlifedirect.org), an organisation really on the front line in the fight against the people who are devastating the animal population. (Pictured above: the rangers at work).

BBC News reported earlier this week that if the poaching continues at the same rate as now all the hippo in Virunga will be gone in months. It’s a story they have been covering for months but the international community seems to be doing little about it. Maybe there’s not enough oil to worry about.

To learn more about Congo Rangers and crisis being encountered in Virunga National Park , visit this blog: www.wildlifedirect.org/congo-rangers

You can also donate towards Virunga Widows’ Fund (www.virungafund.org). This is a fund for supporting the widows of Congo Rangers who have been killed during active service.

The Rangers are literally risking their lives to try and save wildlife. Thanking them for their efforts with a donation strikes me as a better way to spend money at Christmas.

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.