How Can I Give Back to Gorilla Conservation After Trekking?

Gorilla trekking in Uganda already contributes directly to conservation through the permit fee — a portion of every $800 permit goes to Uganda Wildlife Authority’s park management and to the Gorilla Levy that funds community development projects around Bwindi. But many visitors who complete a gorilla trek feel moved to do more, and there are several meaningful ways to extend your contribution beyond the permit.

The Gorilla Levy: What Your Permit Already Funds

Since 2014, Uganda Wildlife Authority has allocated a gorilla levy — initially $5, now integrated into the overall permit revenue structure — from each trekking permit to community development projects in the areas surrounding Bwindi and Mgahinga. These funds have supported school construction, medical facilities, community water systems, and youth employment initiatives in the parishes closest to the park boundaries. Understanding that your permit fee is already doing this work provides context for any additional giving: you are supplementing a system that is functioning, not filling a gap where nothing exists.

Supporting Conservation Organisations Directly

Several organisations work directly on mountain gorilla conservation and accept donations from visitors who want to give beyond the permit fee. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International (gorillafund.org) focuses on research, anti-poaching work, and community programmes in both Uganda and Rwanda and is one of the oldest continuously active gorilla conservation organisations in the world. The Wildlife Conservation Society Uganda program supports veterinary services for injured gorillas and policy work with UWA. The International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP), a coalition of WWF, Fauna and Flora International, and African Wildlife Foundation, coordinates transboundary conservation across Uganda, Rwanda, and the DRC.

Volunteering with Community Enterprises

Community enterprises around Bwindi — including the Bwindi Impenetrable Great Apes Community Organisation (IGACO) and various Batwa cultural projects — accept volunteers with relevant skills in business development, craft production training, hospitality, and youth education. Volunteering in these contexts requires a longer stay than a typical trekking itinerary but is well-suited to visitors who plan an extended Uganda trip or who return for multiple visits. Some organisations also accept skills-based remote support — grant writing, digital marketing, translation — which can be done from home after your visit.

Buying from Community-Based Enterprises

The most immediate and reliable way to extend your giving is to purchase goods and services from community-based enterprises near the park rather than from enterprises with no local connection. Buying crafts from the Bwindi Community Hospital craft shop (which supports hospital operations), eating meals at community-run guesthouses, and participating in Batwa cultural walks organised through verified community programmes all direct money to community members who live alongside the park. These purchases are not donations — they are exchanges for genuine value — but they function as an economic contribution to the communities whose support for park conservation is essential.

Spreading the Word: Advocacy After the Trek

One of the most impactful things a gorilla trekking visitor can do costs nothing: tell the story of the experience to people who have never heard it. Mountain gorilla conservation depends on a global constituency that values the gorillas’ existence, and that constituency is built primarily through first-hand accounts from visitors. Writing a detailed review of your experience on travel platforms, sharing photographs on social media with context about what you observed, and correcting misconceptions about Uganda’s safety and accessibility in conversations with friends and colleagues all contribute to the visitor numbers that fund the permit system. Conservation funding follows visitor attention, and visitor attention follows authentic first-hand accounts.

Adopting a Gorilla

Several conservation organisations offer symbolic gorilla adoption programmes — an annual donation linked to a specific named gorilla in a habituated family, with updates on that individual’s health and family developments over the year. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund and the World Wildlife Fund both offer these programmes. The adoption does not give you any visit rights or priority access to that family, but it provides a continuing connection to the gorillas after your trek and funds ongoing research and monitoring. For visitors who found the encounter emotionally significant, the adoption programme offers a way to sustain that connection through ongoing contribution.

Sustainable Choices During Your Uganda Visit

The cumulative impact of visitor spending choices during a Uganda trip extends well beyond the gorilla permit fee. Selecting accommodation that employs local staff, sources food from local suppliers, and operates water and energy systems sustainably multiplies the conservation impact of your visit across the local economy. Avoiding the purchase of products made from wildlife or forest materials — carved ivory substitutes, skins, or dried forest products of uncertain provenance — ensures your spending does not inadvertently support extraction from the protected areas you are visiting. These choices together create a spending pattern that supports the conservation economy at every point in your itinerary.