#51 Wildlife vet for Uganda's critically endangered mountain gorillas: Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka

Welcome back to another episode of Emerging Environments. In this episode, we are talking with wildlife veterinarian and conservationist, Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka. Dr. Gladys, as she is known, is the founder and CEO of Conservation Through Public Health, an award winning NGO that protects endangered gorillas and other wildlife in Uganda while promoting sustainable tourism using a One Health approach. After receiving her veterinary training at the Royal Veterinary College at the University of London in 1996, Dr. Gladys returned to Uganda and established the Uganda Wildlife Authority’s first veterinary department. Her subsequent Master’s research on the human-wildlife interface at North Carolina State University laid the foundations for what would become Conservation Through Public Health.

Our conversation with Dr. Gladys recounts her journey as a scientist and conservationist. We talked about the making of her fantastic book, Walking with Gorillas, and how its impact has been felt beyond Uganda. Her passion for finding connections between gorilla conservation and community livelihoods shined light on the significance of Uganda’s mountain gorillas, their health, and the complexity of gorilla trekking as a form of ecotourism. We invite you all to find Dr. Gladys’ book in your local bookstore, or download the audiobook to learn about Gladys’ story and the enormous impact that her work has had on Uganda’s gorilla populations and the livelihood of the communities that steward the engagement with them. So with that, we’re thrilled to share this conversation with Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka as the first episode of season 6 of Emerging Environments.