The Gorongosa Wildlife Preserve stretches for 1,500 miles across Mozambique's expanse of lakes, plains and rain forests. In the 1960's, Gorongosa had 500 lions, 2,000 elephants, 14,000 Cape buffalo and 3,000 hippos. Sadly, due to years of war, poaching and poverty, all of those animals have either fled or were killed.
Enter Greg Carr, the Harvard grad who invented voicemail with a partner back in the 1980's. He profited to the tune of $200 million, and ever since he made his fortune, he's been giving back through his charitable foundation, the Carr Foundation. When asked why he chose to throw his money and his efforts behind the Gorongosa Wildlife Preserve, Carr said: "Gorongosa was, most people consider, the most popular national park in all of Africa and the most density of animals, the most beauty, the most diversity of ecosystems. So, you have one of the most beautiful places in the world and you also have perhaps the worst poverty of anywhere in the world, side by side." Carr wanted to do something about this, and do something he has. Thus far Carr has made a difference in a village named Vinho, in which he has built a school and a medical clinic, and has set up 200 villagers with jobs related to the protection and operation of Gorongosa Park. Through his foundation, Carr plans to build 25 more medical clinics and 100 schools. Carr understands that in order for the park to succeed, the people must also have a chance to be successful and healthy.
Gorongosa currently has crocodiles in abundance and exotic birds, but has few impala, and a herd of elephants and a pride of lions. Carr knows that tourists want to see big game and their predators, and he has striven to meet this demand. Last year Carr had trucked in wildebeest from one part of Africa and plans to import hyena from another part. He also has plans to add more hippos as well, but regrets that he cannot import zebras from Zimbabwe since the political situation there is in such disarray at the moment. Now, Carr isn't just slapping together a hodge-podge of animals that he saw in a production of The Lion King or some Animal Planet show---he has assembled a team of scientists to make sure that he gets the mix just right and so he can understand these animals better. Carr expects that by injecting more animals into the park, the country of Mozambique will prosper from the tourist, the hotels to house them, the jobs that will be created in these industries, and the electricity, schools, hospitals, etc. that all of this will necessitate.
Carr is a true visionary who understands that developing a country's natural resources is one of the best ways to help a country get back on its feet. Of his work, Carr said, "Coming to Africa, spending time here, learning from their culture, which is rich and beautiful, is a blessing."
For a clearer picture, check out the CBS 60 Minutes interview below (just exercise some patience sitting through an annoying 30 second ad).
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