The #Congo Basin is not only important to the millions of species that call it their home, but also to the health and well-being of the rest of the planet. Learn what Doreen Robinson, UN Environment Programme Chief for #Wildlife, is doing to protect the basin and all of its flora and fauna under the new Global Environment Facility Congo Basin Sustainable Landscapes Impact Program: https://www.thegef.org/newsroom/news/environmental-challenges-are-human-challenges-and-we-can-solve-them Via Global

Herds of African Forest Elephants 🐘 once roamed the vast savannas and dense tropical rainforests of the Congo Basin, but hunting and habitat devastation erased nearly 86% of populations between 1922 and 2015. Elephants are “ecosystem engineers” — meaning their activities help to create and maintain habitats beneficial to other species. Elephants push over trees as they search for food, creating mosaics of open areas and woodlands. They help to remove sediment from water holes as they wallow, an