Keepers at Los Angeles Zoo have been raising funds for the Limbe Wildlife Centre and protecting wild gorilla habitat through a recycling campaign. The zoo has been encouraging visitors and staff to put their old, used and broken gadgets into a recycling bin. The electronics are sent to ECO-CELL to responsibly break down and recycle.

ECO-CELL purchase and recycle phones and hand-held electronics, to reduce the need for mineral mining around gorilla habitats. Coltan, a mineral found in huge quantities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), is used in electronic devices because it stores and releases electrical energy efficiently. Coltan mines, many of them illegal, are numerous throughout endangered gorilla habitats. These mines pose a threat to gorillas and other wildlife as habitat is destroyed to facilitate mine construction and wildlife is hunted to feed the workers.

Thanks to the efforts of LA Zoo staff, they have raised over $300 for the Limbe Wildlife Centre. Thank you to Tania Prebble, a keeper at LA Zoo and former Limbe Wildlife Centre volunteer, for choosing us to receive your ECO-CELL donation! We have 14 western lowland gorillas at the Limbe Wildlife Centre, and this donation will go towards their care. Each day, our gorillas get enrichment, nutritious food and excellent veterinary care.

If you live in the USA and would like to recycle your electronics, you can see a list of ECO-CELL’s drop-off points on their website.

If you would like to raise funds for the Limbe Wildlife Centre, please get in touch at fundrasing@limbewildlife.org.