Investing in Gorongosa

60 Minutes, A very popular American Investigative news show, just profiled Greg Carr, a former IT entrepreneur that was largely responsible for the creation of voicemail. Howeverm, the 60 mintues piece was solely about the work that Greg Carr is doing in Mozambique using $40 million dollars of his own money.

Carr has made one of the largest individual commitments in the history of conservation in Africa. He's going to restore Gorongosa National Park, which is a National Park in Mozambique that was once reknowned as one of the most beautiful game parks in Africa. He has pledged as much as $40 million over 30 years, an almost unheard-of time frame in a field where most donors—governments and nonprofit organizations alike—make grants for four or five years at most.

He also is spearheading one of the largest animal reintroduction efforts on the continent and hopes to answer one of the most debated questions in conservation today: how to boost development without destroying the environment.

This is a noble, yet risky undertaking. His efforts could transform the lives of people living in that region of Mozambique and help boost the countries revenues from tourism. It doesnt hurt that his story is getting around and should be the recipient of at the very least curious tourists and other philantropic contribution.

I imagine the tourism industry in Southern Africa is paying keen attention to this project as are conservationists around the world.