Chimbu Province, in the Papua New Guinean highlands, is the most densely populated province in the country. Almost all the remaining old-growth forest is on the least accessible, most isolated peaks in the region. The Gaigibi community, on the slopes of 9,020-foot Mt. Elimbari, has set aside 25 acres of forest as a community conservation project. They have already marked the area’s boundaries, produced a set of rules for its use, and set up a governing committee.
To support this conservation area, Seacology will provide funding to build and furnish a school building where adults and children can learn to read. People from 19 villages, with a population of around 17,000, will be eligible to attend the school.