October 1 - 13, 2020
Click to Download Race Bib
|
The Wechiau Community Hippo Sanctuary in the Upper West Region Africa is home to one of Ghana's last hippo populations. For over 20 years the WCHS has worked to ensure the health and safety of the hippos while also improving the livelihoods, health, and wellness of the people of living within this protect area.
COVID-19 has resulted in the a reduction in revenue for the sanctuary which relies on tourism to help pay for programs. Since 2011 the VIU Ghana Research and Study Tour as been travelling to the WCHS to conduct research, offer workshops, and to participate in tourism services. Like many other visitors, our 2020 trip was cancelled due to the travel restrictions related to COVID. To assist our partners at the WCHS and to raise money for the John Weighill Memorial Award, which helps Vancouver Island University students to travel to Ghana, we are hosting a virtual run! |
Run Details
Dates: October 1-13, 2020
Distances: 1K, 5K, or 10K
Location: Virtual so you can do it anywhere!
Tracking: Runkeeper or any gps tracker on your phone or watch.
Registration: Click Here to Register!
Price: $20.00 - All runs comes with custom digital completion certificate or $35 for the completion certificate and commemorative 3 inch woodalion of our logo.
Notes: There are only 150 woodalions available - 75 for the 10K and 75 for the 5K. Proceeds from registration will be divided between the WCHS (2/3) and VIU's John Weighill Memorial Award (1/3).
Distances: 1K, 5K, or 10K
Location: Virtual so you can do it anywhere!
Tracking: Runkeeper or any gps tracker on your phone or watch.
Registration: Click Here to Register!
Price: $20.00 - All runs comes with custom digital completion certificate or $35 for the completion certificate and commemorative 3 inch woodalion of our logo.
Notes: There are only 150 woodalions available - 75 for the 10K and 75 for the 5K. Proceeds from registration will be divided between the WCHS (2/3) and VIU's John Weighill Memorial Award (1/3).
Donations
Participants and supports are encouraged to help raise additional funds for either the Wechiau Community Hippo Sanctuary or the VIU John Weighill Memorial Award.
Wechiau Community Hippo Sanctuary: Funds raised for the WCHS will be used to create a new Environmental Education Fund to help the Sanctuary offer programs to local school and to support general operations. Donors are able to indicate whether they would like their funds to go to the Environmental Education Fund or to the WCHS in general. Donations to the WCHS will no receive a tax receipt as they are not a registered Canadian charity or not-for-profit.
VIU John Weighill Memorial Award: This fund is used to support VIU participating in the Ghana Research and Study Tour - a field study program offered through the VIU World Leisure Centre of Excellence and the Department of Recreation and Tourism Management at Vancouver Island University. Donations to this award are eligible for a Canadian tax receipt. You can make this donation through the VIU Foundation's webpage and by indicating you want the funds to go to the John Weighill Memorial Award. (select "other" for designation on the form and add the award title)
Wechiau Community Hippo Sanctuary: Funds raised for the WCHS will be used to create a new Environmental Education Fund to help the Sanctuary offer programs to local school and to support general operations. Donors are able to indicate whether they would like their funds to go to the Environmental Education Fund or to the WCHS in general. Donations to the WCHS will no receive a tax receipt as they are not a registered Canadian charity or not-for-profit.
VIU John Weighill Memorial Award: This fund is used to support VIU participating in the Ghana Research and Study Tour - a field study program offered through the VIU World Leisure Centre of Excellence and the Department of Recreation and Tourism Management at Vancouver Island University. Donations to this award are eligible for a Canadian tax receipt. You can make this donation through the VIU Foundation's webpage and by indicating you want the funds to go to the John Weighill Memorial Award. (select "other" for designation on the form and add the award title)
About the
Wechiau Community Hippo Sanctuary
Created in 1998 by the Paramount Chief and his sub-Chiefs, this protected area in located in the Upper West Region of Ghana in West Africa. This Community Resource Management Area (CREMA), fully sanctioned by the Ghana Wildlife Division, was created as an alternative to a new national park that would have seen the removal of many local citizens and villages.
The WCHS is comprised of 20 Villages which are largely dependant on subsistence agriculture for income. This region of Ghana experiences extreme poverty and complete crop failure due to drought is expected once every five years! Through the efforts of the Sanctuary and its supporters, additional livelihoods have been developed including:
The Sanctuary has also worked with donors and NGOs to open new schools, drill water wells, and provide scholarships to for secondary and post-secondary education.
Management of the WCHS is governed by the Sanctuary Management Board who follow a set of approved bylaws and a management plan. They are an award winning conservation area and have received recognition from the UNDP Equator Prize and the Ghana Tourism Authority. The WCHS has a long standing partnership with the Calgary Zoo who provide technical assistance and biological monitoring. Vancouver Island University, through the Ghana Research and Study Tour program, has been working with the WCHS since 2010.
Learn more on the WCHS Facebook page.
The WCHS is comprised of 20 Villages which are largely dependant on subsistence agriculture for income. This region of Ghana experiences extreme poverty and complete crop failure due to drought is expected once every five years! Through the efforts of the Sanctuary and its supporters, additional livelihoods have been developed including:
- Ecotourism operations including a lodge (food services are available to groups who plan in advance), hippo safari, plants walk, and cultural tours.
- An organic Shea cooperative for women who collect and sell Shea nuts that are grown in areas of the WCHS that have been certified organic.
- An organic Shea butter factory in partnership with the Savannah Fruits Company. The factory employs local men and women and produces high quality Shea Butter that is exported for both food and cosmetic purposes.
The Sanctuary has also worked with donors and NGOs to open new schools, drill water wells, and provide scholarships to for secondary and post-secondary education.
Management of the WCHS is governed by the Sanctuary Management Board who follow a set of approved bylaws and a management plan. They are an award winning conservation area and have received recognition from the UNDP Equator Prize and the Ghana Tourism Authority. The WCHS has a long standing partnership with the Calgary Zoo who provide technical assistance and biological monitoring. Vancouver Island University, through the Ghana Research and Study Tour program, has been working with the WCHS since 2010.
Learn more on the WCHS Facebook page.
