Rachel Ikemeh

Rachel Ikemeh is a Nigerian conservationist working to protect some of southern Nigeria’s most highly threatened forest habitats and primate populations. For example, Rachel’s determined efforts have helped to bring back a species from the brink of extinction – the rare and critically endangered Niger Delta red colobus monkey, also considered one of the 25 most endangered primates in the world. Rachel is the Founder/Director of the SW/Niger Delta Forest Project. This grassroots conservation initiative has protected fragile wildlife populations and habitats across her project sites in Africa’s most populous nation. She championed the establishment of two protected areas – a community-based conservation area in the Niger River Delta and a strict conservation area in western Nigeria.

Rachel is currently the Co-Vice Chair for the IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group African Section and a Member of the International Primatological Society (IPS) education committee. Through her strategic positions in these networks, Rachel has been committed to championing the need to increase conservation leadership amongst Africans as she co-founded the African Primatological Society in 2017. She’s trained the 55+ persons who comprise her team from local institutions and communities.