Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center

What Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center does

The Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center (GRACE) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that operates the world's only sanctuary dedicated exclusively to critically endangered Grauer's gorillas, based on a 39-acre forest enclosure in North Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo, with administrative offices in Falmouth, Massachusetts and Goma. Its core operational stack consists of a multi-phase constructed sanctuary (gorilla night houses, outdoor yards, quarantine facility, 24-acre and 15-acre forest enclosures), a 500,000-acre forest protection program spanning Tayna Nature Reserve and the Usala corridor, and a community-led conservation education platform that reaches over 60,000 people annually through schools, conservation clubs, weekly radio broadcasts on Radio Tayna, and major events such as World Gorilla Day. Programmatic outputs include 24/7 veterinary and husbandry care for 14 rescued gorillas, the first-ever successful rewilding of four adult Grauer's gorillas to Mt. Tshiaberimu in Virunga National Park in late 2024, and infrastructure such as Africa's first live-stream gorilla camera (installed 2019 with Annenberg and Explore).

Revenue is generated entirely through charitable mechanisms: individual donations via the Neon CRM donation portal, cryptocurrency donations in 70+ currencies (The Giving Block and Gemini Trust Exchange), a symbolic gorilla adoption program, planned giving/legacy gifts, a merchandise e-commerce store (shopgracegorillas.org), the Grace Forest Fund, and an electronics-recycling partnership with Eco-Cell. Distribution is global (donor-facing) and regional (sanctuary visitors and community programs), with strategic amplification through partnerships with LA Zoo, Dallas Zoo, Nashville Zoo, Detroit Zoo, Re:wild, Rainforest Trust, Gorilla Doctors, and Virunga National Park. GRACE is GFAS-accredited (first great ape sanctuary in Africa, 2019; reaccredited 2023), incorporated in Georgia, USA, and registered as a Congolese NGO.

Name

Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center

Legal name

Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center, Inc.

Website

https://gracegorillas.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

GRACE operates the world's only sanctuary dedicated exclusively to critically endangered Grauer's gorillas in North Kivu, DRC, providing rescue, rehabilitation, and rewilding services alongside community education reaching 60,000+ people annually and protection of 500,000+ acres of habitat.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wildlife Conservation Services

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Wildlife Conservation & Species Protection (BPAGAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wildlife Rescue, Rehabilitation & Release (BPAGAIAC), Biodiversity & Habitat Conservation (BPAGAGAA), Conservation & Human–Wildlife Conflict Mitigation (BPAGAIAI)

Keywords

• Gorilla conservation
• Wildlife sanctuary
• Primate rehabilitation
• Habitat protection
• Community conservation

Headquarters

HQ city

Niwot

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Donations: GRACE relies primarily on charitable donations from individuals, foundations, and organizations worldwide. Donations are accepted via the website (grace.app.neoncrm.com), with EIN 46-2308758 for U.S. tax purposes. The organization maintains transparency with public 990 filings and Candid Platinum Seal of Transparency.
2. Cryptocurrency Donations: Accepts over 70 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD Coin, and others. Donations are immediately converted to fiat currency. Crypto donations are classified as non-taxable events in the U.S., allowing donors to avoid capital gains tax while claiming a deduction. Processed through The Giving Block and Gemini Trust Exchange.
3. Online Store: Operates an e-commerce store (shopgracegorillas.org) selling GRACE-branded apparel and merchandise. Items ship from the UK manufacturer using UK sizes. Returns accepted within 30 days.
4. Gorilla Adoption Program: Individuals can adopt specific gorillas (e.g., Mapendo adopted by John Blair & Carolyn Bancroft in memory of Bliss; Shamavu by Green Ape CBD; Muyisa by Sandra Kozlowski). This provides a connection for donors while supporting gorilla care.
5. Planned Giving: Legacy gifts through wills, estate plans, or 401K beneficiary designations. Donors join the GRACE Legacy Club. Gifts support general operating activities unless otherwise designated.
6. Grace Forest Fund: Dedicated fund for forest conservation efforts, supporting habitat protection and community-managed nature reserves.
7. Electronics Recycling: Partnered with Eco-Cell to collect and recycle electronics containing coltan (a mineral mined in DRC linked to gorilla habitat destruction). Eco-Cell donates proceeds from recycled devices to GRACE for gorilla conservation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

GRACE operates the world's only sanctuary dedicated exclusively to critically endangered Grauer's gorillas, providing round-the-clock rescue, rehabilitation, and rewilding services for orphaned gorillas in a 39-acre natural forest habitat in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The organization also delivers community-led forest protection across 500,000+ acres of habitat and conservation education reaching 60,000+ local people annually. Funding is supported through individual donations, foundation grants, a gorilla adoption program, merchandise sales, and a live-stream gorilla camera.

Product overview

GRACE (Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center) operates the world's only sanctuary dedicated exclusively to Grauer's gorillas, offering a suite of interconnected conservation programs. Core offerings include gorilla rescue and rehabilitation services with 24/7 expert care, a pioneering rewilding program that has successfully reintroduced four gorillas to the wild, and conservation education reaching over 60,000 people annually through schools, conservation clubs, and radio broadcasts. GRACE's community engagement extends to electronics recycling partnerships, fuel-efficient stove installation, and forest protection spanning over 500,000 acres. The organization also operates an adoption program allowing donors to symbolically support individual gorillas, and a merchandise shop (shopgracegorillas.org). Public engagement is enhanced through Africa's first live-stream gorilla camera.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gorilla Rescue and Rehabilitation Services Round-the-clock expert care and rehabilitation for orphaned Grauer's gorillas rescued from the illegal wildlife trade, delivered by Congolese caregivers in a 39-acre forest habitat sanctuary in eastern DRC.
• Gorilla Rewilding Program Pioneering program to safely reintroduce rehabilitated Grauer's gorillas to the wild, following IUCN Best Practices for Great Ape Reintroduction.
• Gorilla Adoption Program Symbolic adoption program allowing individual donors to sponsor specific rescued Grauer's gorillas and receive updates about their care and progress.
• Conservation Education Programs School-based conservation education for Primary 3 and Primary 6 students, conservation clubs for youth ages 3-20, and community conservation education reaching 60,000+ people annually.
• Forest Protection Services Management and protection of over 500,000 acres of primary rainforest habitat including Tayna Nature Reserve (282,000 acres) and Usala Conservation Corridor (284,801 acres), staffed by 80 trained community forest guardians.
• Fuel-Efficient Stove Program Community initiative to build and install fuel-efficient cookstoves, reducing wood consumption and human intrusion into gorilla habitat; over 1,000 stoves built through collaboration with women's groups.
• Electronics Recycling Program Partnership with Eco-Cell to recycle old electronics containing coltan, reducing mining pressure on gorilla habitat in DRC, with proceeds supporting gorilla conservation.
• GRACE Merchandise Shop Online store selling apparel and merchandise to support GRACE's conservation work, operated by a UK-based manufacturer with UK sizing and a 30-day return policy.
• Gorilla Livestream

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully rewilded 4 Grauer's gorillas (Isangi, Lulingu, Mapendo, Ndjingala) to Mt. Tshiaberimu in Virunga National Park in 2024 - first-ever reintroduction of adult Grauer's gorillas from captivity to wild
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves14 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• World Wildlife Fund (WWF): Global conservation leader with active great ape and forest programs across the Congo Basin. Comparable to GRACE through overlapping DRC-based gorilla and habitat work, but operates a broad multi-species, multi-region portfolio rather than specializing in Grauer's gorillas.
• African Wildlife Foundation: Pan-African conservation organization with gorilla habitat programs in DRC and Rwanda. Comparable to GRACE in gorilla and forest conservation mission and DRC footprint, though it operates across many African species and landscapes.
• Jane Goodall Institute: Global chimpanzee and great ape conservation organization with Africa-based sanctuaries and community programs. Comparable to GRACE through great ape care, sanctuary operations, and community-led conservation, though focused primarily on chimpanzees rather than gorillas.
• Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS): Large, established international conservation organization operating field programs in DRC including support to Virunga and surrounding protected areas. Comparable to GRACE in gorilla habitat protection work but operates across many species and geographies at much greater scale.
• Conservation International: Large global conservation NGO with major Congo Basin forest and biodiversity programs. Comparable to GRACE through overlapping geographic and species focus, though operates at vastly larger scale across multiple continents and ecosystems.

Emerging players

• Rainforest Trust: Conservation nonprofit focused on purchasing and protecting threatened rainforest habitat. Direct partner with GRACE on the Usala corridor acquisition; comparable through habitat-protection mission and shared community-engagement approach in tropical forest landscapes.
• Re:wild: Global conservation organization formed from the former Global Wildlife Conservation, with explicit focus on species recovery and rewilding. Direct peer as a partner on GRACE's historic rewilding project; comparable through shared rewilding methodology and species-recovery mission.

Direct peers

• International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP): Multi-country coalition program dedicated to gorilla conservation across Rwanda, Uganda, and DRC. Directly comparable to GRACE in target species (Grauer's and mountain gorillas), geographic overlap (eastern DRC), and community-based conservation approach.
• Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International: Long-standing gorilla conservation nonprofit focused on research, protection, and monitoring of mountain gorillas and Grauer's gorillas in Central Africa. Highly comparable to GRACE in mission (great ape conservation), operational footprint (Africa-based field programs), and funding model (donor-supported nonprofit).
• Gorilla Doctors: Veterinary program providing health monitoring for wild and captive gorillas across Rwanda, Uganda, and DRC. Direct operational partner with GRACE on rewilded gorilla health monitoring; highly comparable through shared gorilla welfare mission in the same region.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/gracegorillas
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@gracegorillas
• Facebookfacebook.com/gracegorillas
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gracegorillas
• Instagraminstagram.com/gracegorillas

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center