Identifying the team of eight MENTOR-Manatee Fellows who are already enrolled in formal educational programs in Central Africa;

Conducting training at field sites on a range of topics, including team building and conflict management, practical field conservation experience, data entry and analysis, program design and adaptive management, stakeholder relationship building, communications and media, law enforcement, and educational outreach;

Determining team projects

Providing on-going mentoring;

Implementing projects, monitoring results, and conducting evaluations. Continued support allows for: (1) team-building workshops and travel for the eight MENTOR-Manatee Fellows from Cameroon, Gabon, and Democratic Republic of the Congo to work together at field sites and share lessons learned on African manatee conservation outreach and research activities; and (2) individual and team project implementation on environmental education for manatee conservation, manatee bushmeat interventions, and applied manatee research. In addition, this project will support the participation of the MENTOR-Manatee Fellows at an international conference on African manatees one year after the final training session. This will enable the Fellows to present their research findings, develop their careers through professional networking opportunities, and enhance and sustain their ability to address challenges and monitor emerging threats to African manatees as a team under the guidance of the MENTOR- Manatee coordinator.