meet
majii
Majii
(© ® ™ 1995-2013) spelled
with one (i) means water in Swahili. Swahili is the national language
of Tanzania but has also become the "lingua franca" of East Africa and
is spoken in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi. Marc-Daniel Gutekunst
grew up speaking French and Swahili.
In
the book Majii and the Mountain Gorillas of Rwanda, Majii
is a drop of water. The strong willed Majii
tumbles down from a cloud, and spends time visiting the last mountain
gorillas of the world. This is the first of many adventures Majii
will be taking and reporting back to us. Majii
plans on visiting unique ecosystems in Africa, Asia, Australia,
and share with us the plight of endangered species such as the bonobo
pygmy chimpanzees of Zaire, the pandas of China, and the lemurs of Madagascar.
The
cartoon like Majii character
was designed
by Marc-Daniel Gutekunst. The First
Majii Price stain-glass
trophy
was designed by George Goodyear.
The trophy is on display at the Fernbank Elementary School, DeKalb County,
Atlanta. On March 5, 2000, the Fernbank Elementary School was awarded
the First Annual Majii Price. The Majii Price
will be awarded every five years to an elementary school and/or high
a school that promotes conservation of nature and wildlife.

Hello,
my name is Majii
. . . and I am Malaïka's friend
Majii
and the Mountain Gorillas of Rwanda is
dedicated to the children of the world,
To the adults of the world,
To the children and adults who will protect the environment and will
nurture reverence of nature.
The Majii book
is also dedicated to Malaika Hannah-Charlie and Naomie Lea-Sarah, my
daughters and the first critics of this book, and Claire-Anne Gutekunst,
my wife
In
memory of five friends and colleagues:
Magistrate Christophe Byibeshyo
with whom in 1980 we founded the Fondation
Gorilla Rwanda, French
Senator and Mayor of Bischwiller Paul Kauss
who supported my research in Rwanda,
Professor
Albert Maurice, Member of the Academie des Sciences d'Outre
Mer,
who was an outstanding Mentor and taught me so much,
Captain Mbaye Diagne who in April
7, 1994 together with General Romeo Dallaire brought to me 5 Rwandan
orphans, and who tragically died in May 1994 on his way to save a Rwandan
family,
Jean-Louis Pessina who was the sound
engineer of the film documentary:
Au Rwanda, le Dernier Sanctuaire des Gorilles.
Without
the contribution of the following persons, this book would not be a
reality, special thanks to them:
The
Editors: Julia Cusack, Robin Postel, Ronda Mullen Watts,
Cheryl Williams
The Book Lead Designer: Lisa
Durfee
The Principal of Fernbank Elementary School:
Jane Grabowski
The Art Teacher at Fernbank:
Geri Forkner
The Members of the Art Jury:
Nick Clark, Lane Duncan, Joan Goodyear, Samuel Williams
The Fernbank Parent Teacher Association
(PTA) Team: Becky Evans, Coordinator;
Jane Ayres, Julie Budnick, Nancy Fox Ciliax, Lisa Campbell, Andree Grogan,
Ronda Mullen Watts, Sally Sears, Steve Thackston
The Druid Hills High School Team:
Betsy Razza, Media Center instructor;
Students: Timothy Allen,
Clayton Morrison, Gareth Nichols
FNT
International (USA) Media Director: Atilla Alpman
Murakoze
cyane - Merci beaucoup - Thank you very much - Asante sana
ADRA Rwanda,
Edna Bay, CMDP (Credit Mutuel, Strasbourg), Camping Gaz International
(Paris), Cornelius Bik, Christian Cabrol, Yves Carriere, Anna-Marie'
Carter, Centre Culturel Francais de Kigali, Alain Clockers, Paul and
Hannelore Cnockaert, Anne Cros, Sisi Damascene, Emory Federal Credit
Union, Emory University Institute of African Studies, FNAC Strabourg,
FR3 Alsace (Strasbourg), Guilde du Raid (Paris), Jean-Noel Hadey, Gilbert
Hanin, Bryan Hirsch, Ivan Karp, KODAK France, Daniel et Evelyne Gutekunst,
Oystein LaBianca, LAFUMA, Veronique Lawson, Alain Lefevre, Radar Long
III, Francois et Arlette Maillard, McGinnis Leathers, Ministere de la
Jeunesse et des Sports (Paris), Gerald Mpyisi, Romain Murenzi, Musee
Royal de l'Afrique Centrale de Tervuren, Joseph Mutaboba, Francois Nambajimana
a.k.a "Bingwa-Muchacho Men", Leonard Nduwayo, Tharcisse Nyandwi,
Office Rwandais du Tourisme et des Parcs Nationaux (ORTPN) - Rwanda
Office of Tourism and National Parks, Parc du Kahuzi-Biega, Renee Pessina,
Pierre Pfimlin, Therese Pujolle, Clare Richardson, SABENA Airlines,
Julia Shivers, Alpha Abdoulaye Sow, Birame Thiam, Asa Thoresen, Thys
Van den Audenaerde, Thierry Vanneste, Ville de Bischwiller, Michel Wagner,
Ralph Washington, Carl Wilkens, Zoo de Bale, Zoo Atlanta
&
The Forging New Tomorrows Trustees

copyright
© 1995-2014