While report writing, scientific publication, grant writing, grant reporting and financing can be done from an armchair in the US, much of the work of sustaining SCP is done on the ground, in western Uganda. This challenging work is done by the Assistant Project Director. APDs go into the forest to track chimpanzees almost every day. They gather and record data on chimpanzee behavior, they supervise local staff, they manage project money, they buy supplies, and they write monthly reports to keep the reserve warden informed about SCP activities. APDs are in turn assisted by a Camp Manager, a local employee who helps assign daily workloads for the porters, cooks, and assures that the camp grounds are maintained.
Current Assistant Project Director
Amalie Svanholm
Amalie Svanholm is the current APD, but unfortunately, with the advent of the COVID-19 virus, she evacuated in March 2020. During her short time at Semliki, she was able to follow the chimps for 27 hours, even after a full month without any sightings. She was also the first APD to capture a video of the chimps drinking from wells, using sponges. Amalie finished her bachelors degree in biology in the United States in 2018, and plans to continue pursuing her passion for conservation work, as she starts her masters degree in Copenhagen this fall.