January 13, 2026 • 9 mins
Today we highlight the works of Ugandan veterinarian and gorilla conservation Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka.
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
Hey, this is Annie and Samantha and welcome to Steph
I never told your production by Heart Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
And welcome to another edition of Activists around the World.
And today we wanted to feature a veterinarian and conservationist,
doctor Gladys Kalama Zigsoka. So. Doctor Kalama zig Zoca is
a Ugandan veterinarian who has created quite a stir in
the world of gorilla conservation by dedicating her life to
(00:39):
not only saving the endangered mountain gorillas of Africa, but
also dedicating her life to helping humans and the gorillas
to coexist together, which we love. She has talked about
her own childhood and how she was impacted at an
early age in animal preservation and care. So from a
recent As Like Last CNN article featuring her work and life,
(01:02):
she talked about her love of animals while growing up,
so They're right. Growing up in political turmoil, Kalima Seksuka
found solace with her many household pets. Her older siblings
often rescued stray cats and dogs who became her companions,
and she decided at a very young age that she
wanted to be a veterinarian. It was her neighbour's pet
monkey Poncho that sparked her interest in primates. The mischievous
(01:26):
creature would sneak in through the window and pull the
dog's tail, steal food, and even plunk keys on piano.
As a teenager, Kulama Sugzoka joined her school's Wildlife club,
and in some reports it's that she actually created this club,
by the way. Going on and on a field trip
to Queen Elizabeth National Park, she saw firsthand how little
wildlife remained even in conservation areas. I started thinking to myself,
(01:49):
why can't I become a vet who brings back the
wildlife of Uganda? And after attending school at the University
of London Royal Veterinary College and then attending Northern Carolina
State University getting a master's in veterinary Medicine, she would
go on to earn other masters by the way, in degrees,
like she got a master's in business. Why not I
love people who just keeps going on with their ventures
(02:10):
in education because I did not. Kudos to y'all. However,
she actually started her career in wildlife conservation even earlier.
In nineteen eighty four, as a student she was in
the Jungles of Uganda in the Bewindi Impenetrable National Park
when she first saw a mountain gorilla and it was
a silver back, by the way, so giant. Here's a
(02:31):
bit from the CNN article about that experience. Pushing through
tangled lines and roots in the thick forest, she could
hear bubbling waterfalls, bird squawking, and chimpanzees hooting. But gorilla,
she says, are silent. You don't hear them, but you
see their trails as you're walking Suskolama Ziska. You can
be looking for them, thinking will I ever see them,
and then suddenly they're there. Is such a magical feeling
(02:55):
sitting in a forest clearing was a silverback gorilla. When
I go to see these gorillas, having wanting to see
them for so long, suddenly this gorilla was sitting there
chewing on a piece of bark, and I was like wow,
recalls Colomba Xisoka, now fifty five. So she has talked
about the impact of this encounter and how this experience
has expanded into a lifelong career. Through the tough political times,
(03:19):
she and our family suffered quite a bit, including the
disappearance of her father who was a minister in the
administration at the time and was abducted by the overtaking
of the administration and the political disruption, and she was
never able to see him again. And with that at
the same time, with the revolts and a lot of
(03:41):
battles happening and fighting happening. This also including the damagage
and killing of wildlife animals and destroying the wildlife lands.
But with her help, she and many others are working
to preserve the endangered species, including the mountain guerrillas in
the land. So it was soon after she began her
work in the area she discovered an outbreak among the
(04:03):
gorillas that caused skin to disease that affected hair growth
and had like scabby skin. After consulting with the doctor
or physician, she figured out that the disease was very
similar to what humans experience with scapies, so they think
this is like a crossover type of disease that was
contracted into the gorilla community. And with the close link
(04:24):
of human health and gorilla health, she figured out there
was things that need to be done and the impact
of it all she actually says, and I've seen videos
of her saying this repeatedly. This made me realize that
you couldn't protect the gorillas without improving the health of
their human neighbors. I just watched a video of her
talking about the fact that other diseases like malaria was
(04:44):
also causing issues for the gorilla population as well, and
so her and her many others are trying to spread
awareness and al She helped both the human and the
gorilla populations, and it was because of this she began
the organization Conservation through Public Health in two thousand and three.
So from their site ctph dot org, they write, conservation
(05:06):
is rooted in earning the support of the local communities
who share a backyard with some of the most biodiverse
wildlife in the world. Many of the most isolated and
impoverished families live around protected areas in Africa, their lifestyles
imposing an imminent threat to the survival of wildlife and
habitats and eventually themselves. Land encroachment and competition for food,
(05:26):
and the spread of zoonotic disease between people, wildlife, and
wild stark are all grim everyday reality, and it goes on.
In nineteen ninety six, the first scapies outbreak in the
gorillas of Bewindi Impenetrable National Park resulted in the depth
of an infant gorilla and the rest of the gorilla
group recovered with avramectin treatment. The fatal disease was traced
back to the local communities living around Bewindi Impenetrable National Park.
(05:49):
A few years later, in two thousand and one and
two thousand and two, another scapes outbreak occurred. Fortunately there
were no des because the gorillas were treated soon enough.
So with all of that, CTPACH is a nonprofit, non
governmental organization with an innovative methodology that focuses on the
interdependence of wildlife and human life in and around Africa's
protected areas. So they have three integrated strategic programs that
(06:12):
are the Gorilla Conservation one, Health and Alternative Livelihoods. So
it's poverty alleviation and improving rural public health will contribute
to greater biodiversity, conservation and sustainable development in and around
Africa's protected areas. So they did talk about those three,
so I kind of wanted to talk about. They also
have a thing called Gorilla Conservation Coffee which you can
(06:34):
actually buy from their site, So if you want to
go to CDPH dot org or from Gorilla Conservation Coffee
dot org and this is from that site. It says
Gorilla Confreservation Coffee was launched after doctor Gladys Coloma's exoca
visited farmers living adjacent to but when the impenetrable forests here.
She learned that the farmers were not being given a
fair price for their coffee and were struggling hard to survive,
(06:57):
forcing them to use a national part to meet their
basic family needs for food and fuel wood. So it
is an enterprise that she began and they actually take
the profit and help split it between the families, which
gives them a better profit than when it was being
used by other companies, as well as the helping improve
the habitat. So it goes on to say, this helps
(07:17):
to improve the coffee quality and increase production yield. Supporting
local farmers helps to protect the critically endangered gorillas and
their fragile habitat. Gorilla Conservation Coffee makes a special effort
to support women coffee farmers, helping to provide opportunities for
women's economic empowerment, disrupt male financial dominance, and break ingrained
stereotypes in the communities. I feel like they just know us,
(07:40):
they're making us fall in love, So you definitely need
to go check that out. I will be checking that out.
I will be buying some coffee. You can also take
tours and visit the organization to learn more about what
they're doing. You can take it walks. I'm sure it
is very protective and you have to sign some things,
but this is all on their site. If you want
to go check it out to see what else you
can participate. So as you may have already guessed, Doctor
(08:03):
Colomba Sisoca has earned many awards and accolades for herself,
including the Leopold Award in twenty twenty, the Whitley Gold
Award in two thousand and nine, EarthCare Award in twenty eighteen,
the Edinburgh Medal twenty twenty two, BBC one hundred Women
in twenty twenty three, and is a National Geographic Explorer
officially she's actually titled that, and yes she does have
(08:26):
a book, Walking with Gorillas by doctor Gladys Colombie Zixsoca
with a ford from Jane Goodall. As expected of course,
so you should definitely go check out their site, go
get their coffee. They have other merch as well that
supports their work, and she is adamant about bringing women
as part of the veterinarian world and protecting the lands because,
(08:49):
as we've talked about many a times, specifically on this segment,
it is many of the women marginalized people who go
through to protect the lands and the species, the wildlife
out there and the people.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
So yeah, yes, yes, another book to add to our list.
Someone want us things, Yes, we'll definitely have to check
back in very fascinating story listeners. If you have any
thoughts or resources or suggestions for this segment, please let
us know. You can email us at Hello at Stuffonnever
(09:24):
Told You dot com. You can find us on blue
Sky at mob Stuff podcast on Instagram and TikTok at
stuff I've Never Told You. We're also on YouTube. We
have some merchandise atcom hero and we have a book
you can get where we get your books. Thanks as
always too, our super producer, Christina, our executive producer and
a contributor, Joey, Thank you and thanks to you for listening.
Stuffan Never Told You is production by Heart Radio. For
more podcast from my heart Radio, you can check out
(09:45):
the heart Radio app Apple podcasts, or where you listen
to your favorite shows.
Hey, this is Annie and Samantha and welcome to Steph
I never told your production by Heart Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
And welcome to another edition of Activists around the World.
And today we wanted to feature a veterinarian and conservationist,
doctor Gladys Kalama Zigsoka. So. Doctor Kalama zig Zoca is
a Ugandan veterinarian who has created quite a stir in
the world of gorilla conservation by dedicating her life to
(00:39):
not only saving the endangered mountain gorillas of Africa, but
also dedicating her life to helping humans and the gorillas
to coexist together, which we love. She has talked about
her own childhood and how she was impacted at an
early age in animal preservation and care. So from a
recent As Like Last CNN article featuring her work and life,
(01:02):
she talked about her love of animals while growing up,
so They're right. Growing up in political turmoil, Kalima Seksuka
found solace with her many household pets. Her older siblings
often rescued stray cats and dogs who became her companions,
and she decided at a very young age that she
wanted to be a veterinarian. It was her neighbour's pet
monkey Poncho that sparked her interest in primates. The mischievous
(01:26):
creature would sneak in through the window and pull the
dog's tail, steal food, and even plunk keys on piano.
As a teenager, Kulama Sugzoka joined her school's Wildlife club,
and in some reports it's that she actually created this club,
by the way. Going on and on a field trip
to Queen Elizabeth National Park, she saw firsthand how little
wildlife remained even in conservation areas. I started thinking to myself,
(01:49):
why can't I become a vet who brings back the
wildlife of Uganda? And after attending school at the University
of London Royal Veterinary College and then attending Northern Carolina
State University getting a master's in veterinary Medicine, she would
go on to earn other masters by the way, in degrees,
like she got a master's in business. Why not I
love people who just keeps going on with their ventures
(02:10):
in education because I did not. Kudos to y'all. However,
she actually started her career in wildlife conservation even earlier.
In nineteen eighty four, as a student she was in
the Jungles of Uganda in the Bewindi Impenetrable National Park
when she first saw a mountain gorilla and it was
a silver back, by the way, so giant. Here's a
(02:31):
bit from the CNN article about that experience. Pushing through
tangled lines and roots in the thick forest, she could
hear bubbling waterfalls, bird squawking, and chimpanzees hooting. But gorilla,
she says, are silent. You don't hear them, but you
see their trails as you're walking Suskolama Ziska. You can
be looking for them, thinking will I ever see them,
and then suddenly they're there. Is such a magical feeling
(02:55):
sitting in a forest clearing was a silverback gorilla. When
I go to see these gorillas, having wanting to see
them for so long, suddenly this gorilla was sitting there
chewing on a piece of bark, and I was like wow,
recalls Colomba Xisoka, now fifty five. So she has talked
about the impact of this encounter and how this experience
has expanded into a lifelong career. Through the tough political times,
(03:19):
she and our family suffered quite a bit, including the
disappearance of her father who was a minister in the
administration at the time and was abducted by the overtaking
of the administration and the political disruption, and she was
never able to see him again. And with that at
the same time, with the revolts and a lot of
(03:41):
battles happening and fighting happening. This also including the damagage
and killing of wildlife animals and destroying the wildlife lands.
But with her help, she and many others are working
to preserve the endangered species, including the mountain guerrillas in
the land. So it was soon after she began her
work in the area she discovered an outbreak among the
(04:03):
gorillas that caused skin to disease that affected hair growth
and had like scabby skin. After consulting with the doctor
or physician, she figured out that the disease was very
similar to what humans experience with scapies, so they think
this is like a crossover type of disease that was
contracted into the gorilla community. And with the close link
(04:24):
of human health and gorilla health, she figured out there
was things that need to be done and the impact
of it all she actually says, and I've seen videos
of her saying this repeatedly. This made me realize that
you couldn't protect the gorillas without improving the health of
their human neighbors. I just watched a video of her
talking about the fact that other diseases like malaria was
(04:44):
also causing issues for the gorilla population as well, and
so her and her many others are trying to spread
awareness and al She helped both the human and the
gorilla populations, and it was because of this she began
the organization Conservation through Public Health in two thousand and three.
So from their site ctph dot org, they write, conservation
(05:06):
is rooted in earning the support of the local communities
who share a backyard with some of the most biodiverse
wildlife in the world. Many of the most isolated and
impoverished families live around protected areas in Africa, their lifestyles
imposing an imminent threat to the survival of wildlife and
habitats and eventually themselves. Land encroachment and competition for food,
(05:26):
and the spread of zoonotic disease between people, wildlife, and
wild stark are all grim everyday reality, and it goes on.
In nineteen ninety six, the first scapies outbreak in the
gorillas of Bewindi Impenetrable National Park resulted in the depth
of an infant gorilla and the rest of the gorilla
group recovered with avramectin treatment. The fatal disease was traced
back to the local communities living around Bewindi Impenetrable National Park.
(05:49):
A few years later, in two thousand and one and
two thousand and two, another scapes outbreak occurred. Fortunately there
were no des because the gorillas were treated soon enough.
So with all of that, CTPACH is a nonprofit, non
governmental organization with an innovative methodology that focuses on the
interdependence of wildlife and human life in and around Africa's
protected areas. So they have three integrated strategic programs that
(06:12):
are the Gorilla Conservation one, Health and Alternative Livelihoods. So
it's poverty alleviation and improving rural public health will contribute
to greater biodiversity, conservation and sustainable development in and around
Africa's protected areas. So they did talk about those three,
so I kind of wanted to talk about. They also
have a thing called Gorilla Conservation Coffee which you can
(06:34):
actually buy from their site, So if you want to
go to CDPH dot org or from Gorilla Conservation Coffee
dot org and this is from that site. It says
Gorilla Confreservation Coffee was launched after doctor Gladys Coloma's exoca
visited farmers living adjacent to but when the impenetrable forests here.
She learned that the farmers were not being given a
fair price for their coffee and were struggling hard to survive,
(06:57):
forcing them to use a national part to meet their
basic family needs for food and fuel wood. So it
is an enterprise that she began and they actually take
the profit and help split it between the families, which
gives them a better profit than when it was being
used by other companies, as well as the helping improve
the habitat. So it goes on to say, this helps
(07:17):
to improve the coffee quality and increase production yield. Supporting
local farmers helps to protect the critically endangered gorillas and
their fragile habitat. Gorilla Conservation Coffee makes a special effort
to support women coffee farmers, helping to provide opportunities for
women's economic empowerment, disrupt male financial dominance, and break ingrained
stereotypes in the communities. I feel like they just know us,
(07:40):
they're making us fall in love, So you definitely need
to go check that out. I will be checking that out.
I will be buying some coffee. You can also take
tours and visit the organization to learn more about what
they're doing. You can take it walks. I'm sure it
is very protective and you have to sign some things,
but this is all on their site. If you want
to go check it out to see what else you
can participate. So as you may have already guessed, Doctor
(08:03):
Colomba Sisoca has earned many awards and accolades for herself,
including the Leopold Award in twenty twenty, the Whitley Gold
Award in two thousand and nine, EarthCare Award in twenty eighteen,
the Edinburgh Medal twenty twenty two, BBC one hundred Women
in twenty twenty three, and is a National Geographic Explorer
officially she's actually titled that, and yes she does have
(08:26):
a book, Walking with Gorillas by doctor Gladys Colombie Zixsoca
with a ford from Jane Goodall. As expected of course,
so you should definitely go check out their site, go
get their coffee. They have other merch as well that
supports their work, and she is adamant about bringing women
as part of the veterinarian world and protecting the lands because,
(08:49):
as we've talked about many a times, specifically on this segment,
it is many of the women marginalized people who go
through to protect the lands and the species, the wildlife
out there and the people.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
So yeah, yes, yes, another book to add to our list.
Someone want us things, Yes, we'll definitely have to check
back in very fascinating story listeners. If you have any
thoughts or resources or suggestions for this segment, please let
us know. You can email us at Hello at Stuffonnever
(09:24):
Told You dot com. You can find us on blue
Sky at mob Stuff podcast on Instagram and TikTok at
stuff I've Never Told You. We're also on YouTube. We
have some merchandise atcom hero and we have a book
you can get where we get your books. Thanks as
always too, our super producer, Christina, our executive producer and
a contributor, Joey, Thank you and thanks to you for listening.
Stuffan Never Told You is production by Heart Radio. For
more podcast from my heart Radio, you can check out
(09:45):
the heart Radio app Apple podcasts, or where you listen
to your favorite shows.
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