Haïdar el Ali
Senegalese ecologist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Haidar el Ali, Senegalese ecologist, was born in 1953 in Louga, Senegal.[1] His parents were Lebanese immigrants who “got stuck” in Senegal on the route to the United States in the 1930s.[1] After settling in Senegal, the family started multiple furniture stores and workshops in Medina neighborhoods in Dakar.[1] While growing up Ali worked in the family business.[1] However at the age of 25, he had a turning point as he became interested in nature causing him to leave his family business.[1] Once he left the family business, Ali went to France to become a professional scuba diving instructor.[1] Once he returned to Senegal, he started a diving company in Dakar.[1] He would film what he saw underwater and share those images with local communities and the media which helped raise awareness about humans impact on the marine ecosystem.[2][1]
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In 1984, he became the director of Oceanium, an environmental nongovernmental organization based in Dakar.[2] During his leadership, Oceanium focused on community based conversation, reforestation, and sustainable fishing.[1] As the mangroves were disappearing in Senegal between the 1980 and 2005, he organized replanting efforts with hundreds of villages in Casamance.[1] Over the past decade, his effort has led to planting of 152 million mangroves which is the largest reforestation project of its kind in the world.[3] Beyond his role as a President of Oceanium, he served as Senegal's Minister of Education and Minister of Fishering from 2012 to 2014.[1] He is also the head of Senegal's Green party (FEDES).[1]
