KOOBI FORA RESEARCH PROJECT Funding Proposal

OVERVIEW:
Palaeoanthropological research in East Africa has brought many significant fossil discoveries to the world's attention and dramatically increased our understanding of the intriguing story of our past. It is now clear that humans evolved in Africa, and that we can trace our ancestry back to a relatively recent common origin. Questions remain, however, regarding the details of how this epic drama came about. As conflicts increasingly divide modern people around the world, an understanding of our common past becomes an urgent ingredient in initiatives for peaceful coexistence of peoples around the world with diverse ethnic affiliations.

Over the last three decades, research has been conducted in the Turkana Basin under the Koobi Fora Research Project, producing an impressive collection of fossils including human ancestors. The fossil exposures cover an area some 900 square miles (2300 km²). Continued exploration of the fossil deposits primarily on the east side of Lake Turkana over the next five years will provide an key opportunity to resolve some major questions in human evolution in the interval between 2.3 million and 700,000 years ago.

A new, intensive research initiative is planned over the next five years which will address specific questions relevant to the emergence of Homo and the spread of our own species Homo sapiens out of Africa into colder more challenging habitats in northern latitudes. It is planned to run continuous fieldwork throughout the year rather than to concentrate the annual field expeditions solely in a three-month field season as has been done previously. At the same time, new approaches will be incorporated, using the latest technology and methods of analysis. By intensifying the exploration, the increased field presence will more effectively recover evidence of the past.

In 1973, approximately 1,600 km² on the eastern side of Lake Turkana was set aside as a National Park. This protected area contains some of the richest fossil deposits as well as a unique modern fauna and flora. Unfortunately, due to lack of resources in the park system, the fossil beds are increasingly threatened by livestock encroachment. Through the presence of research teams in the area over the next five years, the project will provide additional logistical support to improve park management and security, to raise public awareness as to its importance, and to provide improved community relations.

FUNDING GOALS:
Additional funding is required to cover the cost of the new approach of intensified field work over the next five years (2004-2008).

Almost $600,000 dollars of core capital expenditure is required for equipment and infrastructure over the first two years and a further $300,000 dollars to cover annual operating expenses, for a total of $2.4 million, to fully fund the research operations and to protect the fossil deposits over the next five years

PROJECT GOALS:
The research project is dedicated to the following:

Continuing exploration of the world’s most important fossil deposits to recover new material that will answer specific research questions.
Contributing significantly to the understanding of human evolution and its context through new discoveries.
Building on three decades of achievement in the Turkana Basin in the field of palaeoanthropology.
Facilitating field research by providing logistical support to researchers and long-term palaeoanthropological research in the Turkana Basin.
Protecting the fossil deposits, increasing public awareness, and providing supplementary logistical support to the Sibiloi National Park.

PROPOSED RESEARCH:
The research is dedicated to resolving outstanding questions through the recovery of new hominid material from specific time horizons at East Turkana and through the detailed investigation of the geology, the faunal assemblages and the palaeohabitats. These questions include;

What was the earliest species of Homo, when and why did this species evolve?
What species gave rise to Homo erectus and what led Homo erectus to be the first human ancestor to migrate out of Africa?

The project will be more efficient and effective and will increase the likelihood of major discoveries with this more intensive commitment..

The Turkana Basin is the only known fossil site with an almost continuous sedimentary record of the appropriate age to address these questions. The research has produced a detailed geological and palaeontological framework within which to undertake future exploration.

REQUIRED FUNDING:
In the past, the field operations have run on a shoe-string budget of less that $100,000 per year, covering three months of exploration, and support for a minimal staff to manage project equipment and vehicles. The field programmes are woefully under funded, and funds are unreliable, at best. The research project is currently dependent on research grants and contributions from friends and donors to ensure the continuation of the research and exploration. These funds have previously been sought on an annual basis and their generation has been sporadic. Furthermore, annual fundraising requires significant time and energy commitments, which is taking focus from the research required.

It is envisaged that continuous funding will ensure that the field programme reaches the optimal level of effectiveness. (Capital Investments: $600,000 / Annual Cost: between $290000 and $425000 per year). Improvements include the purchase of 2 new vehicles to replace the high-maintenance and costly “prehistoric” petrol land-rovers and the purchase of a 4-wheel drive 7 tonne truck to transport fuel and supplies. The aircraft that is currently used by the project belongs to Richard Leakey; a 1976 Cessna 210 single engine that requires a full overhaul and engine rebuild in less than 400 hours. In is necessary to replace this aircraft with a more versatile Cessna 206 single engine, better suited to rough short field landings. This represents a significant capital investment but is vital for the day-to-day operation of the research project. Equipment, temporary storage for fossils and renovations to a building for use as an operations base all require core funding.

Where possible, the project must assist the National Park staff, particularly with vehicle maintenance, communication and aerial reconnaissance, contributing to the critical long-term protection and conservation of the fossil deposits in the protected area.

SUMMARY:
The new initiative to explore the exposures at East Turkana, guarantees the recovery of significant new material and will go a long way to answering outstanding questions about our past. The unique resources in terms of the geological and fossil record and the exceptional size of the fossiliferous exposures, combine to provide a potential for future research unknown at any other site. The opportunity to realize this site’s potential will never be available again.

Visit KRFP.com for more info about the Koobi Fora Research Project!