
Adams Cassinga
Founder/CEO, Conserv Congo A wildlife activist and a wildlife criminal investigator from the Democratic Republic of Congo
About this speaker
Adams Cassinga is a wildlife activist and a wildlife criminal investigator from the Democratic Republic of Congo. After seven years running a successful mining consultancy, he decided to dedicate his career to protecting the biodiversity of his home country. He is currently the founder and CEO for Conserv Congo, which fights poaching/wildlife trafficking by enforcing environmental laws and supports conservation through education. Cassinga and his team of volunteers fight illegal wildlife trafficking in the region by investigating and infiltrating trafficking networks, and conducting organized stings with authorities. Cassinga also supports community subsistence farming to curb poaching and ensure food security. While working as an investigative reporter in 2006, he was shot three times while investigating a story; for this he was honored with Caxton's "No Guts — No Story” award. Cassinga is an alumnus of the Young African Leaders Initiative, a finalist for the International Research & Exchanges Board’s Community Solutions Program, and was selected for the U.S. State Department’s Mandela Washington Fellowship. He studied journalism at Rhodes University and is fluent in French, English, Portuguese, and 12 African languages.