Donna Platt, MPA, CFRE, is the first development officer for Gorilla Doctors. Gorilla Doctors was started at the request of gorilla expert, Dian Fossey, shortly before her death in 1985. Today, Gorilla Doctors’ international field staff work in Rwanda, Uganda and the DR Congo to help ensure the survival of just 1004 mountain gorillas on the planet through life-saving veterinary medicine and direct, hands-on care in the wild.

Gorilla Doctors is based in Musanze, Rwanda and operates in partnership with The Karen C. Drayer Wildlife Health Center in the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, a multi-disciplinary research, service and teaching unit working to understand and tackle complex issues surrounding the health of wildlife and ecosystems in the U.S. and internationally. “The passion, expertise, mission clarity and history of Gorilla Doctors is remarkable and moving. Our field veterinarians provide medical interventions and health monitoring to these magnificent creatures. This work also impacts human health care, local economies and the health of our planet.”

Donna enjoys connecting people’s passions to mission-driven organizations. She is a positive and energetic, with an understanding of data-driven strategy and implementation. She has already made a substantial impact on Gorilla Doctors’ fundraising program. Other organizations that have benefited from her work include the Houston Zoo, Houston PBS and Pacifica Radio, Rice University and The Nature Conservancy. As a volunteer, Donna served on the 2017 Houston Super Bowl Host Committee as a Touchdown Houston Advisory Committee Member and co-founded the Board Fellows program at Rice Business school in 2008 which has impacted more than 100 charities locally.

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