Theater and awareness

Raising awareness in the local communities is a fundamental means of reaching local populations as conservation messages are passed on most effectively by peers of the local inhabitants. Because of this the WCF is collaborating with the professional African theatre group Eddie Theater Production in Liberia.

In 2025, WCF and Forestry Development Authority facilitated the implementation of the first ever cross-border awareness campaign aimed at strengthening forest conservation efforts in the Taï-Grebo-Krahn-Sapo forest landscape in Liberia and Côte d’Ivoire, through the Ivorian and Liberian theater groups Alma Production and Eddie Theater Production. The drama called “Pods of Despair” was performed in Zwedru and 16 towns around Grebo-Krahn National Park, proposed Kwa National Park and Sapo National Park, and reached 3,817 people, including a good portion of the migrant cocoa farmers. The play portrayed the devastating consequences of the unsustainable cocoa farming practices adopted from Côte d’Ivoire, which is causing massive deforestation and habitat destruction, including important chimpanzee habitat. The unsustainable practices relying in complete deforestation as well as growing land ownership conflict are causing significant risks, including security risks to the communities in southeastern Liberia. The drama encouraged local communities to adopt agroforestry practices as a sustainable alternative. In line with this, WCF in collaboration with the European Union organized an information-sharing meeting with key lawmakers and government officials in order raise awareness about the EU regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR).