🌿 Exciting news! 🎬 Our documentary Príncipe Past & Present has been officially selected for #ECOCINE, Brazil's first environmental film festival. 🌍 Celebrating its 33rd year alongside #COP30. 🌱 We are thrilled that our film will be part of this year’s programme! 📽️

It was a privilege to present our research on São Tomé and Príncipe at the 4th World Congress of Environmental History (@wceh2024) with an amazing panel of academics! 🌿#wceh2024

In honour of #WorldTurtleDay we share a video of Huoltam Carvalho from the @FundaPrincipe #PROTETUGA project. Since 2015, they've worked with local & international communities to conserve #seaturtles & make Príncipe a sanctuary for sea turtle species that frequent its waters.🌊🐢

This challenges the assumption of #RibeiraIzé as the oldest site and prompts a reevaluation of Príncipe's historical timeline. These initial findings emphasize the importance of further research to deepen our understanding of the island's history. 📜🔍 #Archaeology #MangalAbade

Insights from Mangal Abade 🌿: Our 2023 preliminary survey of this #mangrove site in #Príncipe revealed a rich variety of ceramic fragments. Particularly intriguing is the apparent broader chronological range of surface #ceramics compared to those found at Ribeira Izé.

Delighted to share that our Lead Environmental Scientist, @VanDalenBJ, was invited to present at the @SAAorg 89th annual meeting! He shared his talk: 'Bridging the Gap: Exploring Historical Human-Environment Dynamics within a Biodiversity Hotspot in the Gulf of Guinea.' #SAA

Our Filmmaker and Communications Officer, @SophieCarlarne, shares her experience in expedition filmmaking during a masterclass for @ouexploration. 🎥🌍

🔬Update: The sampling of cores and pollen preparations, collected during the expedition, is in full swing at the @ULL ecology laboratory! We are excited to share some examples of the well-preserved mangrove pollen from the Praia Grande site, provided by @PaleoVerde🌼🔍

We extend gratitude to our partners & advisors whose support made this expedition possible. Thank you to @UniofOxford, @ExplorersClub & @ROLEX, Belo Monte Hotel, Harvard Travellers Club, @SWWDTP, @StHughsCollege, @AfricasEden, Forever Príncipe & @MPI_GEA for their contributions.

Time flies! ⏰ It's hard to believe it's been 6 months since we embarked on our journey to Príncipe. Stay tuned as we share exciting updates on our ongoing research and the progress of our documentary.

Blue-breasted #kingfishers (𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘺𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘤𝘢) in action! Witness the adult demonstrating a feeding behaviour on a log, breaking food into smaller pieces to give to the juvenile. As the juvenile watches, it learns and begins exhibiting the same behaviour! 🐦#birds

Post-production is in full swing! A shot of our Filmmaker and Communications Officer, @SophieCarlarne, fully immersed in editing the Príncipe documentary. We can’t wait to share the film with you in the future! 🎥

🐢 | During a research trip, a team of Oxford researchers took part in the #ProtetugaProject through @FundaPrincipe to observe sea turtles laying eggs. Fundação Príncipe works with local communities to protect biodiversity on the island. 📽 | @principeproject #TurtleDay

Meet Ramos, a member of the Belo Monte Hotel team and one of the stars of our upcoming documentary! In this clip, he demonstrates how to make a football using a rubber tree. We look forward to sharing more fascinating insights and stories from local voices in our film. 🎥

We are thrilled to share that our sediment samples are packed and ready for analysis. It will be fascinating to see what insights they may provide into the island's environmental history and the legacy of human impact.

Science in action! 🛶🌿 A glimpse into our sediment coring and botanical surveys.

Have you ever seen a green pigeon? 🌿 We spotted this well-camouflaged African green pigeon (𝘛𝘳𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘷𝘶𝘴) on its nest in the Belo Monte Hotel garden. #BirdsSeenIn2023 #BirdsOfTwitter

Oxford researchers spent the start of 2023 on the island of Príncipe, off the coast of West Africa, researching the island’s environmental history, and human-environment interactions throughout the island. Here's some of the amazing things they saw 🧵⬇ 📷 | @PrincipeProject

However, very little is confirmed about this chapter in Príncipe's history and our explorative survey of Ribeira Izé could potentially be the first archaeological research to be carried out on the island!

These are the ruins of Ribeira Izé, which is thought to be Príncipe's first settlement. It is also rumored to be the spot where the Portuguese initially set foot on the island when they discovered it in the late 15th century.