These principal ($1M and up) and major ($100,000 to $1M) gift opportunities provide powerful, new, and exciting directions for the Duke Lemur Center to expand its reach and positive impact on scientific discovery, student experiences, Madagascar conservation—and the protection of lemurs, the most endangered group of mammals on Earth.
For more information on these opportunities, please contact the DLC’s development officer, Mary Paisley, at (919) 401-7252 or mary.paisley@duke.edu. She would love to talk with you!
Priorities for the Immediate Future
New Utility Vehicles (3): $100,000
The Duke Lemur Center would very much appreciate a gift of $100,000 in the coming year to allow us to purchase new and very much needed utility vehicles for our daily work on our 100 acre campus. Our pickup truck and Kawasaki MULE all-terrain vehicles are workhorses that we depend upon nearly every day. They enable us to transport supplies, materials, and even the members of our priceless colony (in their kennels, of course!) of more than 200 lemurs when they need to be transported for veterinary exams or moving to new habitats. These vehicles play an integral role in our work to protect and care for our colony, to provide expert veterinary care, and to engage lemurs, scientists, and students in our expanding and exciting non-invasive research and education programs. With this donation, the Duke Lemur Center would purchase a new electric Ford Lightning F150 Truck plus the installation of a charging station, plus two Kawasaki MULE all-terrain vehicles.
Start-up funding to establish a geneticist within our research department: $240,000
The addition of a scientist specializing in molecular biology or genetics to the Duke Lemur Center’s research team would be a reality with a new gift of $240,000, or $80,000 per year over 3 years. This gift would provide the seed money for this position, along with an exciting and important opportunity to expand our research programs in the Anna Borruel Codina Center for Lemur Research and Medicine and beyond! This funding will enable us to build upon our successful and growing collaborative work with the DLC’s hibernation research program to elucidate molecular drivers of varied metabolic strategies. This position will further our ability to mentor interns and engage them in more research activities while also expanding our longer term reach, impact, and capacity through publishing articles and pursuing and grant proposals.
Start-up funding to establish a scientist within our animal welfare team: $240,000
The addition of a scientist to the Duke Lemur Center’s animal welfare team would be a reality with a new gift of $240,000, or $80,000 per year over 3 years. This gift would provide the seed money for this position, which will exponentially further our innovative approaches and advances in the care of lemurs in zoos and at wildlife parks around the world. This position will also expand our ability to collaborate with other zoos, to lead research projects focused on animal welfare, and to mentor students and provide scientific explorations and behavior study experiences for interns and other students who learn from our extraordinary colony of lemurs, Earth’s most endangered mammals.
Naming and major gift opportunities
The Anna Borruel Codina Center for Lemur Medicine and Research has spaces available for naming ranging from $50,000 to $300,000. Read the story of the incredible opportunity for the Duke Lemur Center to expand its veterinary care and research impact thanks to this new building. The Borruel Center became a reality for us thanks to a transformational gift from an anonymous Duke alumnus. If you have an interest in supporting one of these opportunities and/or if you would like a tour of the Borruel Center, please contact Mary Paisley, Development Officer, at 919-401-7252. Note: All named spaces are subject to approval by Duke University’s Board of Trustees.
Coming soon: additional capacity-building principal gifts (seven and eight figures) with naming opportunities will be identified and shared with interested donors following an in-depth assessment to create a master plan for the Duke Lemur Center. The plan will outline priorities for infrastructure expansion that will increase the Lemur Center’s impact in science, research, and lemur care. Current priorities include:
• a visitors’ discovery and education center that would provide a new education and outreach center, a new home for our valuable primate fossil collection and research laboratory meeting space and administrative offices; and
• a plan to develop an additional 30 acres of land recently donated to us. This land would enable us to expand our natural forest habitats and increase the DLC’s colony size.
Major gift to provide additional natural habitat enclosures for free-ranging lemurs ($300,000): This expendable gift would allow the DLC to create additional forested enclosures by redesigning its three largest Natural Habitat Enclosures. By increasing the number of smaller enclosures, more animals will have the opportunity to free-range, which improves their overall health and well-being and encourages them to maintain their natural behaviors.
Major and principal gifts for lemur care at the DLC: ($100,000+)
Provide restricted support toward the care of the extraordinary lemur colony at the DLC, including but not limited to: equipment to support a proactive animal training and enrichment program, conservation breeding program support, training opportunities for animal care staff, and wages within the curatorial and animal care team. A gift of $300,000 or more can create a named endowment for lemur care. $3.5 million would fully fund and name a curator position (there are two) at the Duke Lemur Center.
Major and principal gifts for veterinary care at the DLC: ($100,000+)
Provide restricted support for the veterinary program at the DLC, including but not limited to, veterinary equipment and associated departmental technology needs, diagnostic testing, medicine, and wages within the veterinary team. A gift of $300,000 or more can create a named endowment that may be restricted to a specific area of veterinary care DLC. $3.5 million would fully fund and name a veterinarian position (there are two).
Major and principal gifts for Madagascar conservation: ($100,000+)
Provide restricted support for the Duke Lemur Center’s community-based conservation and capacity-strengthening programs as well as targeted lemur conservation initiatives on the island. A gift of $300,000 or more can create a named endowment to support specific areas of Madagascar Conservation. $3.5 million would fully endow and name the Conservation Coordinator’s position.
Major and principal gifts to support DLC student projects: ($100,000+)
Provide restricted support for student programs at the DLC including costs associated with training and managing students enrolled in the internship program or serving as volunteers, stipends for interns, and wages necessary for staff to manage and supervise students. This program trains the next generation of lemur biologists, veterinarians, conservationists, and science educators. A gift of $300,000 or more can create a named endowment for student projects at the DLC. $4 million would fully endow and name the student projects and internship program at the Duke Lemur Center.
Major gift to preserve the Division of Fossil Primates’ Madagascar fossil collection ($100,000): This project will improve how the fossils are stored to prevent degradation due to fluctuations in in temperature and humidity. It will also create greater access to the global scientific community and students via 3D scanning and posting to the DFP’s digital collection of fossil images.
Endowments
Endowments are a priority to secure the Duke Lemur Center’s financial future and to extend its impact for the protection of lemurs, conservation in Madagascar, opportunities for students, and scientific discovery through non-invasive research.
An endowment is a gift that keeps on giving! Each year, a portion of an endowment fund’s value is paid out to support the fund’s purpose at the Duke Lemur Center. Any earnings in excess of this distribution are used to build the fund’s market value. In this way, an endowment fund can grow and provide support to its designated purpose here at the DLC in perpetuity.
A named endowment can be established for a gift of $100,000 or more to the Duke Lemur Center’s general operations endowment fund. For a gift of $300,000 or more, we can create a customized, named endowment to address a specific area of need at the DLC. We currently have several endowment agreement templates “ready to customize,” including:
Named endowment for lemur care at the DLC: Provide support for colony care at the Duke Lemur Center, including specialized diets for each species, enrichment items for stimulation and lemur play, tools for positive reinforcement, cleaning supplies, maintenance of grounds and fence-line to ensure safe and secure outdoor space, animal care equipment, and wages for animal and veterinary care technicians.
Named endowment for veterinary care at the DLC: Provide support for the veterinary program at the Duke Lemur Center, including but not limited to, veterinary equipment and associated departmental technology needs, diagnostic testing, medicine, and wages within the veterinary team.
Named endowment for Madagascar conservation for the DLC: Provide support for the Duke Lemur Center’s community-based conservation programs in the SAVA region as well as lemur conservation breeding initiatives on the island.
Named endowment for student projects at the DLC: Provide support for student programs at the Duke Lemur Center including costs associated with training and managing students enrolled in the internship program or serving as volunteers, stipends for interns, and wages necessary for staff to manage and supervise students.
Named endowment for general operations for the DLC: Provide unrestricted support for the Duke Lemur Center.
Bequests and Legacy Gifts
Major ($100,000+) and principal ($1 million+) gifts to the Duke Lemur Center from donors who include us in their will or estate plans are transformational gifts for our future. The Duke Lemur Center can provide many exciting ways to leave a legacy after you are gone. Learn more about legacy gifts.
Questions?
For more details on any of the opportunities above, please contact Mary Paisley at (919) 401-7252 or mary.paisley@duke.edu. Thank you so much for your support!
