oloNala
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olonala.bsky.social
oloNala
@olonala.bsky.social
oloNala - which means ‘humans’ and ‘forests’ in Malagasy - combines artistic expression & conservation to promote quality education, environmental stewardship, and sustainable development in Madagascar 🦎🎨🇲🇬

https://www.olonala.org

A 501(c)(3) Non-Profit
The second floor of the oloNala #ArtResidence is well underway! The arched windows facing the Namorona River will be fitted with stained glass thoughtfully arranged in designs emblematic of Malagasy culture - the Ravenala palm & Masoandro (the sun) - translated as the "eye of the day" ☀️ 💛
November 15, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Reposted by oloNala
#FunFactFriday: Meet the Lac Alaotra gentle lemur—the world’s only primate that lives exclusively in wetlands! 💧

📷: Deb Bradley
November 14, 2025 at 12:30 PM
October marked our first month as members of the Lemur Conservation Network and the 14th birthday of the Ranomafana Nature Center! And what better way to celebrate than with a round of the LCN's Lemurs! Card Game 🎉

@lemurnetwork.bsky.social
November 5, 2025 at 3:02 PM
For #WorldLemurDay, Centre ValBio organized a trip for Nature Center students to visit Studio oloNala! The students were excited to see the same wildlife they draw in their own sketchbooks reflected on the walls, and gathered inspiration from their own walk through Ranomafana National Park! 🔍🌳
October 31, 2025 at 9:30 AM
Arahaba Tratry ny Andron'ny Varika! Happy #WorldLemurDay from Ranomafana!

Fantastic to see all the creativity & joy in celebrating these unique species. This year's theme is „Iray ho an'ny varika ho fitsinjovana ny ho avy" - Uniting for the lemurs, to care for the future 💚
October 31, 2025 at 8:30 AM
With special thanks to @wildwonder.bsky.social, we’ve created a Malagasy translation of their popular "Quick Start Guide to Nature Journaling!" This zine is downloadable on their website alongside other languages, to make the nature journaling practice more accessible to anyone who wants to start 🖍
October 16, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Human rights are non-negotiable. Our thoughts are with the families of the 22 people killed and 100+ injured in Madagascar’s youth-led movement for access to basic needs. We remain hopeful for a peaceful transition of power in Madagascar & the creation of a government truly for the Malagasy people 🇲🇬
npr.org NPR @npr.org · Oct 14
Gen Z protesters — from Indonesia and Nepal to Madagascar and Morocco — are rallying behind an unexpected banner: a grinning skull in a straw hat.
Why Gen Z protesters worldwide are flying an anime pirate flag
Gen Z protesters from Indonesia and Nepal to Madagascar and Morocco, are rallying behind an unexpected banner: a grinning skull in a straw hat.
n.pr
October 16, 2025 at 11:31 AM
More fun with spiders! Nature Center teacher Jocelyn had noticed a large number of orb-weaver #spiders near the marketplace in Ranomafana, Madagascar, and organized a #naturejournaling session so that students could observe them up close & in their webs 🔍🕸️
September 19, 2025 at 7:10 AM
Last week’s nature journaling session was all about 🕷️❗️

Students explored all the different shapes, sizes, and colors of spiders in their area, before heading out to see how many could be found in vegetation versus on buildings - prompting a really neat discussion on camouflage!
August 29, 2025 at 3:15 AM
First floor of the oloNala #ArtResidency is built 🙌 This section of the building will house studio and gallery space for artists in the future program, offering a dedicated space for working on projects & building portfolios 🖼️ A huge thanks to Sunshine Comes First for sponsoring this initial phase!
August 19, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Honored to see our interview with Destination: Wildlife published on their blog! We discuss what creative paths to conservation might look like and how we see art as a tool for creating shared cultural narratives around the environment in Madagascar ⬇️

www.destinationwildlife.com/blog/inspiri...
In Madagascar, Conservation and the Art of Saving Our World — Destination: Wildlife™
90% of the wildlife and plants In Madagascar are endemic, and endangered or critically Endangered. Johanna Mitra and Alain Rasolo created the nonprofit oloNala to save this incomparable biodiversity, ...
www.destinationwildlife.com
August 6, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Attending this year’s International Primatological Society Congress in Antananarivo #Madagascar?

Head on over to the Centre ValBio info booth to chat with artist and oloNala cofounder Alain Rasolo, snag a print (or two!) from Studio oloNala, and learn more about oloNala & CVB's conservation work 🐒💚
July 22, 2025 at 6:57 AM
#Naturejournaling fosters a deeper connection between people & place. Slowing down & paying special attention to all the little things not only builds observation and critical thinking skills with regards to the surrounding environment, but encourages the observer to explore their place within it ☀️
July 3, 2025 at 6:38 PM
It's happening! 🎉 🎨

Today, students at the Ranomafana Nature Center in #Madagascar were introduced to the #creative practice of #naturejournaling 🎨
June 1, 2025 at 1:03 AM
We're gearing up for our first project with the Ranomafana Nature Center - nature journaling! Working with the teachers there, we've designed a nature journaling practice to complement their lessons, offering visiting students a creative way to explore their surroundings 🎨🖌️
April 13, 2025 at 9:25 AM
Arahaba tratry ny andron'ny vehivavy 🎉🇲🇬

Happy #InternationalWomensDay from Ranomafana, #Madagascar!
March 8, 2025 at 9:13 AM
VOI associations, or Vondron’Olona Ifotony, are grassroots community groups in #Madagascar that sustainably manage the forests their communities depend on through ecotourism and eco restoration. VOI Mitsinjo has managed 440 hectares of forest adjacent to Ranomafana National Park since 2020.
January 28, 2025 at 5:20 PM
We're relieved to hear from our friends at Centre ValBio that the #fire in Ranomafana National Park is finally out. Heavy rainfall finally came after months, ending an unseasonably long dry spell, and the community worked tirelessly each day to stop the fires from spreading.
January 17, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Absolutely devastating to hear about the #fire consuming Ranomafana National Park in #Madagascar right now. This rainforest protects countless endangered and endemic species of lemurs, birds, amphibians, plants, & insects.This fire threatens not only them, but all the people living by the park too.
January 10, 2025 at 4:05 PM
With support from Sunshine
Comes First, the @safinacenter.bsky.social Launchpad Fellowship, and proceeds from the Studio oloNala Art Gallery & Shop, oloNala cofounder Alain Rasolo and engineer Bien Aimee Randriamamony have broken ground at the site of Madagascar’s first environmental Art Residency!
December 27, 2024 at 2:31 AM
A bit about us 🌿

oloNala was created out of our shared love of the environment and a sense of urgency to protect it using the tools we know best - art, education, and storytelling.
December 16, 2024 at 9:03 PM
We‘re new here on #Bluesky, but we’re looking forward to sharing updates from our projects at the intersection of #art and #conservation in #Madagascar with you!

Check out our website below and stay tuned for more 🖌️🇲🇬

www.olonala.org
oloNala
oloNala — which means ‘humans’ and ‘forests’ in Malagasy — combines artistic expression and conservation to promote quality education, environmental stewardship, and sustainable development in Madagas...
www.olonala.org
December 10, 2024 at 4:27 AM