Some recent reptilian visitors near the construction site of the oloNala art residency! Did you know - #Madagascar is home to around half of the world’s #chameleon species, including both the biggest - the Parson’s chameleon (Calumma parsonii) - and the smallest - the nano-chameleon (Brookesia nana)

Happy #InsectWeek! Insects are an often overlooked yet vital part of Earth's ecosystems. Madagascar has some of the wildest bugs on the planet (Like this Giraffe Weevil!), but many face threat of extinction. Next time you see a spider inside, safely put it outside. Every small action counts! 🕷️ 💚

Arahaba tratry ny asaramanitra! 🎉🇲🇬 Happy Independence Day, #Madagascar! VOI Mitsinjo and Tanamasoandro Women's Collective were representing at the parade in Ranomafana town today 💚 📸: Jennifer Hacking

☀️ Some great examples of the food chain from the Nature Center students! It's been so wonderful seeing the ways in which each student uses their colors and imaginations to create their own works from the same lesson. Next up in #naturejournaling - adaptation and the power of camouflage! 🎨 🦎

A big welcome to Mme. Josiane Rakotonirina who joins us as oloNala's Education Coordinator! She brings decades of experience in conservation as former Director of Ranomafana National Park & we’re very lucky to have her on our team to share her expertise and passion for Ranomafana with the students!

Herzlichen Dank to the Dresden University of Fine Arts & Professor Barbara Wille for the opportunity to highlight the works of artists in Madagascar‘s #contemporaryart scene, Rasolo‘s journey as a self-taught Malagasy artist, & explorations into the synergies btwn #art and #nature #conservation! 💚🎨🇲🇬

Sunlight streams through the windows of the art residency as Eddy, a member of the construction team, prepares bricks for the window arches ☀️ Photo by Alain Rasolo #artresidencyprogram #comingsoon #madagascar

with the new year coming up, we can't thank you all enough for supporting oloNala and following along as we grow here's to more creativity and curiosity in 2026! 🪲💚

Join us in backing VOI Mitsinjo, a grassroots conservation collective! Even just sharing this post with friends & family is a massive help, and raises awareness of the awesome locally-led conservation work happening in Ranomafana, Madagascar 🇲🇬🌳 Donate here: secure.givelively.org/donate/olona...

Honored by a visit from esteemed artist & studio cat Gomez this morning! He's always dreaming about his next masterpiece 💭🐭🎨

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" ☀️ 💛

#FunFactFriday: Meet the Lac Alaotra gentle lemur—the world’s only primate that lives exclusively in wetlands! 💧 📷: Deb Bradley

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

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! 🔍🌳

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 💚

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 🖍

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@npr.org · 11mo ago

Gen Z protesters — from Indonesia and Nepal to Madagascar and Morocco — are rallying behind an unexpected banner: a grinning skull in a straw hat.

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 🔍🕸️

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!

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!

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, ...

destinationwildlife.com

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 🐒💚

#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 ☀️

It's happening! 🎉 🎨 Today, students at the Ranomafana Nature Center in #Madagascar were introduced to the #creative practice of #naturejournaling 🎨

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 🎨🖌️

Arahaba tratry ny andron'ny vehivavy 🎉🇲🇬 Happy #InternationalWomensDay from Ranomafana, #Madagascar!

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.

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.

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.