The world famous Bonobo Kanzi is known for teaching himself how to communicate with humans using a picture board. Over time Kanzi learned sign language as well.

The psych club has offered students unique experiences that allow them to study human behavior, this year they’re coming for the Apes. Students will be visiting The Ape Cognition and Conservation Initiative on October 29.

Psych club advisor and Professor Dr. Joshua Woods said these trips provide an extra educational experience that you can’t get in a classroom or on campus.

Last year, the psych club visited the women’s prison to tour and experience the conditions, living arrangements and daily lives of the inmates. According to Woods’ experience while touring the prison, nearly all the inmates were victims to sexual or physical abuse and suffer from mental illness.

Aisha Boone, president of the psych club, also attended the tour of the women’s prison and said seeing the differences and visiting places that are less equipped and fortunate are humbling experiences.

This year students will be touring the only research facility in North America that studies Bonobos, an endangered species found along the small stretches of the Congo River Basin in the Democratic Republic and in the wild of the Congo in Central Africa.

The world famous Bonobo Kanzi is known for teaching himself how to communicate with humans using a picture board. Over time Kanzi learned sign language as well.

The ACCI aims to use the studies of great apes to increase public knowledge of our own specie’s origins and our connection with the natural world. The ACCI facility is 230 acres of forest with 20 acres of that providing an outdoor living space for the Bonobos.

The ACCI is “dedicated to the conservation and protection of Great Apes worldwide, as well as responsible and sustainable research aimed at uncovering the evolutionary origins of human language, cognition, and behavior” according to their official website.

Other plans for the psych club include a trip to the Polk County Jail and a weeklong fundraiser event open for students to donate clothing and daily essentials to Central Iowa Shelter and Services. The club also hopes to offer volunteer opportunities for students in the future.

Additional Photos Offered From ACCI:

This was taken by Sara Skiba. It is a picture of Kanzi near one of the windows of the "greenhouse" which is of one of the areas that visitors can view him. He is using one of the portable sections of his lexigram keyboard to tell us that he wants something (though this picture does not show what he is asking for).

This is a picture of Kanzi (35) and Teco (5) climbing to the top of one of their wooden climbing structures to get an "ice treat", which is just a block of ice with different fruits inside. Photo provided by Scott Milne, research coordinator for ACCI.

This was also taken by Sara Skiba showing Teco using the touchscreen computer version of the lexigram keyboard. They use this computer for various research studies involving the lexigrams and also spoken English words. Here it looks like Teco is pointing to the lexigram symbol for the word "ready", maybe trying to tell us he was ready to do some work.

This was also taken by Milne, of Nyota and Teco (on the rocks), Elykia and Kanzi (on the wooden platforms). In this picture, they had just been let outside for one of their afternoon enrichment devices. On that day, the enrichment was large cardboard boxes that had been filled with fruit, vegetables, and leaves and then taped shut.