A Bad Day On The Ocean Is Better Than A Good Day In The Office
Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Turtles | Date: Feb 25 2009 | By: gvikenya
Ross Hellings has recently joined us as a volunteer to assist in our research and community work, and gives us his first impressions of life with GVI Kenya:
I arrived on base in Mkwiro on Saturday afternoon after an adventurous trip from Mombasa, and from that point on it’s been a hard, fast and fun learning experience…
Day 1: camp training with exciting items like fire extinguisher training, oxygen tank checking, radio training, safety lectures and practice scenarios, and the list goes on!
Day 2: the real fun began… we started the day with lectures and tutorials regarding the on-going marine research, and then into identification of different marine mammals and turtles, and methodology of the research. A swim test was also thrown in for good measure before lunch, under threat of otherwise needing to wear highly fashionable fluorescent orange life vests for 2 weeks.
Day 3: our first day on the water, and what a day! Early on we found Bottlenose dolphins, and then the highlight, a pod of almost 100 spinner dolphins! These fantastic mammals stayed with us for around 30 minutes, playing, socializing, jumping, surfing the waves, and bow riding! It was an amazing experience to watch. We ended the day with an ‘exam’ to test our identification skills as well as our knowledge of the methodology and practice of the research.
Day 4: again early on in the day we had our first encounter, this time humpback dolphins, followed shortly by bottlenose dolphins!
I could continue, but there is too much to say… My first week has been amazing, seeing the major species we would expect to see in the region, as well as spotting a few elusive turtles! I can definitely say doing marine research is much much more fun than a normal working day; I have a new saying, a bad day on the ocean is better than a good day in the office!
May the adventure continue!
Ross
Tags: bottlenose dolphin, dolphin research, humpback dolphin, spinner dolphin, turtle
Steps Forward in the Dust at Kidong
Category: Community Conservation, Environmental Education, Human-Wildlife Conflict | Date: Feb 25 2009 | By: gvikenya
“Elephants!” shouted the group of women huddled under the shade of a lone tree by the border of Tsavo West National Park. Clad in colorful kangas with babies strapped to their backs, the women are not the least bit surprised to see elephants wandering down the main road of their village of Kidong, they are simply excited to point them out to me. Although elephants are a common sight in this region of Kenya, I still get excited when I see them passing serenely by oblivious to our presence.
Elephants were in fact one of the main reasons that GVI began working with the community of Kidong in 2006, and remain one of the key focal points for GVI’s community development work in this village. So what to elephants have to do with community development you might ask? Lots!
Firstly, many of the community members in Kidong village historically relied upon poaching animals, including elephants, in Tsavo West National Park for subsistence purposes. In 2006, Kidong and two other villages in this region – Kasaani and Mahandkini – elected to give up poaching in favor of sustainable alternative livelihoods. This is where GVI in conjunction with the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) stepped in and offered to provide assistance in developing sustainable alternative means of income generation in these villages.
Secondly, the elephant population has created its own problem… human-elephant conflict! In the area surrounding Kidong agricultural pursuits are one alternative livelihood which is commonly pursued; crop raiding by elephants, however, has a significant negative impact upon the viability of this income generation option as whole shambas (farming plots) are often decimated by elephant incursions.
Constructing chili-oil fences at a local shamba
Not to be deterred from fully embracing their new found sustainable lifestyles, the community of Kidong has managed to put a positive spin on the problem of human-elephant conflict. With assistance from both GVI and WSPA the community of Kidong has constructed the Kidong Cultural and Education Centre. The Education Centre provides free educational lessons to communities about sustainable means of deterring elephants from farming land using chili-based deterrents such as chili-oil fences and chili-dung bricks. The Cultural Centre is currently being developed as a tourism centre where tourists can come and learn about Kidong’s story – ‘From Poachers to Protectors’.
GVI enjoying recent developments at the Kidong Cultural and Education Centre
On my most recent visit to Kidong, I witnessed the community continuing to take big steps forward in the construction of the tourism related elements of the Centre – in less than two months time a new kitchen, store room, toilets and defined paths around the Centre were all constructed! Moreover, reports from employees of the Education Centre point to the continued success of chili-based methods of elephant deterrence from farming plots in the Kidong area. It looks like Kidong’s main road will be marked by the footprints of eco-tourism alongside elephant tracks in the very near future!
Tags: Chili-Oil Fences, community development, Community-Based Conservation, Elephants, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Kidong, Poaching, tsavo west national park
Mkwiro Dolphin Club Reaches Standard 5
Category: Coastal Forest, Dolphin Clubs, Environmental Education, Kenya Wildlife Service, Year of the Dolphin | Date: Feb 18 2009 | By: gvikenya
2007 was designated the ‘International Year of the Dolphin’ by UNEP’s Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and GVI Kenya spent the year working closely with Mkwiro Primary School on education and activities that supported awareness of dolphin conservation. So successful was the year, which included the introduction of the dolphin-watching code of conduct by Kenya Wildlife Service, that CMS extended it in to 2008. Halfway through 2008, ‘Dolphin Clubs’ were launched in 10 local schools in an effort to ensure that the achievements of the initiative continued beyond the two years and resulted in something more long-term. The clubs were supported with a donation by CMS of 10,000 KSh to each one to ensure that awareness and conservation activities could be undertaken.
It was a fantastic idea, but sadly fell in to the trap they hoped to avoid… with no follow up or support from the 2008 stakeholders, the schools didn’t quite know what to do with their clubs. When GVI Kenya got back up and running we found the Mkwiro Dolphin Club with it’s student members at something of an impasse, and so in collaboration with the school and its teachers we have adopted Mkwiro’s Dolphin Club. The next obstacle we came across was something of a misconception amongst the student members of the club… although just primary school children they had developed an acute sense of financial awareness, more so than environmental awareness unfortunately. It seems that the children in the club thought they were entitled to a cut of the 10,000 KSh! So we decided to take it back to basics and seek out the children that want to actively participate in environmental learning and action, rather than those ‘in it for the money’. We have been hosting the dolphin club on Tuesdays afternoons, in their 3.10 to 4.10 clubs and societies schedule, aiming to work our way through all of the students from standard 8 to 4, giving them a taste of what the club is about, before opening up ‘full-time membership’ to the wannabe dolphin eco-warriors!
Having worked our way through standards 8, 7 and 6 with treasure hunts at our land-based dolphin research site and turtle lessons in the school, this week we took on standard 5 for an hour, with an ambitious concept - water cycles, mangroves, deforestation and the impact of increased sedimentation on near-shore coral reefs and the animals that depend on them, such as fish and in our specific case the humpback dolphins that favour the reefs fringing Shimoni’s coastal forest as a feeding ground.
It sounds like a lot of information eh? Well, we started with a warmer game, provisionally called ‘monkey’ and a bit like musical chairs… the children race to ‘climb in to a tree’ (a sack on the ground!) and whoever can’t find space is out. Each round, a tree is ‘cut down’ until at the end we were left with just two ‘monkeys’ remaining - a simple but effective introduction to deforestation we thought! The kids loved it, shoving each other out of the ‘trees’ to stay in the game. Then they rotated around three educational activities - a water cycle jigsaw that they had to arrange in order; a ‘true or false’ mangrove facts game that got them running from true to false depending on whether they believed our ‘facts’; and a simple science experiment pouring ‘rain’ on to bowls of ‘forested’ and ‘deforested’ earth to watch the difference in the water quality running down the ‘rivers’ and in to the ’sea’.
The session ended with our water cycle obstacle course, as teams ran relays with cups of water, zig-zagging along our winding ‘river’, ducking underneath our ‘ocean waves’ and jumping from ‘cloud to cloud’ to fill up a jug at the end. As we predicted it soon descended in to mayhem but it was hilarious to watch for both us and the children. Another successful introduction to dolphin club, or as the Tuesday afternoon chant goes… “dol-fin ki-la-bu, dol-fin ki-la-bu…”
Tags: deforestation, Dolphin Clubs, environmental awareness, mkwiro primary school, Year of the Dolphin
More Spotted Ground Thrush & New Born Colobus Found on Forest Floor
Category: Birds, Butterflies, Charcoal Burning, Coastal Forest, Colobus, Logging, Primate Research, Shimoni Forest, Small mammals, Spotted Ground Thrush, chameleon | Date: Feb 13 2009 | By: gvikenya
Yesterday we sent three teams in to the forest in an attempt to catch up on delays caused by having to re-cut transect 6, and a shorter week as some our research team prepare to take a long weekend break.
Tess took ‘team 1′ up to transect 6 to finish off maintenance… re-clearing the paths we use to survey the forest following a combination of natural tree falls and sadly even more ‘unnatural’ tree falls as illegal timber extraction and charcoal burning continue. It is the hottest and hardest work so it was a mixture of relief and pride to hear they finished it. The excitement was reserved something else however - the team recorded another spotted ground thrush, our 2nd in as many weeks of this critically endangered bird species. Critically endangered due to habitat loss, something only too evident in the forest we survey; the presence of such a conservation important species however could provide an invaluable stimulus to raising awareness of the plight of Shimoni’s forests. Alongside the Angolan black and white colobus it represents a ‘flagship’ species - a focus for conservation that would benefit the wider habitat and species assemblage.
Matt and I joined forces with our two teams to check the small mammal traps… empty… but on the way to transect 4, following our group from the back I noticed something on the ground, inconspicuous enough for the others to have walked by. A new born colobus monkey, sadly lying dead on the ground. A genuine mix of emotions; upsetting for everyone to see such a beautiful, vulnerable creature that didn’t quite make it - a species that we are committed to conserving, and acutely aware that every individual counts when habitat destruction is sending the species in to increasingly rapid decline in Kenya. But the scientist in me was also excited; when you study animals so intently, each day raises new questions, sometimes more than it brings answers. An opportunity to examine a new born so closely is a privilege. Pure white, thin silky fur, the face still pink, the dried skin of the umbilical cord still present. The hands clenched with the characteristic colobus trait of it’s reduced, almost non-existent thumb. Perfectly formed, but lifeless.
The infant had died probably at the end of the day before. A small gap in the tree canopy directly above suggested it may simply have fallen as its mother leaped between trees but this is obviously conjecture. It was curled in the foetal position so hadn’t died immediately, but likely had died as a result of a fall. We buried it, marked with stones… partly an emotive, collective mark of respect but the scientist still lurks - an complete, clean skeleton of an infant by the end of the rainy season will be of major interest.
On transect 4 we conducted a bird survey - many were heard and crowned and trumpeter hornbills, green wood hoopoe, plain-backed sunbird and a pair of woodpeckers. Another exciting ’second’ of this expedition was spotted in the leaf-litter by Asha; a bearded pygmy chameleon.
I took my team on to transect 5, to survey canopy height and coverage; straightforward, slow-paced work, but the panga needed swinging to clear the path of branches and vines, and the heat and humidity were taking their toll on all of us. Back at section 0, we mustered our remaining collective energies for butterfly sweep netting. There wasn’t quite enough energy left in reserve to chase down the few high and fast flying butterflies flitting through the sunny spots until Tom stepped up to the challenge at the end - a beautiful swordtail butterfly.
And those were the highs and lows, but as with every day in Shimoni’s coastal forest the small, these daily rewards keep us coming back. Until next time… Corti
Tags: angolan black and white colobus, butterfly research, pygmy chameleon, Spotted Ground Thrush
Our Week In Mahandakini In Pictures
Category: Community Conservation, Environmental Education, Uncategorized | Date: Feb 08 2009 | By: gvikenya
I was updating you last week from the field, thanks to the wonders of mobile phones, and now I’m back in Shimoni, showered and rested, I thought I’d illustrate our little safari for you!Mahandakini is a small rural village sandwiched between Tsavo West national park and Mt Kilimanjaro across the border in Tanzania. We were introduced to a community based organisation, the Mahandakini Youth Network for Animal Welfare and Rights, by the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) back in early 2007. WSPA supported the establishment of this group of former wildlife poachers to help tackle the bush meat trade and the illegal and inhumane killing of Tsavo’s wildlife. For their part, the former poachers have been only too willing to leave poaching behind them, a dangerous livelihood that the felt forced in to by socio-economic pressures - quite simply, they didn’t know how else to earn the money to feed their families in an area where unpredictable rains and crop damage by elephants can render subsistence farming ineffective in putting food on the table. Our task in supporting WSPA’s objectives is to help the community find alternative ways to earn a living.
The journey to Mahandakini took us through Tsavo West national park and this time around, past four elephants feeding by the roadside:
On Monday the community members were busy collecting government food aid, making our mission of the week even more important - we were to work with the group in developing a strategy for their own community-based food security. The group want to raise funds to buy maize at low harvest-time prices and store it for tougher times when food scarcity drives the market price up, out of economic reach of many families. This is not for profit; the community group will then sell maize on at the original low price to ensure families can afford to feed themselves throughout the year.On Tuesday we had the community group split in to two project teams, tackling their food security plan and their ideas for income generation - growing and processing cotton, a plant that fares well in the harsh conditions but for which there has been little market value recently. If they can raise funds for a workshop with spinning wheels and looms then with the training that Dishon has already received they can produce their own fabrics which will definitely have a market in the nearby trading town of Taveta.In the afternoon we visited the nearby primary school at Chumvini to teach the standard 8 class - all 70 of them - about the bats in their nearby cave, with the hope that they will treat them with a bit more respect in future. It was a lot of fun and the message certainly got through to the class about how interesting and important bats can be: 
Wednesday was a day off from work as we checked out some of the incredible local sights, starting with the stunning crater lake at Chala:
On to the bustle of Taveta market, then the cool (actually very cold!) peaceful Njoro springs for a refreshing swim, before passing through Ziwani Voyager tented camp for a cold beer by the hippo pool:
On Thursday we reconvened with the community groups and made real progress towards to outlining strategies to get both the food security and cotton production going - we have some work to do putting it all together as organised business plans but we believe we can get both initiatives up and running within in a few months with relatively little funding which we hope to source:
We finished the week planting trees, our contribution to improving their environment and with training that they have already received, a key ingredient for their home made neem soap. And throughout the week we were had one of Africa’s most beautiful views right on out doorstep - Mt Kilimanjaro:
Spotted Ground Thrush Spotting in Shimoni Forest!!!
Category: Birds, Coastal Forest, Community Conservation, Shimoni Forest | Date: Feb 04 2009 | By: gvikenya
Our team of interns gave up their Saturday morning to catch up with some of our forest research work… Sara reports:
A lovely Saturday in Shimoni was unraveling its mysteries before us… After a sunny and splashtastic crossing of the Wasini Channel for the weekend we arrived well pleased to be back on the shores of our little coastal village. The night before had brought with it surprised concerns for the well-being of this community and the precious forest that surrounds it as we had seen the foreboding pinks and whites of forest fires dotting the horizon. We all know that Shimoni’s coastal forest is a bio-diversity hotspot. It is home to the enigmatic Angolan black and white colobus monkey, the vulnerable Zanj Elephant Shrew and the endangered and notoriously shy Spotted Ground Thrush. These are just a few of the wildlife celebrities that call this track of forest home. On any given day one can easily see Sykes monkeys, yellow baboons, suni, duiker, tortoises, lizards, snakes and so many more exciting animals. So with a little trepidation in our hearts about what we might find after the fires, and the hopes of doing some maintenance work on our transects… three brave interns stole into the forest to do some work. And our adventuring spirit was met with incredible rewards – a spotting of a Spotted Ground Thrush!
The Spotted Ground Thrush is a recognized endangered species and organizations like Nature Kenya are seeking to promote the protection of habitats for this bird. Documented sightings of Spotted Ground Thrushes in Shimoni Forest bring us one step closer to conserving this vital ecosystem.
Heading all the way out to our furthest transect, the goal was to help straighten out the tagging system used to lead surveys on a few sections. While the day was hot and sweaty as is the custom here, there were encouraging sightings of colobus along the way, as well as the challenge of navigating above and below the many trees, vines, branches and coral rag outcroppings. After navigating through the landscape and swinging a few pangas, the work of the day was done and the girls were homeward bound. But not before two very important events took place: Sara P’s first sighting of an Elephant Shrew (those wily little long nosed beauties that hop about in the leaf litter and undergrowth); followed by the SPOTTED GROUND THRUSH!! While there have been two previous sightings in 2008 this was not only the first for 2009 but the first time that multiple people had been able to positively identify the species. Bigger than many of us expected the bird to be, it was easily identified by the double lines of white spots on its wings as well as a number of other identifying characteristics. We were graced with several extended moments of the birds elusive presence – first seen, unsurprisingly, on the ground itself (thus the name!), and then hopping from one low branch to another. A graceful and charming animal that immediately won us over and inspired us to go racing back to the cottage to share our very exciting news with the rest of the team. The next step is to compile more data about the thrush to be shared with Kenya Wildlife Service and beyond with the aims of protecting both these amazing animals as well as the unique forests that it calls home!
Tags: , Coastal Forest, Shimoni Forest, Spotted Ground Thrush
Our Tour of Taveta District
Category: Community Conservation | Date: Feb 04 2009 | By: gvikenya
Greetings from our Tsavo West Community Develpment Project. I’ll be honest, there’s not really any work to report on today. Instead we treated our team to our tour of some of the areas best, but little known sights.
Our day started with a short trek up to the rim of the crater lake at Chala and then down to edge of the turquoise waters. This stunning lake which lays hidden in an old volcanic crater has to be one of Kenya’s better kept secrets. And Tanzania’s for that matter as it straddles the border.
Next stop was Taveta market, always bustling colourful and friendly. We stocked up on supplies and went on a mission to bring back a little something - the cheaper and tackier the better in our opinion - for our colleagues left holding the fort back at the coast.
Then on to the lesser known but equally beautiful Njoro springs, where the Kilimanjaro waters emerge from underground for a freezing, but exceptionally refreshing swim on a hot Taveta day!
We squeezed in a little work at Tunza Mazingira, a tiny local tree nursery that is one of the most beautiful peaceful spots I know of. Full of young trees and pretty plants arranged in neat rows under tall shade tees, it represents a little haven of green cool paradise by hot dusty Taveta. We bought neem trees, which we plant each time we visit Mahandakini. It helps improve their environment, offers a small grass-roots contribution to combating climate change and significantly the group here were sponsored through GVI Charitable Trust, thanks to Rachel our former base manager, to learn how to make soap from the neem tree which is renowned for its medicinal properties. This represents one form of alternative income for these ex-poachers.
Finally, we ended our day with a cold beer at Ziwani Voyager tented camp sat by a pool of hippo, crocodile and wonderful bird life, with impala and waterbuck at the water’s edge. Zebra on the drive back to Mahandakini would have been the perfect end… Except that we were treated to an exquisite yellow sunset behind Kilimanjaro’s lower slopes.
In case you hadn’t noticed, I love it out here!
Tags: lake chala, neem tree, njoro springs, soap making, taveta, tree nursery
Cotton, Bats & Njukini Womens Group
Category: Community Conservation, Environmental Education | Date: Feb 03 2009 | By: gvikenya
Welcome back to GVI Kenya on tour! So cotton, bats and Njukini Women’s Group, what do they have in common? The truth is not much except that they all featured in our work here at Mahandakini today. Oh, and so did Kilimanjaro, treating us to some truly awe-inspiring views!
Cotton was one of our main themes with the community group we are working with here in Mahandakini. The WSPA community group, Mahandakini Youth Network for Animal Rights and Welfare
Have identified value added cotton production as a route to alternative liveloods that could guard against their 32 members returning to wildlife poaching and the bush meat trade. Cotton was widely grown here when there was a ready government market, being a hardy reliable cash crop in the semi arid strip between Tsavo West and Tanzania. But when the market disappeared, many farmers sought alternatives such as maize that is easy to sell, but more prone to the often failing rains.
Under a government initiative to revive cotton production, Dishon, the community group chairman has received training on spinning and weaving raw cotton as well as fabric dyeing, and is able to transfer those skills to his group and the wider community. Being able to source, spin, weave and sell the products of cotton locally would offer a realistic sustainable opportunity to provide a ready market to farmers and employment to the community. Profits from the enterprise would then feed in to their food security plans. At its most basic, food security for the community here means buying maize at harvest time when the price is low, storing it and selling back to the community at the same price at tougher times of year when the market price puts it out of financial reach for many families. This is not a profit making enterprise but a genuine community support process ensuring their neighbours don’t go hungry when traders force up the price of basic food stuffs.
Our morning with the community group was spent exploring both these initiatives, the planning, organisation and costs as a precursor to developing a fully fledged proposal, that could source the necessary funding to get them started.
The afternoon took us to neighbouring Chumvini village, where we have visited the bat caves at the primary school. Such wondeful animals it is always a thrill to see them up close and personal. On our last visit however we were dismayed to see that the school children didn’t share our respect and affection for the bats. After seeing them take out a number of bats with sticks we vowed to return and try to change attitudes. So with the gracious cooperation of the teachers, we took standard 8 - all 70 children! - for an hour’s lesson of games and bat facts, pressing home the benefit of bats, not least their remarkable ability to reduce mosquito populations! The ‘bat moth’ game at the end was designed to illustrate the concept of echolocation with a blindfolded ‘bat’ calling out and listening for the replying ‘moth’ until the bat catches the moth. Not sure how well they understood echolocation but they certainly enjoyed getting out of the classroom!
Finally we ended the day at the next village, Njukini where the women’s group gave us a tour of their grain store, sharing valuable information to take back to Mahandakini for their food security plans. This admiral group of local women that have been working as a cooperative for over 30 years were welcoming, gracious and as inspiring as their Kilimanjaro back drop! We were welcomed back to see them on our next visit to Mahandakini and personally I can’t wait to share an hour or two with this collection of women (and men - gender equality is alive and kicking even in dusty rural Kenya!) rich in shared experience, wisdom and sense of community.
Tags: bats, community development, cotton production, Environmental Education, food security, Kilimanjaro, Mahandakini, tsavo west, world society for the protection of animals
Metting of Friends of Shimoni Forest
Category: Charcoal Burning, Coastal Forest, Colobus, Community Conservation, Environmental Education, Friends of Shimoni Forest, Kaya, Logging, Primate Research, Shimoni Forest, Uncategorized | Date: Feb 03 2009 | By: gvikenya
Friends of Shimoni Forest held a meeting this week, and were beginning to put a lot of our plans into action. With the help of Mr. Adini Mgeni, Assistant area chief, our forest patrols are on their way to being a regular scheduled event. One of the problems we have been facing has been a lack of man power. Our members are committed to conserving the forest; however, they also have their own well beings and those of their families to be concerned with. We are unable to compensate them for the day’s work they miss while patrolling. We are working currently on a schedule that will work with member’s availabilities and still leave sufficient time to patrol until we can find funding to help pay them.
Some of our members.
Another topic we discussed, which is really exciting, is the training classes we have set up for some of our members and locals from the community. With the help of Corti, GVI country director and Friends of Shimoni Forest secretary, and Rachel, a previous GVI expedition manger, who raised the money, we will be sending people learn how to make soap from the Neem tree. Out of the people being trained some of them are charcoal burners so we are really excited to be getting them into a new sustainable field of work. Those who are being trained have also agreed to bring the skills they learn back and train more community members. This is going to be a great way to get the community involved in conserving the forest where these trees grow.
Chairman Matta on patrol.
Our guided nature walks are also well on their way starting, which is another way we plan to help people into sustainable work. Training started this week and the guys are really anxious to get started. Mr. Athumani Omari and Madme Mwanamkuu saidi are our fist to tourist guides, their knowledge of the local communities uses and history with the forest is going to be a great asset. I started teaching them a little more about the wildlife in our forest, particularly about the Colobus monkey. They already knew a lot of the animals in the forest and were really interested in learning more about them. As a group we are always trying to stay busy. Coming up on Saturday we have a meeting with the local village elders. They’re going to speak with us about using the Kayas, sacred areas, in our forest walks. We are still looking for funding to get some people training in bee keeping, the woman of Anzwani are ready to go. Soon Mr. Corti, Athumani, and Matta, Friends of Shimoni Forest Chairman, will be heading to a bank in Ukunda. We are going set up a bank account in our groups name. This is going to be a great help with our fundraising. Other meetings with the district commissioner, local teachers, and village chairmen are being planned as well and proposal for community toilets and conservation are being written left and right. I’m really pleased with all the hard work these guys are doing and were going to be making some big changes soon. I’ll let you all know how it goes. See you later. Drew.
Tags: Charcoal Burning, Coastal Forest, Colobus, Community Conservation, Environmental Education, Friends of Shimoni Forest, Kaya, Logging, Shimoni Forest
Visiting the Ex-poachers of Mahandakini
Category: Community Conservation | Date: Feb 02 2009 | By: gvikenya
Hello from Mahandakini!
Thanks to the wonders of modern technology I’m blogging this week without even needing my laptop! The only drawback is that I can’t show you the wonderful photos that we’re getting along the way but if you bear with me I’ll illustrate our little safari when I’m back in the office.
So where am I this week? Well 2 years ago we begun a collaboration with the World Society for the Protection of Animals on their project to tackle the bush meat trade of Tsavo West national park. Recognising that the poachers of villages such as Mahandakini, Kidong and Kassani, near the town of Taveta were only hunting wildlife because they struggled to make a living from farming, the focus of their work is to work with community groups of reformed poachers and the women that helped sell the meat of wild animals to find alternative livelihoods.
Although a long way from our coastal home, we recognised the potential to help change people’s lives and the future of Tsavo’s wildlife.
This week I have brought our team back to Mahandakini, a beautiful rural village that lies between Tsavo West and the Tanzanian border, quite literally in the shadow of Mt Kilimanjaro - yes we really are that close to what must be one of the continents most iconic images and in my mind one the world’s most stunning vistas.
Our long bumpy journey yesterday took us through Tsavo West national park, past elephants with young, ostrich and hartebeest and with the sun setting a brief view of Kili’s twin peaks.
This morning we were guided by our ex-poacher hosts through their shamba, or farms, to see how irrigation can make all the difference in the world to these communities. During this week we will be supporting them in their plans to bring food security to their community, sadly a very poignant topic in Kenya right now, as well as plans to turn locally grown cotton in to value-added finished products.
I’ll let you know how the week goes as often as I can check in… And as long as my phone battery lasts!
Bye for now…
Tags: bush meat trade, Kilimanjaro, Mahandakini, taveta, tsavo west national park, wiliflife' poachers
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