Growing up in Africa is an experience like no other. It shapes and develops you in a certain way. Imagine having a garden that never ends, full of colour, full of life and untapped potential. After school as a kid, you’re not watching TV or going to McDonalds, you’re out in your back yard catching baboon spiders and snakes or playing at your friend’s house with their pet cheetah or riding an ostrich. Your weekends and school holidays are spent in the bush with the local tribesman, learning their ways, their crafts and their trade.
As kids we are naive and innocent, feeling like we can play forever in this peaceful garden, but as we got older we realised that it’s not quite as harmonious as we once thought.
Growing up we experienced cultures new and old, forever taking in information. Witnessing first-hand the coexistence of humans and animals, although this is fast changing. The Kenyan population and economy is growing at an unprecedented rate and with more people means less space for animals; therefore threatening wildlife’s existence.
We hear so much about protecting Africa’s wildlife, which is great, but the way to do this is to invest in the people. Helping the people, helps the animals.
We are taking action to help to give the people the knowledge and the tools they need take control, and to grasp the true potential of their land, their resources and their future.
From the moment our first blazer was stitched, we made a promise. A promise to give back 5% of all the sales we make back into the country we grew up in and love so much. Your support would mean a lot to us, but it would mean everything to them.
So, this is our mission, this is what drives us, and we can do it together…
More info on the project:
The future of East Africa’s rangelands, and the livelihoods of the stakeholders who depend on them, are uncertain. Due to a rapidly growing population, as well as climatic and political influences, these systems are facing increasing challenges, including diminished wildlife numbers and biodiversity. Greater support is therefore needed to build community capacity in Sustainable Rangeland Management.
Many questions are asked about the sustainability of these systems:
- Can livestock and wildlife coexist peacefully?
- Are there opportunities for pastoralists to develop productive, vibrant and market-oriented enterprises to expand their livelihood options?
- How relevant is biodiversity in the face of drought and poverty?
- Can all stakeholders work together to build sustainable and appropriate enterprises?
The Herding the Future Program offers a unique opportunity for participants to gain the skills needed to develop regenerative management programs that will increase wildlife numbers, improve livestock productivity, and create a more harmonious relationship between the tourism industry and local communities.
The Mara Training Centre is committed to provide high-quality practical training that focuses on learning for effective real-life solutions to address these questions, centred on land, water and community regeneration, linked to improved decision-making and coupled with livestock business development to create a prosperous and healthy future for rangelands in East Africa.
