This document summarizes a presentation on enhancing habitat rehabilitation through community engagement and action in Narok, Kenya. The presentation describes sustainability challenges in the area like land degradation, poverty, and lack of sustainable energy. It outlines objectives to promote environmental stewardship and alternative livelihoods. Activities undertaken engaged the Maasai community in seed collection, agroforestry, and installing efficient cookstoves. These activities increased uptake of sustainability practices, behavior change, and collaboration among stakeholders. Going forward, there is a need to increase coordination, upscale projects, and document indigenous knowledge.

1. Enhancing Habitat
Rehabilitation Through
Community Engagement and
Action
Brian Waswala
RCE South Rift, Kenya
brianmarv@gmail.com
Presented at the
8th African RCE Conference
9th August, 2018, Zomba, Malawi

2. Overview of Presentation
i. Location of activity site
ii. Sustainability challenges faced in the area
iii.Objectives of RCE activities
iv. Target audience and community engaged
v. Activities undertaken
vi. Impacts of the activities
vii.Factors contributing to success of the project
viii.Challenges and opportunities
ix. Way forward

3. Location: Narok and its environs lies south
east of Nairobi
Population: The town has an estimated
population of 40,000 inhabitants
Climatic condition: Arid area
Community: Predominated by the Maasai
community
Socio-economics: The community engages in
livestock husbandry, agricultural production,
trade and wildlife conservation (Maasai Mara
Game Reserve)

4. Sustainability Challenges facing Narok
 Increased land degradation and subdivision due to increased
anthropogenic development
 Poor waste disposal, sanitation and management emanating from
the town and poor consumption patterns
 Habitat degradation (division of farmland and forest ecosystems)
 Poverty
 Lack of sustainable energy (most community members use wood-
fuel
 Low education standards and marginalization of the girl child;
 Wildlife poaching

5. o Most of these challenges are attributed to increased socio-
economic empowerment and poor environmental awareness
 Results into deaths and loss of livelihoods (drought, flooding,
disease incidents, resource conflicts etc.)

6. Objectives of the ESD Awareness Program
 To promote positive behaviour change on the environment for
sustainability;
 To increase citizen accountability towards a clean and healthy environment
through national / international policies;
 To promote alternative livelihoods geared at ensuring economic
empowerment;
 To enhance peace through equitable natural resource use; and
 Contribute to Kith Kenya’s ESD Policy (2017); Africa Union’s Agenda 2063;
UNFCCC Youth Agenda; Africa Environmental Education and Training Action
Plan (2015-2024); UNESCO GAP on ESD, UN SDGs)
Target audience
• Students / academia of Maasai Mara University;
• Communities (youth, women / girls, marginalized communities);
• County and national government agencies; and
• Conservation stakeholders.

7. Activities undertaken
 Indigenous seed collection in the community forests and
conservancies;
 Formal education on Environmental Planning, Forestry, Wildlife
and Sustainable Tourism related courses;
 Seed nursery establishment through youth groups and eco-clubs;
 Tree growing as opposed to tree planting: on-site botanical
garden (in line with Kenya's 10% tree cover / UN / UNFCCC);
 Outreach and awareness on suitable tree species and habitat
suitability (collaboration with Kenya Forest Service, Kenya
Forest Research Institute, Narok County Council and other
stakeholders);
 Energy efficient cook-stoves installation and use of biogas;
 Agro-forestry and bee keeping – alternative income generation
and food nutrition; and
 Promotion and documentation of indigenous knowledge and
sustainability practices.

8. Impacts of promoting sustainability awareness through communities and
youth (formal and informal education)
 Increased uptake of sustainability practices (UNESCO GAP on ESD)
 Actual behavior change on how the student and community handle their waste
 Reduced fuel-wood consumption
 Increased climate change adaptation and mitigation through rehabilitation of
degraded lands;

9.  Increased biodiversity awareness and livelihoods through eco-tourism;
 Collaboration and cooperation of stakeholders;
 Increased food nutrition
 Promotion of indigenous knowledge (medicine and orphaned crops) –
intangible benefits of conservation

10. Factors contributing to success
• Coordination by RCE South Rift leadership;
• Collaboration between various stakeholders (strengths);
• Already noticed climate change impacts, need for lifestyle
changes and energy demands.
Challenges:
Coordination and funding (volunteerism)
Opportunities
• Youth innovation and passion to have a better future;
• Promotion of alternative IGAs (economic empowerment); and
• Government and international policies; and
• Immense community knowledge.

11. Way forward
 Need for increased coordination and capacity development
on ESD and players;
 Upscale the projects on multiple sites and document on
them; and
 Documentation of indigenous knowledge (a lot of good
practices that are undocumented / intangible).
Thank you.
Brian Waswala
brianmarv@gmail.com
Prof. Francis Mburu, Coordinator, RCE South Rift
mburu407@gmail.com / mburu@mmarau.ac.ke