Conservation Biologists

"Kilimanjaro Lion Conservation Project (KLCP) is part of a non government organization called Living with Lions which has two projects, one in Laikipia (northern Kenya) called the Laikipia Predator Project and one, KLCP, in southern Kenyan Maasailand. My work is focused in Kenyan Maasailand with KLCP."

"There is really no normal day in the bush. What becomes normal to us is rushing off to check on a livestock carcass that a lion has killed during the night, attempting to assuage angry livestock owners from retaliating on a carnivore that has just killed their favorite cow. I also spend a lot of time just talking to the murrans (Maasai warriors) as they are the ones mainly responsible for lion spearing. Most of my time is spent directing the Lion Guardian program with Antony Kasanga (assistant director); it takes up a lot of time, but it is truly enjoyable and rewarding work. Antony and I spend a lot of our time with the Guardians helping them solve problems they may encounter with the communities or the lions. We assist them in reinforcing bomas (thornbush corrals) to keep carnivores out. We hold meetings in the communities to discuss the Lion Guardians program and any advancement or changes in the program. These meetings are important as they provide a platform where communities can offer suggestions to improve the program."

"The sense of loneliness of being the only woman at decision-making meetings became increasingly frustrating. This brought about the idea of WE Africa, where we said, let’s put women at the heart of transforming the environmental movement on the continent. When we started sharing our frustrations regarding the status quo, more and more women started coming out of the woodwork, this is a real problem."

"There are simply not enough African female role models in the environmental space. If you ask anyone which women are well known in this space, they’ll tell you Jane Goodall. Yes, she has done tremendous work, but she is not African and has hardly spent time on the continent. Wangari Maathai occasionally comes up, but the point is, women are just not visible, and yet there are so many who are doing amazing things. We thought, is there a way to make them more visible and, at the same time, create a greater impact on our environment."

"We believe that if we can empower the women at the top, they can empower the ones coming after them. There is a sense of urgency in what we are trying to achieve because when it comes to creating the necessary impact, we don’t have the luxury of time."