The children pictured here are Learning about the Wild through our program in Amboseli, Kenya.  Because it is hard to learn on empty stomachs, we also provide meals for the children during the day! These children are learning about the animals and the habitat all around them!  Thanks to Chief Daniel for enabling this program and Edward for managing it.  

Love the Wild sponsored a field trip for children who are part of Holy Rosary Elementary School. The children visited the Wolf & Grizzly Discovery Center and learned about wildlife in the area. The children told us this was the best field trip they had all year! 
 

The elephants of Amboseli are in a quagmire. Elephants, the keystone species of the Amboseli ecosystem require a larger space than the national park can offer. The land immediately outside the park was previously a community group ranch where an elected committee ran the affairs of the ranch on behalf of the members, now the land is being subdivided.

What does this mean to the elephants of Amboseli?

As land ownership shifts, the communal people will tend to build or use their land as they wish.  People will build fences that will force the elephants to remain in the park. The park as it stands, cannot sustain the current elephant population which remains at approximately 1,400 (per the current survey done by the Kenya Wildlife Service). The park is a favorite sleeping area for most wild animals of Amboseli because it has luscious grazing areas due to the availability of water from the natural springs of Enkongu Narok wetlands.

As the night approaches, the elephants sleep in the community land that borders the park because fences and buildings are getting erected in their migratory routes. This will cause the elephants to get wilder in their quest for space to roam, as migration is part of their primordial instincts.

The most likely results are an increase in cases of human-wildlife conflicts and more animosity towards trespassing animals.  It is expected that people will be selling land off at an alarming rate and resulting in increases in poaching. Due to all these possibilities, the question remains how can we ensure that the elephants and other animals of Amboseli’s critical migratory routes for wildlife are safety guaranteed, especially our gentle giants?

It’s a collective responsibility for all stakeholders involved in the conservation of the Amboseli ecosystem to develop processes to ensure space is available for trespassing wildlife. The unprecedented land rush being experienced exposes our conservation efforts to new threats.
 

Here is what Prillicia has shared with us:

My name is Prillicia gumbang, i am 23 years old, now at university i have completed research related to orangutans. My hobbies are Dayak traditional dancing, playing ukulele & guitar, singing, reading books, making videos, tracking & camping in the forest with my friends. 

Before COVID-19, me and some friends really liked to educate young people about the importance of forests and also some endemic flora and fauna in Kalimantan, one of really important is orangutans.  we share knowledge by playing games and also presenting using language that is easily understood by children's and young people in high school.  After that, we invited young people in high school to plant trees in the high school area and teach them how to plant trees properly.