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Simon Kipsang; The Ranger and Co-pilot at Wildlife Works
By Jane Okoth For some, a wildlife adventure may seem like a normal thing, but that seemed an impossible opportunity for young Simon Kipsang. As a young boy growing up in Nakuru County, Simon only learnt about elephants, lions and other wildlife in school. “Since I was passionate about the environment, I would spend time taking care of trees in my homestead and wished that I would one day come face to face with wildlife,” he recalls thinking. As fate would have had it, his dream has come true. Now at 30 years old, Kipsang is a full time ranger and co-pilot at Wildlife Works. When the husband and father…
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Against All odds: Janet Wanjala’s Determination to Succeed
By Jane Okoth If you happen to pass by Wildlife Works’ organic greenhouses, chances are that you will notice Janet Elina Wanjala. The shy petite woman is always busy; if she is not taking care of the tree seedlings, or harvesting jojoba seeds, she is packing the soil into the potting bags. Janet’s day begins with a 2-hour walk from her home to Wildlife Works, ready to commence her usual duties. On this particular day, she is helping out peeling the mango seeds for drying and replantation. “I take my work seriously, with much dedication and hard work because I find morale and stimulation in it,” she says. According to…
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Meet Protus Mghendi, Wildlife Works Environment Conservation Ambassador
It’s a scorching hot day in Mwatate, in Wildlife Works’ project area, and the region continues to suffer from the current drought. A group of youth and women known as Malezi Bora sit quietly and attentively on the benches in the open air for a discussion about environment conservation. It is just another working day for Protus Tetweni Mghendi, an Assistant Community Relations Officer at Wildlife Works. The 35-year-old husband and father of one is very passionate about the environment. Mwatate area is similar to many other rural places in Kenya where residents are dependent on charcoal production, bush meat poaching and unsustainable agricultural methods to meet their survival. Deforestation…
- About, Adventures in REDD+, Biodiversity, Conservation, Education, Forest Communities, Health, Wildlife, Women
Changing Kenya’s Landscape for Wildlife and Jobseekers
Changing Kenya’s Landscape for Wildlife and Jobseekers Published in the The Opinion Pages on NY Times By Amy Yee JUNE 8, 2016 RUKINGA SANCTUARY, Kenya — Twenty years ago, this wildlife corridor in southern Kenya was in jeopardy. A scarcity of jobs in this impoverished, arid landscape meant people were hunting wild giraffe and antelope for meat, and chopping down trees to make charcoal. With fewer trees, desertification loomed. Water was so precious that local cattle herders lit fires at water holes to keep giraffes and zebras from drinking. The animals had less vegetation to eat and less forest cover. Cutting down trees combined with poaching decimated wildlife in this…
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George of the Jungle: Growing our Tree Seedling and Agriculture Business
“If you put me in an office, it will be the end of me!” is the first thing George Thumbi tells us on a tour of his life. George, a father of three from Central Kenya, was brought up in a family of 10 children on a farm that grew coffee, maize, fruit and other plants. It was here that he developed an interest in agriculture which led him to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and Agroforesty at Egerton University, Kenya, among other qualifications such as a Diploma in Sales and Marketing and Business Management. George, who is now in charge of the agribusiness and forestry program at…
- About, Adventures in REDD+, Biodiversity, Conservation, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Forest Communities, Wildlife
Project Impacts of 2014
Wildlife Works thanks the corporate leaders that contributed to 2014’s success of more than double that of our REDD+ projects in 2013. Here we look back at the impacts on the ground in 2014. Kasigau Corridor REDD+ Project, Kenya Mai Ndombe REDD+ Project, Democratic Republic of the Congo
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Wildlife Works offsets all player travel for 2014 World Series
Wildlife Works was proud to work with Bonneville Environmental Foundation and Major League Baseball to offset the carbon emissions associated with the travel of all players for the 2014 World Series games! Since travel of players and fans for games accounts for the heaviest portion of the sports industry’s carbon footprint, the MLB has shown significant leadership as they take a important step towards reducing the league’s footprint. Verified Emission Reductions (VERs) from both Wildlife Works Kasigau Corridor REDD+ Project in Kenya and Mai Ndombe REDD+ Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo were used to offset players’ travel emissions to the World Series games.
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Kenya Airways and Wildlife Works allow you to travel the world while protecting the environment
Kenya Airways has teamed up with Wildlife Works to allow passengers to offset the carbon emissions from every flight. To help spread the word, Kenya Airways has included Wildlife Works in their in-flight magazine. The following is extracted from the feature in Msafiri magazine: Each time you travel with Kenya Airways, the airline gives you the option to offset the environmental cost of your flight simply by checking a box, and know that you can enjoy seeing the world and help to safeguard the future of the planet at the same time. Choosing to voluntarily offset the carbon emissions produced by your flight is a credible IATA (International Air Transport Association) approved way…
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Wildlife Works Voted Best Project Developer in Forestry
Wildlife Works Carbon LLC was voted best project developer in the forestry category of Environmental Finance and Carbon Finance Magazine’s Voluntary Carbon Market Rankings 2013. The first prize honor was decided through a vote of more than 700 members of the voluntary carbon trade. The industry rankings recognized the pioneering achievements of Wildlife Works’ REDD+ projects in Kenya and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where Wildlife Works currently manages the protection of 1.2M acres of threatened forest that generates 5M tonnes of REDD+ carbon credits on behalf of landowners and 150K people from the local communities. REDD+, an acronym for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation, is an…
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Wildlife Works looks to the birds to better understand climate change
As part of a long-term study to determine whether climate change is affecting bird populations, a Wildlife Works team hiked up Mt. Kasigau in Southeast Kenya to monitor the local wildlife and collect data on the many species of native and migratory birds. Wildlife Works has been conducting these expeditions three times per year for the past two years. The thinking behind this, is that global warming could cause birds to abandon their natural homes and move higher up the mountain or perish. Hiking up Mt. Kasigau’s iconic humpback outcrop to conduct a bird monitoring expedition is no simple matter. A small team traveling at a leisurely pace with no…
