Samburu Perspectives about Cultural Change and Wildlife

Kenya is undergoing sweeping social and cultural changes in many ways. In the pastoral regions to the north, boys who would have traditionally lived and practiced as pastoralists, spending weeks and sometimes months at a time... [ view full abstract ]

Kenya is undergoing sweeping social and cultural changes in many ways. In the pastoral regions to the north, boys who would have traditionally lived and practiced as pastoralists, spending weeks and sometimes months at a time in the landscape with livestock, are increasingly encouraged to attend school instead. In addition, improvements for the rights of girls have yielded new opportunities and attainable dreams to young girls which were considered far-fetched as little as one generation ago.
Changes to the lives of adolescents in Kenya will likely have implications for conservation. On one hand, more individuals with formal education could result in a greater value placed on conservation of Kenya’s wildlife and habitats. On the other hand, young men who will not have the years of direct experience in nature as pastoralists like their fathers and grandfathers, and women with less direct experience in the landscape retrieving water and fire wood, may feel differently and/or know less about local landscapes than their predecessors.
Brett Bruyere and Amy Masching will introduce the session, including an overview of the Samburu region and a summary of the current cultural shift affecting young people in the region.
Mr. Boniface Isigi will provide the perspective of a male adult leader and school teacher from the Samburu community of Archer's Post, Kenya.
Ms. Christine Namunyak will provide the the perspective of a female adult leader from the Samburu community of Archer's Post, Kenya
Gabriel Lengamunyak will provide the perspective of a young, educated male currently enrolled in a university degree program. Mr. Lengamunyak comes from a very traditional Samburu manyatta (home). His parents live traditionally as pastoralists, and Mr. Lengamunyak still herds livestock as-needed to support his family's home.
Ms. Ivon Waithera will provide the perspective of a young, educated female who recently completed high school where she became fluent in three languages and conversational in a fourth. She comes from a large family in which females hold traditional gender roles of retrieving water and fuelwood, and raising children.