Education Campaign

Schools Education

To date FOC has set up 26 Conservation Clubs in the Narok and Transmara districts, which are adjacent to the Masai Mara. Ten of the schools are in Transmara and sixteen in the Narok district. 19 of these are primary schools and 7 are secondary schools, with a total number of 1,500 members at present. Generally the Clubs are the only active ones in the school and frequently over-subscribed by students. They are formed with the assistance of FOC's two Educational Officers who travel from school to school. A teacher is nominated as patron and a committee is formed amongst the school members. The objectives of the clubs are to:

Promote environmental awareness amongst students, parents and teachers
To bring schools together to celebrate their national heritage and promote it to the rest of the country, through competitions, newsletters and the arts
To teach students about science and natural resources through activities such as tree nurseries and planting, bird watching, bee-keeping, agro-forestry
To promote learning and education in a fun way to students

FOC's Educational Officers visit the clubs at least once/twice each month to assess and assist with club activities. Since the start of the programme in 1991 FOC has achieved or facilitated:

Workshops and conservation days at schools to teach about wildlife and the environment and provide administrative support to the clubs
Portable wooden library boxes: with over 40 different kinds of African story and wildlife books for children. This promotes reading and improves academic performance in the national examinations.
Curriculum books sets of exam books, encyclopedias
Stationery items: pens, pencils, exercise books, rulers, chalk
Exchange programmes: between the schools and supporters of FOC. Overseas groups such as Friends of Africa, tour operators and international study groups, visit the schools under the auspices of the Programme FOC is has a British Council link with schools in the UK. At present we have two schools in the UK writing to our schools in Kenya
Forestry projects: FOC provides equipment and training for the development of seed-banks, tree nurseries and woodlots in and around the schools' compound. They act as a teaching aid and as a resource for science and agricultural classes. The children are given projects such as 'grow your own lunch' and the conservation club is in charge of watering their trees etc.
Binoculars: donated from RSPB, for bird/ animal studies.
Educational materials and a newsletter 'Esidai News': an educational newsletter focusing on wildlife and conservation issues within the greater Masai Mara region. Free distribution to all FOC Conservation Clubs and to many other schools and educational organisations throughout Kenya.
All schools have special projects. FOC provides guidelines and materials needed for projects such as bee-keeping or a herbarium.

FOC Conservation Clubs tending to their flower bed

FOC Conservation Clubs receiving donated books

Community Education

Friends of Conservation is one of the principal partners working with different groups of people (businessmen, local leaders, women groups, etc.) around the Mara Reserve. The main objectives of our community extension work are to:

Promote the conservation and value of wildlife and natural resources through awareness raising, education and positive relations between the Reserve's management teams and the surrounding communities.
Support the alleviation of poverty at household level, through diversifying income-generating activities to include commercial woodlots, bee-keeping and beadwork, with FOC staff providing training in technical skills and management.
Mobilise communities into groups, by region or gender, to undertake social, economic and development activities.

Since the start of the programme in 1991, FOC has achieved or facilitated:

The formation of Women's Groups: the programme mobilises women in the Talek region and more recently in the Aitong region. Three groups have formed in Talek: Kimunyak (with 31 members), Mpuai (with 47 members) and Ilalamatak (with 13 members). They manage conservation, social, economic and development activities in their communities.
The programme has organised direct income-generating activities, for the Groups. These include beadwork sales, bee-keeping and the sale of local honey (a total of 23 hives to date) and cultural villages to attract tourists.
Chiefs, local villagers, business sectors and women groups leaders have attended workshops organised and facilitated by FOC. These workshops cover technical skills, management and marketing aspects of a project.
Support to the Women's Group through reducing their workload, collecting fuel wood. This is carried out through the promotion of a fuel efficient cookstove. Made from cow dung and mud, this stove uses a third less wood than the Masai's traditional method of cooking.
Organisation of educational tours for groups to visit enterprises and initiatives in other regions around the Mara.
Annual conservation events with students, teachers, local leaders and the community as a whole. Such as the World Environment Day, National Tree Planting Day and Open Days at our Conservation Centre. These raise awareness about environmental issues and provide a forum for the local community to express themselves and learn from each other.

Apiary of bee-hives cared for by the women's groups

Honey Care demonstration at FOC Conservation Centre, Talek

FOC World Environment Day, Narok

Tourist Education

Complimentary to the above FOC raises awareness within the tourism sector. FOC is the catalyst for the UK Travel and Tourism Conservation Committee and produces several educational materials; the Traveller's Code leaflet (a set of guidelines which teach people how to take care of the environment during their travels) and the Masai Mara National Reserve Guidebook; updated this year and sold in many shops and lodges in Kenya.

FOC Kenya has also just released 2 new code of conducts for visitors to Kenya - On Safari and At the Coast. These have been put together with the Eco-tourism Society of Kenya, Kenya Association of Tour Operators and the Kenya Wildlife Service. The aim of the codes is to encourage visitors to act responsibly towards the wildlife and habitat they have come to Kenya to see.

The Codes will be distributed in the form of leaflets and posters for lodges and camps and laminated cards for vehicles and planes.

Please contact FOC UK for more details on the codes.

Off-road driving - one of the major problems in the Masai Mara