Contact addresses:

Edward Loosli - Chairman, The Wildlife Foundation - Kenya
President, The Wildlife Trust - U.S.A.: Ed-L@sbcglobal.net

Irina Katherina Wandera - Office Manager:
ikwandera@gmail.com

John Sinkeet Solonka - Field Director: sinkeet1@yahoo.co.uk










Send tax-deductable checks to:

The Wildlife Trust
120 La Bolsa Road
Walnut Creek, California USA 94598



Wildlife Conservation Lease Program

Thanks to the generous contributions from The Nature Conservancy (USA), the Kenya Wildlife Service and the contribution (Sept. 2009) from the Global Environment Facility through a World Bank/GEF Project, 55,000 acres of savanna grasslands and more than 380 Maasai families are living under the environmental protection of the Wildlife Conservation Lease Program managed by The Wildlife Foundation, up from 8,600 acres in 2007. Nairobi Nat. Park is approximately 28,500 acres, so this expansion of the Lease Program throughout the Nairobi National Park wildlife dispersal area almost triples the size of the ecosystem's protected habitat. Under the written terms of the Wildlife Conservation Lease contract, in return for a contribution of $4 per acre per year, individual Maasai landowners living outside the open un-fenced southern boundary of Nairobi N.P. agree to keep their lands un-fenced and un-cultivated. The landowners further agree to manage their land for wildlife, including lions, and sustainable livestock grazing, the traditional pastoral way of life that has well served both wildlife and the Maasai people for generations. ***** Please support these hard working people and the wildlife that share their land ******



Thursday, October 14, 2010

Maasai moran celebration outside Nairobi Nat. Park

Over 300 young men were initiated at a very colorful "enkinosata Oo nkiri" ceremony taking place in the wildlife dispersal area South of Nairobi National Park. Almost 3/4 of these warriors are from families enrolled in our Wildlife Conservation Lease Programme, and we thank them and their enlightened parents for keeping their culture front and center along with the Maasai tradition of protecting wildlife on their lands. This is one of the most important graduation ceremonies for the moran as it signifies their entry into adulthood. The event takes place only once every 10 to 12 years and only men of a specific age set based on their date of circumcision can graduate. Young men are circumcised at any age but usually between 10 and 20. Before the ceremony starts all participants are painted with red ochre including women, and a sacred bull is selected for the "enkinosata Oo nkiri" ceremony, which translates from Maa to English as “Eating of meat”. These wonderful photos were taken by Peter Greste.