It was an affair that this year’s graduates will always remember. Accompanied by a rousing brass band, their impeccable uniforms and faultless marching was an impressive spectacle on a searing Tsavo morning. The occasion? The graduation of Big Life’s newest community rangers from the Kenya Wildlife Service’s Manyani Law Enforcement Academy.

Two Big Life rangers were awarded trophies for Best in Academics and Best in Drill and Turnout, and each of the guest speakers had stirring words for the graduates.

Big Life’s Chief Operating Officer Craig Millar was full of praise for the graduates and the Academy, saying that this was the best ranger training program in Kenya as well as one of the toughest, adding that Big Life will continue to send its rangers here every year.

Head of Wildlife Conservation at Ol Pejeta, Samuel Mutisya, reminded everyone that innovation will be the key to solving the challenges facing Kenya’s wildlife in the future. He explained that human wildlife conflict and climate change will be the two defining issues for conservation in the decades ahead. Novel approaches will be crucial to success.

Nancy Kabete, Deputy Director of Security for the Kenya Wildlife Service, also spoke and emphasized the importance of collaboration between conservation organizations. She said that without community rangers, the Kenya Wildlife Service is not able to do the job the government has entrusted it to do. This is because only 8% of Kenya’s landmass is protected by National Parks with the rest of Kenya’s wildlife existing in a combination of rangelands, community ranches, and conservancies. The work of community rangers is therefore essential for the preservation of wildlife, something she said was a central feature of Kenya’s heritage.

Big Life is proud to have sponsored these latest ambassadors for wildlife conservation in Kenya. It is thanks to the generous support of Big Life’s donors that these men and women can be trained to such a high standard and keep on protecting Kenya’s wildlife. We are grateful to USAID East Africa for sponsoring this training via the US Department of the Interior.

Photo: Josh Clay

Big Life’s conservation programs fit into three distinct buckets: wildlife protection, habitat protection, and community support. We’ve learned that each is necessary for the success of the others, and looking at our quarterly numbers, the impact speaks for itself.

On the wildlife side, we’ve seen a spike in bushmeat poaching, as we always do in the dry season. Until the rains come, conflicts will be high. But Big Life’s rangers arrested 25 suspects in 16 different bushmeat poaching incidents, while confiscating 434+ kg of bushmeat. They also arrested 22 suspects in 12 incidents for trophy possession, confiscated 256 kg of ivory, more than 3,263 kg of sandalwood, prevented 43 crop raids by elephants, and helped prevent 3 retaliatory lion hunts.

On the habitat side, we continue to face KiliAvo in the courts, which unsurprisingly is appealing with unrealistic hopes of resuming operations. We don’t intend to let that happen, but lawyers are not cheap, and the legal expenses are mounting. But excitingly, we’ve entered into a new agreement with Angama as our new tourism partner in Kimana Sanctuary. The revenue that will be generated will continue to keep the sanctuary safe for years to come and is cause for celebration.

On the community side, we’re now sponsoring more than 300 students with long-term education scholarships. One of our previous recipients just received her diploma in Medical Laboratory Science as well – congratulations Mary! And congratulations as well to Joan, our Community Health Program Assistant, who is the first female employee at Big Life to receive her motorbike license, which will broaden her reach in the ecosystem. It is incredible to see the culture shifting and empowering more women to do the same.

We hope you’ve had a chance to see our two newest films about our community rangers and our rhino protection efforts. We hope these short films inspire you to share more about our work with your networks. Times are tight for everyone, and we have not been spared – your generosity and support to keep our rangers in the field and our eyes on the horizon means more now than ever.

Thank you so much as always for your support,

Richard Bonham and Craig Millar

Executive Chairman and COO - Big Life Foundation Kenya

SEE THE FULL 3RD QUARTERLY REPORT

Photo: George Logan / Kinetic Six

By Richard Bonham, Executive Chairman

I am incredibly proud to introduce Big Life’s new CEO, Benson Leyian, for many reasons.

Benson is “home-grown.’’ He hails from Mbirikani Group Ranch, which is at the center of Big Life’s area of operations. He knows the ecosystem, community, and conservation opportunities and challenges better than anyone I know, and probably more importantly, because of his background, he can see it from the inside out.

As a child, he did his time herding livestock, equipped with only a spear to protect himself and his father’s livestock from predators, and this has given him that all-important understanding of the ways of the bush and co-existence with wildlife. 

His father never had a formal education but understood its importance and sacrificed what he could to send him to school. Despite periods at home due to lack of school fees, Benson excelled, and today holds a BSc in Non-profit Management and Public Administration. He is also a Certified Public Accountant. And as if that wasn’t impressive enough, in his spare time he is finalizing his PhD in Project Planning and Management.

Benson’s first job was as an accountant for a tourism company, but his passion for conservation led him to the Amboseli Ecosystem Trust, where he worked his way up to become the CEO. While there, the Governor of Kajiado County (within which Amboseli is located) recognized his abilities and recruited him to serve as his conservation advisor and Chief Officer in the Office of the Governor.  

The timing of his arrival at Big Life could not be more important, as we work with our partner communities to navigate the complex transition of large areas of the ecosystem from communal land to private ownership, in a way that keeps natural resources intact and the ecosystem functional. 

Benson is married to Dr. Jenifer Timpiyian who is a gynecologist at the Kenyatta National Hospital, another success story who we are proud of as a prior beneficiary of Big Life’s scholarship program. They have three children.

We are excited to have you leading the team Benson, welcome.

At a glance, there was nothing unusual about the two men, other than a small suitcase that suggested they were going on a short trip. But we knew what was in the bag, and it wasn’t clothes for a weekend away.

Inside were actually six cat skins from five leopards and a serval, with an estimated combined street value between $2,000 and $4,500.

The cats had been poached using snares far outside of Big Life’s core area of operation, but our intelligence network caught wind of it as soon as they were on the market. We worked with the Kenya Wildlife Service to set up a bust, and quickly arrested the two men involved.

They are now in jail awaiting trial, and according to the Kenya Wildlife Act, the minimum sentence for this offence (dealing in or possessing wildlife trophies without a permit) is a fine of at least $10,000, a five-year jail term, or both.

Big Life’s broadening intelligence network has become one of our strongest deterrents against wildlife crime. The poachers and traffickers involved have no way of knowing friend from foe, and the risk of being caught is extremely high, as are the consequences. While simple, it is very effective.

Please consider supporting our work, which keeps animals thriving in the wild and their pelts out of suitcases.