Tarayia Manja

Age: 35

Home: Kimana

Rank/Position: Sergeant

Team: Kimana Sanctuary

When did you start working for Big Life? 2007

How did your journey as a ranger begin?  I first started out as a community informant, giving ranger teams information on incidences taking place, and after a while, I was recruited to become a ranger.

What does your job as a sergeant involve? I am in charge of an outpost with eight rangers, including Big Life’s female rangers.  I plan the team’s daily operation activities and respond to any issue that may need attention among my team.

How has the experience of working with female rangers been? At first, I was unsure of what to expect and how to work with them. My corporal, who is my second-in-command, is a female ranger and she has been very helpful in managing the team and handling some of the areas that she has more expertise on.  I have come to realize that they are equal to their male counterparts and we share duties regardless of their gender.

How has your experience been working as a ranger for Big Life?  I have been fortunate to work in different sections in Big Life’s area of operation. But the most memorable has been working in anti-poaching operations and human-elephant conflict operations that involve problematic animal control.

When elephants raid community farms, we are called to assist with driving them out towards the conservancies or protected areas. This is very dangerous since it’s at night, and most times farmer emotions are very high and so controlling such a situation is very hard. The noise and commotion sometimes irritate the elephants and they can charge at us. With so many people involved, it increases the risk of things becoming worse.

I have been fortunate to have been trained by Big Life in the use of a firearm. In anti-poaching operations, I am highly skilled in the laying of ambushes to catch poachers and my firearm also comes in handy to ensure the safety of my team, and at times to disorient armed poachers who try to put up a fight. 

What challenges do you face in your line of work? One cannot succeed as a ranger without passion or sacrifice, because our job is very demanding. Sometimes my team conducts daytime foot patrols and night patrols at night, so it takes determination to answer the call of duty each time you are called upon.

Not many rangers are armed, and sometimes I am torn between responding to anti-poaching operations or responding to human-elephant conflict. This becomes challenging because my presence can turn a bad situation better and my fellow rangers feel safer as they face myriad situations.

How have you benefitted from working as a ranger? I am a father to a house hold of five, and this job has secured their daily upkeep and provided them with access to education and a better quality of life. Additionally, working with female rangers has opened up my once limited world view on the potential of women and I can now without a doubt believe in the ability of my daughters to transform their lives and provide for themselves.

Photo: Bobby Neptune

Big Life rangers face extremely difficult challenges on a daily basis, which have only increased amidst a global pandemic. Keeping our rangers properly funded to continue their vital work in the field is more important than ever for the future of the wildlife, wild lands, and people of East Africa. Please consider a monthly contribution to our Ranger Club to support these dedicated rangers. Any amount helps! And for those that sign up in July, or increase your existing Ranger Club membership amount, you will be entered to win a gift featuring Big Life-branded merchandise.

JOIN THE RANGER CLUB

Johnson Salash 

Age: 27

Home: Kimana

Rank/Position: Constable

Team: Kimana Sanctuary

When did you start working for Big Life?  2018 

How did your journey as a ranger begin?  I had plans to join the Kenya Defense Forces after finishing my secondary school education, but my parents did not support my intentions and preferred that I work as a ranger, since I would be closer to them, and (according to them) the risks involved would be lower.

How has working as a ranger been? Working as a ranger has been fulfilling.

As a youth, what do you think is the place of young Maasai people in wildlife conservation in the Amboseli Ecosystem? Culturally the youth are the muscle of the Maasai community, they protect and defend the community’s resources. Today this remains the same, only the priorities have changed.  Today our biggest resource is wildlife and God has blessed the beautiful plains that are crucial for this wildlife; the benefit we generate from conservation has doubled the benefit we get from our livestock. Our brothers are employed, our sisters educated, and our parents more empowered because of wildlife. So today, even though I am not in the red cultural ‘shukas’ for warriors, I am still a proud defender of my community’s biggest friend: wildlife.

My father lived at a time when black rhinos would roam the Kimana Sanctuary, the same black rhinos that are endangered today. Big Life has been able to capture the strength and ability of Maasai youth by providing more wildlife-friendly ways to express courage and fulfill their original purpose.

A decade ago, we would gather to celebrate the courage of warrior who had killed a lion, but today we gather to celebrate the valor of a brother who has graduated from university through a wildlife scholarship offered by Big Life and other stakeholders in the ecosystem.

A decade ago, our sisters would be married off early, but today they have been given an opportunity to showcase their God-given ability and join us as rangers and different other professions, opportunities that were impossible for my mother. My 11-month-old daughter will grow into a better and more prosperous future, because conservation has strengthened our ability to transform our lives.

How have you benefitted from working as a ranger? I am now married to the love of my life because I am able to provide for our family, and our daughter is assured of a stable future because I have a steady income.

Photo: Bobby Neptune

 Big Life rangers face extremely difficult challenges on a daily basis, which have only increased amidst a global pandemic. Keeping our rangers properly funded to continue their vital work in the field is more important than ever for the future of the wildlife, wild lands, and people of East Africa. Please consider a monthly contribution to our Ranger Club to support these dedicated rangers. Any amount helps! And for those that sign up in July, or increase your existing Ranger Club membership amount, you will be entered to win a gift featuring Big Life-branded merchandise.

JOIN THE RANGER CLUB

Veronica Laanoi

Age: 20

Home: Rombo

Rank/Position: Constable

Team: Kimana Sanctuary

When did you start working for Big Life? 2019

What made you decide to become a ranger? After completing my secondary school education, I had no hopes of furthering my studies due to lack of fees, so joining Big Life was a silver lining in the storm I was going through at the time.

What has been the experience of working as a ranger? At first it wasn’t easy, having to withstand all the attention my male colleagues gave us since working with female rangers was relatively new to them too. Then I had to prove myself and earn their respect, because as a Maasai girl, our culture presents many barriers. I had to stand tall and demand to be treated as an equal.

My colleagues have grown to be very supportive and duties are divided amongst us without favor or assigning lighter duties to me because I am a girl. 

What has been the reaction of your peers or friends back at home? My mother was worried a lot. Her friends would accuse her of giving her daughter away to be used by men in the bush. Then I was taken for basic ranger training at the Amboseli Conservation Academy, and during my pass out/graduation ceremony, my mother couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw me marching with the other rangers. That was when she realized that I could take care of myself.

At first my peers were pessimistic, but after I told them stories of the work I do, they are now jealous and wish to become rangers.

What challenges do you face at work?  The work of a ranger is very demanding, both physically and emotionally. As a ranger, I can be called to respond to human-elephant conflict incidences at night, anti-poaching operations, and normal patrols daily. These become harder during my menstrual cycle and though I push myself so as not to have to explain myself to my superiors, it’s not easy.

How has your work impacted your life?  At first I was skeptical of what to expect, and unsure of what my life as a ranger would become. But today, I am able to support my mother and siblings through school and improve their quality of life.

As a girl from a culture that presents many barriers to girls, this job will open doors to many other girls who might believe they are unable to provide for themselves or don’t believe in their own ability. 

Photo: Bobby Neptune

 Big Life rangers face extremely difficult challenges on a daily basis, which have only increased amidst a global pandemic. Keeping our rangers properly funded to continue their vital work in the field is more important than ever for the future of the wildlife, wild lands, and people of East Africa. Please consider a monthly contribution to our Ranger Club to support these dedicated rangers. Any amount helps! And for those that sign up in July, or increase your existing Ranger Club membership amount, you will be entered to win a gift featuring Big Life-branded merchandise.

JOIN THE RANGER CLUB

Ezekiel Ntete Mohammed

Age: 33

Home area: Rombo

When did you join Big Life: 2019

Rank/Position: Driver

Team: Kimana Sanctuary

Where did you work previously before joining Big Life? Before joining Big Life, I worked in the public transport sector, driving a public service vehicle along the Rombo-Loitoktok route. This paid well, but it didn’t satisfy my urge to offer support to my community.  I was aware of the challenges the community was facing and as a driver in public transport there was little I could do to elevate their situation. So I quit my previous job and joined Big Life, because I had seen the vital role rangers have played in mitigating human-elephant conflict and preserving the natural heritage of Rombo.

What does your current work entail? I hold one of the most important roles and get to handle a myriad of responsibilities. As a driver, I ensure rangers get to incidences safely and swiftly; in some instances, this can be a matter between life and death. I also offer logistical support to the other ranger outposts in the Sanctuary with a supply of water for the most remote ones and emergency medical assistance whenever it is needed.  Moreover, I offer emergency assistance to the community in medical crises.

What is the most challenging part of your job? I am not an ordinary driver, because my work is not ordinary, and is impossible to plan ahead or anticipate. The most challenging part is night operations / patrols, which mostly are in response to human-elephant conflict or anti-poaching operations.

The Kimana Sanctuary is surrounded by farms on all sides, and so elephant raids on farmer’s land are frequent, and we are called to drive them off back into protected areas. In such situations, my team relies on me to offer logistical support and sometimes use the vehicle as cover when an elephant retaliates and charges at them. It’s very dangerous and we are dependent on one another to keep the team safe. After driving them off, we also check to ensure all elephants are safe before heading back to our stations.

In anti-poaching operations, I also offer logistical support and in a high speed chase, my vehicle gives my team an advantage since it’s tailored to handle such tough terrain. It easily gets them ahead of poachers, who mostly use motorbikes.

What benefit have you gained from working with Big Life? Before joining Big Life, I was a normal driver putting his life at risk to earn a few shillings, but today I have a bigger purpose. I am more skilled because of the many trainings I have received from Big Life, and also I am more informed about the Amboseli Ecosystem.

My family has also largely benefitted, because through my pay their standard of living has improved. I have acquired livestock and my future is clearer since I have a stable income.

Photo: Bobby Neptune

Big Life rangers face extremely difficult challenges on a daily basis, which have only increased amidst a global pandemic. Keeping our rangers properly funded to continue their vital work in the field is more important than ever for the future of the wildlife, wild lands, and people of East Africa. Please consider a monthly contribution to our Ranger Club to support these dedicated rangers. Any amount helps! And for those that sign up in July, or increase your existing Ranger Club membership amount, you will be entered to win a gift featuring Big Life-branded merchandise.

JOIN THE RANGER CLUB