The Greater Amboseli ecosystem where Big Life operates is a diverse ecosystem, and the challenges vary with the seasons. Noosidan Preschool is located in a particularly arid part of the ecosystem that is not conducive to farming, so the residents in that area are primarily pastoralists, depending on their livestock for most of their food needs.

During the dry season, like the one happening now, livestock moves to areas where there is grazing available. The children that remain behind with their mothers to attend school are suddenly without their staple foods – milk and meat. Food becomes scarce, and kids are lucky if there is black tea or a cup of maize or flour porridge for breakfast.

These kids also walk long distances to attend school, and hunger is a real issue for many of them.

Thanks to emergency funding from our partners at LUSH, Big Life was able to procure a year’s worth of nutritional supplement to pass out for school lunches at Noosidan Preschool. As one teacher commented, the meals have been a game changer. The students are able to focus better in class and they are having fun learning again.

This critical investment in these kid’s future is a necessary one that we are so happy to provide.