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• As Africa’s population increases, farmland spreads, and infrastructure developments fragment habitat, elephants are forced into increasing conflict with people

• Human-elephant conflict (HEC) is particularly high in Kenya because of increasing economic development and high dependence on agriculture for livelihood, especially near Tsavo National Parks

• Elephants threaten the livelihood of farmers and can consume a family’s entire seasonal harvest in a single night

• Crop raiding is partly due to encroachment of growing population, development of roads and railways on elephants’ annual historic migration routes, and increasing droughts due to climate change

• Reducing HEC requires a diversity of tactics• STE provides information on elephant movements to

protect rangeland and creates innovative solutions to promote human-elephant co-existence

• At the E&B Research site, community women see the need to form a micro-enterprise group to earn additional income, reduce dependence on income from subsistence farming, and decrease the negative impacts of crop raids

BACKGROUND CONTEXT

• Hold meetings with Mwakoma women’s group to learn about their vision for the center

• Visit three women’s groups in the Tsavo region to learn about logistics and challenges of operating in a rural area with wildlife conflict

• Hold meeting with board members of the Mwakomawomen’s group to digest insights from women’s group visits, to understand their plans for operating the WEC, and the trainings that need to be provided

• Observe community dynamics and local economy and labor markets

• Desk-based research of potential bio-enterprise activities

SCOPE OF WORK

• A strong leader is the foundation for a motivated group and the spark for enterprise activity ideas

• Main challenges for operating a sustainable WEC include:

• Sufficient water and electricity• Reliable markets for products• Access to capital• Group membership and size

FINDINGS

RECOMMENDATIONS

#1 Deep dive into potential “innovative” activities to conduct at the center

#2 Select initial set of three feasible and most promising activities

#3 Establish markets for products#4 Draft MOU with E&B, women’s group and

community leaders#5 Design and conduct baseline survey with women’s

group members …meanwhile, construct budget and layout of the building

TAKEAWAYS

• Wildlife conservation is a development issue and requires a holistic approach

• Balance of economic development and growth vs. conservation of wildlife habitat

• “Intrinsic value of elephants” argument is insufficient • Different countries and organizations have different

(sometimes conflicting) approaches to elephant conservation

• Elephant corridors and habitat must be preserved to reduce human-elephant conflict

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & CONTACT

Thank you to Dr. Lucy King (Director of STE’s Human-Elephant Co-Existence Program) and Maureen Kinyanjui(E&B’s Community Livelihoods and Education Manager) for their warm welcome to camp and support with my work. And thank you to all E&B staff and Mwakomaresidents for a memorable experience.

Alexandra WallMDP Class of 2020alexandrawall@berkeley.edutsavotembo.tumblr.com/

• The E&B Research Center is located in a human-elephant conflict hotspot in the village of Mwakoma, outside of Tsavo East National Park

• E&B is supporting the village women’s group to construct a Women’s Enterprise Center (WEC)

• The WEC will be community owned and will house income generating activities, women’s activities and meetings, and workshops

Alexandra Wall

Human-Elephant Co-Existence &Women’s Economic Empowerment

METHODOLOGY

• To support E&B’s Community Livelihoods Program with the establishment of the WEC

• Responsibilities included:• Lead groundwork efforts e.g. mission/goal, theory of

change, and logistics of operating the center• Document the challenges of operating a sustainable

WEC in a rural, wildlife-conflict zone• Produce a final report for E&B staff summarizing

insights learned, foreseen challenges, and tangible next steps

Top left: field visit to Tumaini women’s group. Top right: field visit to Neema women’s group. Bottom Left: Mwakoma women’s group chairlady with her basket for sale at the Wildlife Works shop. Bottom right: Elephant dung paper making workshop.