The Wildlife Clubs of Kenya (WCK) with assistance from the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT) organised a conservation awareness rally to address the escalating trend in poaching in the greater Tsavo Conservation Area (TCA)
The Wildlife Clubs of Kenya (WCK) with assistance from the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT) organised a conservation awareness rally to address the escalating trend in poaching in the greater Tsavo Conservation Area (TCA). The WCK is a charitable, non-governmental organization formed in 1968 by Kenyan students with a mission to ‘provide conservation education to the youths and support wildlife clubs through training, information sharing and advocacy’.
Through oral and art presentations, the WCK works with schools to arrange a conservation themed rallies to develop a better understanding of the need to conserve national resources for the benefit of the nation and its people. The main theme of this rally was to “Combat Poaching through Education’’. The aim was to enlighten the public on the impacts of poaching on our economy and wildlife. Conservation stakeholders from within the Tsavo Conservation Area, including the Wildlife Clubs of Kenya, the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, the Kenya Wildlife Service and local schools, converged at Makindu High school on the 15thMarch, 2014.
The rally was a fun, informative and interactive day for the school children who attended as well as the other conservation stakeholders present. The WCK theme was marked through drama based presentations by schools. To encourage participation, contests were held during the event including winning categories such as the Best Wildlife Club in the TCA, the Best School during the rally, and Best individual performance. The DSWT’s Community Outreach Officer based in the TCA, Mlati Ochieng, was honoured to be the chief guest during the rally and during his speech he encouraged school children to actively participate in conservation programmes and teachers to include conservation messages in their teaching curriculum. He also talked about the penalties in the Wildlife Act 2013 and the devastating rate at which the country is losing key wildlife species to poaching.
The rally was a great success and the DSWT was proud to partner with the WCK in organising this important event. On their side WCK was very grateful for the support they received from partner organizations, with special thanks going to the DSWT for supplying kunch and refreshments for all who attended the rally.
The DSWT is investing greater efforts in working alongside and supporting the communities living within the greater Tsavo Conservation Area, especially within the areas of education and awareness. Our Community Outreach program can only expand with support from the global public and we appreciate any donation given towards this important work: