Sustainable Development in Kenya: Keeping the Culture From the - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Sustainable Development in Kenya: Keeping the Culture

From the hills of Chuka, and through the plains of Maasai Mara to the beaches of Watamu

What are Sustainable Development and Culture?

• Sustainable development is “development that

meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” (worldbank.org)

• Culture is “the customary beliefs, social forms, and

material traits of a racial, religious, or social group” as well as “the characteristic features of everyday existence shared by people in a place or time.” (merriam-webster.com)

Sustainable Development Puzzle

Worldbank.org

Exhibit A: Chuka

The Chuka People

• People are of Bantu, Gikuyu-Kamba origin
• Historically

agriculturalist

• Wicked dancers!

Mayeli Hensley 2012

Issues facing Chuka

• Colonization

– Monoculture of tea

• Deforestation
• Land erosion
• Water shortages

Chuka’s Sustainable Development

• Taking control over their land again through:

Forest regeneration Kitchen gardens

Income Generating Activities

• Making money to support education and

improved lifestyles Beekeeping Fish farms

Impacts on Culture in Chuka

• Increased sense of worth
• Increased wealth
• Increased rates
• f education
• The people

are happy! ☺

Mayeli Hensley 2012

Moving on from Idealist Chuka

• Sustainable Development is generally

focused on ecotourism

– Tourism represents 20-30% of GDP in 2004- 2006 (Nelson 2007)

• Ecotourism hotspots in Kenya

– Game reserves - Maasai Mara – Coastal towns - Watamu

Exhibit B: Maasai Mara

Brenda Lemay 2012

The Maasai people

• Most well known tribe in Kenya
• Historically

pastoralist

• Wicked

jumpers!

Terri Hurlbut 2012

Issues facing the Maasai

• Loss of land to game reserves

– Overgrazing – Livestock loss – Water scarcity

• Pressure for

cultivation

Sustainable Development in Maasai Mara

• Development here takes the form of

sustainable tourism efforts

• Conservation of natural resources

– At the expense of Maasai land

• Ecotourism camps

– Many employees are not Maasai themselves

Impacts on Maasai Culture

• The Maasai people are losing:

– Pastoralism – Land to conservation efforts and game reserves – Livestock to diminished grazing opportunities

• The Maasai people are gaining:

– Entrepreneurialism (Okech 2007) – Money to cover education costs

Exhibit C: Watamu

The People of Watamu

• People are primarily Giriama
• Historically

traders, agriculturalist, and pastoralist

• Long affected by

tourism

Corbisimages.com

Issues facing Watamu

• Tourism

– Hotels – Fishing – Mangrove destruction

• Community

education

Watamu Marine Association www.watamu.biz

Sustainable Development in Watamu

• Watamu Marine Association programs:

– Eliminating new beach projects – Sustainable fisheries program – Community and marine conservation – Community waste management – Community education

• ST-EP Program

– Sustainable Tourism for Elimination of Poverty

Impacts on Giriama Culture

• Culture was changed long ago

– Intermarriage and Westernization

• Pros: Money, clothes, technology
• Cons: Drugs, price inflation, demand for

prostitution, children lose interest in school

• Begin anew?

– Reduction in poverty

Toonpool.com

So what does this all mean?

• Cultures across Kenya are as different as the

landscapes

• Chuka – maintaining and reclaiming land
• Maasai – shifting culture accordingly
• Giriama – almost entirely eradicated
• In the midst of enormous environmental changes
• Sustainable development is by definition a

westernized concept

– Do they have a choice other than adapting?

Do we care?

• “We are all Africa”
• Shakira

cameroon.setac.eu

Thank you!

• First and foremost, thank you to Jim and Buck for taking me to
• Kenya. It was a trip of a lifetime and I certainly intend to return!

Thank you!

• Thanks to Jacque for teaching

me some Swahili – such a blessing!

• Thanks to Isaac Mbugua, our

driver to Maasai Mara and my friend, for answering all my questions and expanding my Swahili vocabulary.

• Thanks to Richie Thuku, our

driver to Samburu and Watamu, for his friendship, the laughs and also for expanding my Swahili vocabulary.

Thank you!

• Thanks to Fara - my beach boy tour guide,

Kalahari dance partner and friend in Watamu for teaching me about local culture and about life in general.

• Na rafiki zangu ya darasa –

Maisha mrefu na nakupenda kwa maisha!

Viaggiscoop.it