Since
1987, MERC has achieved some notable successes,
and made progress toward realizing our goals for
Maasai
culture and the ecosystems of Maasailand:
Click
here to find out more about 3 Wins.
Restoration
and Protection of Traditional Lands
MERC
is the most effective advocate and lobby for
the return of stolen lands to the Maasai. By
educating our people and developing an outspoken
grass-roots coalition, the Maasai people are
becoming a more effective political constituency
and defender of our land rights through the legal
system. Since 1987, MERC helped return one hundred
and forty-five thousand acres of stolen grazing
lands to 92 Maasai families, stopped a four hundred
acre golf course near the Maasai Mara Game preserve
and opposed large-scale commercial projects including
dams, agriculture and mining.
Global
Media Campaign
MERC
has raised international awareness of the Maasai people
and the wildlife of Maasailand. We have had articles
published in the Washington Post, Seattle Times, Cultural
Survival Quarterly, Humane Society of US News (USA),
CARE For the World International News (England), Daily
Nation (Kenya), and SATYA (USA). We have also given interviews
to the BBC, Voice of America, and NPR (National Public
Radio) International.
First
Pan-African Symposium on Non-Consumptive Wildlife
Conservation
In 1997, MERC organized the first Pan-African Symposium of Non-Consumptive Approaches
to Wildlife Conservation. The conference attracted representatives of indigenous
peoples, governmental agencies, conservation groups, and policy experts from
twelve African nations. Together, they developed a common position document to
guide international conservation and opposed commercial use of wildlife and other
natural resources. The Pan African Wildlife Conservation Network (PAWCONET) was
established to represent the collective interests of Africa's environment and
wildlife.
Anti-hunting
Campaign
When the
Kenya Wildlife Service proposed to legalize trophy
hunting in Kenya in 1994, MERC launched a successful
anti-hunting campaign to block the legislation. Click
here to learn more.
Community-based
Anti-poaching Program
In 1997, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITIES)
permitted ivory trade in Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia, resulting in renewed
poaching of elephants in East Africa. MERC organized a grassroots-level anti-poaching
program in which Maasai villages monitored and reported poaching activities to
authorities. Click here to learn more
Community
Conservation Education Program
MERC has founded wildlife clubs in 16 secondary schools in Maasailand, provided
educational curriculum and materials, and sponsored field trips to wildlife preserves
for over 200 Maasai children, who are tomorrow's managers of our wildlife.
Community-based
Ecotourism Program
A community-based ecotourism program was developed for controlled, authorized
use of Maasailand in the vicinity of the Maasai Mara Game Reserve with two local
tour companies that operate bush walks and safari camps among Maasai communities.
Other projects will generate direct income from tourism through Maasai-controlled
centers selling bead work and photographic rights, and creating appropriate cross-cultural
encounters. Click here to learn more.
Representing
Maasai Environmental & Cultural Interests at
Global Forums
MERC is the first group to bring the values and concerns of the Maasai people
to international conventions including the UN Convention on International Trade
in Endangered Species, UN Convention on Biological Diversity, UN Working Group
on Indigenous Peoples, and World Bank Technical Consultations for the Review
of Operational Directives on Indigenous People.
SPECIAL
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Thanks
to Wildland Adventures for its support of MERC and
its commitment to conservation and ecotourism in Maasailand.
For further information on their African safaris and
other authentic worldwide explorations contact:
Wildland Adventures
3516 NE 155th St, Seattle WA 98155
1-800-345-4453 * 206-365-0686
info@wildland.com
Website at: www.wildland.com
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