Decolonizing Knowledge
& Education
Knowledge & Power Are Intertwined
To decolonize knowledge and education is to liberate ourselves from the idea that Western ways of knowing are superior to all others and to reclaim and recover our own epistemology: our history, education system, sciences, systems of justice and culture, in our own language. Decolonizing knowledge also involves producing new knowledge needed to navigate our future, and this we undertake through partnerships with colleagues from Western contexts.
Our work has focused on land occupation, language reclamation, education, and decolonial research, and has informed activism like the Mau Narok Land Rights Movement.
Building New Research Practices In Maasailand
Maasailand is one of the most studied places on earth, and yet the Maasai community is often alienated from research that takes place in our home. There is rarely collaboration between researchers and community structures of authority, no reporting of research findings, and the lack of communication creates mistrust, as community members assume that research is only for the use of outsiders and not for the human and wildlife communities that are being researched. Yet, tremendous potential exists to create knowledge through collaborative research. By bridging the best of Western science and Maasai knowledge/sciences, and research guidelines agreed to by all parties, we are building a new way of research that supports our community and the scientific field.
MERC co-founder Meitemei Olol Dapash co-created research guidelines with the community to build knowledge that is mutually beneficial.
The past three decades we've focused on...
Community Conservation Education Program
MERC founded wildlife clubs in 16 secondary schools in Maasailand, provided educational curriculum and materials, and sponsored field trips to wildlife preserves for hundreds of Maasai children, who typically do not have access to parks which are reserved for tourists, to prepare them for their roles as community stewards of wildlife.
Representing Maasai Environmental & Cultural Interests at Global Forums
MERC was 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.
MERC established a scholarship fund for Maasai children and built a structure to ensure that the scholarships are managed by a board of Maasai community members.
Maasai AIDS education program
In 2006 MERC facilitated a pilot program in Amboseli to educate Maasai communities about the AIDS epidemic and procedures to remain healthy.
MERC undertook the rehabilitation of the Erusiai Primary School which in 2008 won the “Most Improved School” award in Narok District.
Global Media Campaign
MERC has raised international awareness of the challenges facing Maasai people and the wildlife of East Africa. 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.
Tasaru Report
In 2007, researchers from Prescott College produced a report responding to Maasai community complaints about an NGO sponsored ‘safe house’ for Maasai girls in Narok.
