Lilian Seko reports
Thanks to support from WorldWomenWork, this year’s Grevy’s Zebra Trust Bursary Student Fun Days were held at Lewa Wildlife Conservancy’s Education Centre from 26-29 November 2013. Five girls and one boy are currently enrolled in the program.
One of the key aims of these Fun Days was to ensure that not only is it an enjoyable time for all the students but also a rich learning experience in wildlife conservation with a particular focus on Grevy’s zebra ecology and conservation.
The diversity of topics covered over the two days reflects the range of issues faced by the students. The Lewa Nurse facilitated an excellent session on reproductive health. Since the majority of the students were girls, we also discussed how to overcome the girl child challenges they face in their different communities. We used examples of some of the world’s most powerful women who have succeeded in their communities, countries and the world.
The group also discussed career selection and was guided on which subjects they would need to excel in to achieve their dreams. Each student was assigned a personal mentor from the GZT team who will give them support and guidance throughout their education.
Importantly, we also focused on the link between the bursary opportunity and Grevy’s zebra conservation. The students agreed that the knowledge they have received through the Fun Days has equipped them to disseminate wildlife conservation awareness. They identified when they are going to create awareness within their school and community and who they are going to involve in the process. This will be followed up by our field team to assess what impact the students’ awareness creation has on their communities.
