Month: July 2025

By Justice Baya

Along Kenya’s beautiful coastline in Kilifi County, something exciting is happening. The Magarini Mangrove Community Forest Association (CFA) has just signed a historic agreement with the Kenya Forest Service, transforming local residents from bystanders into recognized caretakers of their beloved mangrove ecosystem.

Not long ago, the community faced familiar challenges: limited resources, unclear leadership, and a lack of interest that stifled many conservation efforts. However, everything changed when the Bengo Project, funded by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Germanyand implemented by Nature Kenya, introduced a different approach focused on helping the people who actually live in this coastal area.

The change started with the basics. Community meetings came alive with fresh energy as residents rewrote their constitution, elected new leaders that included more women and young people, and started talking about what their mangrove forest could really become.

After months of planning and consultation, something positive emerged: a detailed five-year plan that looked like a dream list for coastal living. The plan brought together eco-tourism ideas, fish farming in mangrove creeks, beekeeping among the trees, forest restoration, and new ways for families to earn a living, all while taking care of the environment they depend on.

The real turning point came with signing the Forest Management Agreement between the Magarini Mangrove CFA and the Kenya Forest Service (KFS). The agreement goes beyond paperwork. It means the national government recognizes that the Magarini community knows how to take care of their mangrove backyard. Under Kenya’s forest laws, local communities now have both the rights and duties to manage their mangrove forest alongside KFS.

Positive Results

The changes are already showing up everywhere you look. Women have started successful mangrove nurseries, carefully growing seedlings that will protect the coast in years to come. Young people who used to look for work elsewhere are now finding careers in conservation and eco-tourism. Families are picking up new skills in fish farming and beekeeping that bring in steady money while keeping the mangrove ecosystem healthy.

Most importantly, there’s a real sense of pride building in the community. People now understand that their mangrove forest does much more than look good. It acts like a natural barrier protecting their homes from coastal erosion, provides nurseries where fish grow before swimming out to sea, and stores massive amounts of carbon that helps fight climate change.

A Model for the Coast

The ocean tides still roll in and out along Magarini’s shores, but now they’re seeing a community that has stepped up as environmental caretakers. What’s happening here shows something important: when communities get trusted to look after their natural surroundings, great things can happen.

The Bengo Project’s work in Magarini is already getting attention from other coastal communities in Kenya. It shows that good conservation stories combine protecting nature with helping people build better lives in the places they’ve always called home.

As the world prepares to celebrate International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem on July 26, Magarini has something real to celebrate: locals who have rolled up their sleeves and taken charge of protecting their mangrove backyard, proving that real conservation happens when communities lead the way.

By Ayiro Lwala

In the remote village of Nyandeho in Yala Swamp, our community gathering had settled into the familiar rhythm of polite but uninspiring discussion. Then, without warning, everything changed.

An elderly woman named Mama Susan Otieno suddenly shot up, her hand cupped to her ear while the other pointed urgently toward the sky. Her excited voice cut through our conversation.

“Listen!” she called out with purpose. “Do you hear that?”

Above us, cutting through the air, came a sharp, insistent call: “Dak ti u do! Dak ti u do!” The Red-chested Cuckoo had arrived, its voice carrying a message that has guided this community for generations.

“It is time to go weed our farms,” Mama Susan announced with the authority of someone who has listened to nature’s voices for seven decades. “The cuckoo is telling us no more sitting around talking. Our crops need tending now.”

What happened next left us speechless. One by one, villagers began gathering their things to respond to this age-old alarm clock that ran on instinct rather than electricity. The cuckoo’s call grew louder as it settled on a nearby tree, as if supervising the human response to its urgent call.

In our modern world, I would have immediately reached for my smartphone and googled ‘Red-chested Cuckoo farming calendar’ or posted about this fascinating encounter on my social media platforms. But here in Nyandeho, my device had no signal, no internet, and no digital lifeline to the outside world.

Instead, I witnessed something far more powerful: a living connection between humans and nature that has survived countless generations.

“We don’t need smartphones to tell us what to do next,” explained Mzee Akello Obondo, an elder in the village. “Nature is our calendar, our weather forecast, our farming advisor. This knowledge has been passed down from our grandparents’ grandparents. It is how we have thrived here, even as the world changes around us.” His eyes twinkled with gentle amusement at our urban bewilderment.

This was Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) in action. Not as a museum piece or academic study, but as vibrant, practical wisdom that helps local communities navigate uncertainties with confidence. Despite the disruptions of weather patterns caused by climate change, villagers in Nyandeho have maintained their connection to nature’s subtle signals, adapting and responding with remarkable resilience.

The Red-chested Cuckoo’s call wasn’t just about farming. It was about paying attention. In a world increasingly disconnected from natural rhythms, this encounter in a remote village offered a bold reminder that some of our most reliable guidance systems don’t require batteries, updates, or monthly subscriptions.

As I reluctantly gathered my things to leave (the meeting was officially over: the cuckoo had spoken), I could not help but marvel at what we had witnessed. Here was a community that had found a way to blend ancient wisdom with modern life, using traditional knowledge not as a replacement for technology, but as a foundation that makes them resilient regardless of what the modern world throws at them.

Perhaps the future isn’t about choosing between traditional knowledge and modern innovation, but about finding ways to honour both. In Nyandeho, they have already figured this out. The cuckoo calls, the people listen, and life continues in harmony with rhythms far older and more reliable than any smartphone alert.

The next time you hear a bird’s call, pause for a moment. It might just be telling you something important, if only you remember how to listen.

By Richard Kipngeno

June 3rd, 2025, started like any other morning in Yimbo, Siaya County. At the break of dawn, fishermen pushed their boats into the calm waters of Lake Victoria, hoping for a good catch. Among them was Walter Tende Oloo, who cast his nets with the skill that came from years of experience.

But this day would be anything but ordinary.

When Tende and his fellow fishermen returned to shore around midday, they discovered something unexpected tangled in one of their nets. A large bird of prey floated motionless in the water, its wings spread wide. The poor creature appeared to have struggled to free itself before exhaustion took over, and it had nearly drowned in the process.

Tende, who has always had a soft spot for birds, carefully pulled the exhausted bird of prey from the net. As he examined the bird more closely, he noticed something extraordinary: metal rings on both its feet.

“I rescued your bird!” Tende would later tell us with a smile when we arrived at his homestead.

Word of the ringed bird spread quickly through the village. Soon, curious neighbours gathered to see this unusual find, and the story even made it into the local newspapers. The Kenya Wildlife Service was contacted, who then reached out to Nature Kenya’s Siaya office. By nightfall, the news had reached us.

The next morning, we made the journey to Yimbo, arriving to find an even larger crowd of excited villagers waiting to learn more about their unexpected feathered guest. Tende welcomed us warmly into his compound and carefully retrieved the bird from a protective bag. Sadly, the bird had died.

There it was – an Osprey with rings on both feet. On the right foot, a silver ring bore the inscription: “Museum Zool Helsinki Finland WWW.RING.AC M-81516.” The left foot carried a yellow ring marked “C6.U.”

The crowd fell silent as the significance sank in. This bird of prey had travelled all the way from Helsinki, Finland, to the shores of Lake Victoria – a journey of thousands of kilometres!

Remarkably, it wasn’t even the first time such a discovery had been made in Yimbo. Back in 2020, Tende had rescued another Osprey in the same location, also bearing rings from Finland. This pattern hints that Yimbo could be an important stopping point for these amazing migratory birds on their epic journeys between Europe and Africa.

The villagers were fascinated as we explained the incredible world of bird migration – how ospreys and other birds navigate vast distances using natural instincts, following ancient routes that have been used for thousands of years. We also discussed the importance of protecting these travellers when they pass through local areas.

After carefully documenting the specimen, we began the six-hour journey back to Nairobi with our precious cargo. The osprey was handed over to the Ornithology Section at the National Museums of Kenya, where it will be preserved and become part of the museum’s important scientific collection.

This finding highlights the incredible connections that exist in our natural world. A bird ringed by researchers in the cold waters of Finland found its way to the warm shores of Lake Victoria, linking two communities thousands of miles apart through the wonder of bird migration.

Stories like this remind us why bird ringing programs are so valuable. Each ring tells a story of survival, navigation, and the remarkable journeys that connect our planet’s ecosystems.

The next time you see a bird overhead, remember – it might just be a world traveller with stories that span continents.