Stephanie's Masai Education Fund

Sooooooo, I have left my beloved Tanzania and swapped it for Kenya for just a week!

Why? Because I say no to staying silent when I see things not going well. I say no to letting the tribe and people I have come to love be washed down the massive river called modernisation.

I say no to seeing wilderness be turned to desert and to let wildlife disappear.

During our first day of training at the Mara Training Centre 

This is why I have started my Masai Education Fund with which I have raised funds for our community leaders to be trained in land management and sustainable husbandry. This is why we are here at the amazing Mara Training Centre, Narok, Kenya.

It has been a challenge getting here and organising travel permits for everyone but it has been an AMAZING experience and one that has brought us even closer together and made us wiser and stronger in so many ways.

Our warrior leader Seperwa enjoying some time with the beautiful herd of Ankole cattle we were introduced to.

From being refused travel permits in Arusha and having to travel to our region's capital Babati to getting out huuuuuge amounts of cash under guard from our warrior leader ready to throw his club at anyone coming too close, to getting everyone safely across the border, to laughing at how bad Kenyan Swahili is compared to our Tanzanian one, to dodging traffic in Nairobi and finding a way to call home - all I feel is pride and happiness that we have made it here.
And the great thing is, we are just in the middle of it: Today we have completed our first day of training at the centre and have done the ground work to provoke change in our community starting at the social level.

Beautiful Ankole-Watusi cattle.

We have seen different breeds of cattle and different ways of keeping them, have walked in woodland where cattle and antelope graze side by side.

We have identified challenges and ways to overcome them. And more importantly, we have recognised what we want for our future, for the future of my husband's tribe and for our community.

I look forward to what the next fews days will bring and to getting back to our village of Lesoit in Tanzania to start on the long hard road to a place called change.