I am a third-year Â鶹AV student, going into my fourth year this upcoming September, pursuing an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Geography with a minor in International Development Studies. My areas of interest include sustainability, livelihoods, and environmental conservation, and especially how these three topics can intertwine. This summer, I completed the internship at I-CAN; more specifically, I was paired with the organization ILEPA.
I wanted to pursue the internship at I-CAN because, as a geography student, I am interested in seeing how complex environmental and social issues can interact with each other spatially and temporally. I was very interested to learn more about the pastoral livelihoods of the Indigenous peoples living in Kenya, which is a key focus of ILEPA, as many different factors come into play when looking at this topic – political, environmental, economic, and social issues are all in conflict with each other in these communities. My objectives for the internship were to learn more about the region and the ongoing issues faced by people living there and to develop my professional skills.
ILEPA is a non-profit community-based NGO that advocates for human and land rights and social justice, enhances diversification of Indigenous livelihoods, and works with Indigenous pastoral peoples to address environmental and climate change challenges that have been exacerbated by increased pressure on natural resources. ILEPA aims to enhance environmental conservation and livelihoods diversification for pastoralist Indigenous communities, with a focus on Osuopuko division in Narok County. It aims to enhance livelihoods with diversification options and sources of income. It also aims to improve and enhance Indigenous peoples’ participation in governance in the context of natural resource management, promoting accountability and transparency.
The internship was done remotely due to the inability to travel to Kenya because of the coronavirus pandemic. Therefore, all my responsibilities were done digitally and remotely. Some of my responsibilities as an intern were regular communication with the ILEPA and I-CAN team as well as my co-interns over the video conferencing platform Zoom. My co-intern and myself also read about I-CAN’s work in the region and researched current issues to gain a better understanding of them. Furthermore, ILEPA tasked us with making an online fundraising platform for coronavirus efforts in the area and within the community where ILEPA works.
Some highlights of the internship included learning about issues and an area I was previously unfamiliar with. I have never been to Kenya, let alone Africa before, so it was very interesting to learn more about the region, its environment, its politics, and about some of the groups of people living there. Another highlight was being able to communicate with others regardless of our location – it really proved the unifying power of technology, despite the worldwide circumstances.
I will be using the skills and knowledge I have gained during this internship towards my honours thesis paper, which is worth credit (once it is finished by the end of this upcoming academic year). The paper will be on issues surrounding livelihoods and land rights in southern Kenya, especially in the region surrounding and inside the Masai Mara. The supervising professor for this paper is Professor Unruh from the Geography Department at Â鶹AV.
I think this internship has shaped my educational path by encouraging me to further my research and writing skills by completing an honours research paper. Some of the issues I have learned about through this internship have also encouraged me to potentially pursue studies in conservation after I complete my bachelor’s degree. In terms of my future career path, I know I would definitely like to work on projects addressing some of the important issues that organizations like ILEPA work to address every day.
The funding I received for this internship helped me remain financially stable during this uncertain time. I hope to one day travel to Kenya, and hopefully then I will further understand the country and all the interesting topics we learned about with the I-CAN internship.
Working remotely can be difficult but finding a peaceful and quiet workplace helped me to adapt to working at home. I think an optimal working environment is very important when working remotely. Also, taking breaks when needed for tea or snacks, or to even take a walk to clear your head if possible, can be really beneficial for your overall productivity.
I would like to thank Carol and Lloyd Darlington for their generous award that made completing this internship possible.
