Lewa Partners

The mission of The American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK) is to advance excellence in the animal keeping profession, foster effective communication beneficial to animal care, support deserving conservation projects, and promote the preservation of our natural resources and animal life.
AAZK realized that the zoo keepers of the world were extremely conservation oriented and wanted to help save Rhinos and their habitats, yet did not have the financial resources themselves to make any significant impact. That's when the idea came to start a National bowl-a-thon fundraiser called "Bowling For Rhinos" (BFR).
Each year AAZK, Inc. sponsors the Bowling For Rhinos. Over 60 AAZK Chapters participate throughout the U.S. and Canada raising over $200,000 annually. BFR funds support the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya.  This sanctuary not only saves rhinos, but also entire ecosystems!

The Bill Woodley Mount Kenya Trust is a Kenyan based organisation dedicated to helping preserve and protect Mount Kenya.
A group of concerned Kenyans established the Trust following a detailed 1999 report that shocked the nation by concluding that "Mount Kenya's forests are under extreme threat from human induced illegal activities such as extensive poaching of wildlife, devastating logging of indigenous tree species, charcoal production, over-grazing, and large scale growing of marijuana."
The Bill Woodley Mount Kenya Trust was established to help preserve and protect this important heritage. Named in memory of Bill Woodley, a dedicated conservationist who together with his team successfully protected the mountain and the surrounding forest for 20 years of the 44 years he served in National Parks, the Trust hopes to continue this legacy.
The Bill Woodley Mount Kenya Trust works closely with the Kenya Wildlife Service and the Forest Department to ensure that its projects address the issues of highest priority.

The Borana Conservancy lies to the west of and adjacent to the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy. Borana has since the conception of the original Ngare Sergoi Rhino Sanctuary been a strategic partner throughout Lewa’s conservation development, working hand in hand developing community based projects within the wider conservation landscape. 
Guests staying either at Borana Lodge or Laragai House will enjoy exclusive access to Borana’s wildlife habitat and in doing so will be making a direct contribution to the maintenance of this magnificent eco-system. Borana has won awards and has been recognised globally for their commitment to education and health within the district.

Fauna & Flora International (FFI), founded in 1903, was the world’s first international conservation organisation. Expanding beyond our African origins, FFI succeeded in giving conservation a voice on the international stage and drawing worldwide attention to the plight of rare and endangered species and habitats. Today our work spans across the globe, with over 100 projects in nearly 40 countries, mostly in the developing world. Our conservation efforts are not confined to high profile species as we pay equally close attention to unglamorous or obscure species and those without champions. We have worked to conserve an number of endangered species from the Arabian oryx to the Pemba flying fox and the most endangered cat in the world, the Iberian lynx.
FFI works with in-country partners to tackle biodiversity loss head-on through a series of projects that directly protect species or habitats. These interventions draw on the scientific expertise and wide-ranging conservation experience of FFI and our partners. We are acutely aware of the challenges ahead – they are our greatest so far. FFI has a strong history of finding solutions to conservation problems and we’re confident that we can continue make a lasting difference to the future of life on Earth.

The Laikipia Wildlife Forum (LWF) is a pioneering environmental conservation association working outside protected areas across the Ewaso ecosystem.  Its motto:  Conservation in Action’ reflects the spirit of the people who take part in this forum, which brings together local community initiatives, private ranchers, small scale farmers, cooperatives and tourism ventures. They are united by a common goal - to conserve the integrity of the Laikipia ecosystem, by creatively managing natural resources to improve the livelihood of its people.
Established in 1992 by private and communal landowners with common interests in managing, conserving and profiting from wildlife resources, LWF has expanded the scope of its activities to encompass as more holistic and livelihood approach to conservation.  The forum’s objectives are being realized through its 5 operational programme areas:  Community Conservation, Wildlife Management, Tourism Support, Environmental Education and Security.
LWF was the first forum to develop a significant capacity to foster development and conservation goals on a district-wide level in Kenya.  An estimated 60-70% of Kenya’s wildlife is found outside of protected areas making conservation of wildlife in communal and private lands vital to the sustainability of Kenya’s wildlife resource base.
Increasingly acknowledged as one of the most important areas for biodiversity in Kenya, wildlife population densities in the Laikipia region now rank second to the internationally renowned Maasai Mara ecosystem.  The Ewaso eco-system is home to the second largest population of elephant in Kenya (6,000+) and hosts the highest populations of endangered species such as black rhino (over half Kenya’s total population), Grevy’s zebra, and reticulated giraffe in the country, as well as the only viable population of Lelwel hartebeest, an expanding population of wild dog, and significant numbers of other large predators.

Marwell Wildlife  is a UK registered charity (275433) dedicated to the conservation of biodiversity and other natural resources. This is achieved through restoration of species and habitats, promoting sustainable living, and by inspiring change through science, education & public engagement.

For over a decade Marwell has worked with the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy to develop people and infrastructure to support and implement wildlife research and monitoring.

The Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT) is a community-led initiative, registered in 2004, whose members represent politically and socially marginalized pastoralist communities of Northern Kenya, who are predominantly dependent on a purely livestock-based livelihood system.   The NRT was established by communities and other stakeholders involved in biodiversity conservation in Northern Kenya, recognising a need for an umbrella organisation that would assist communities to use biodiversity conservation and improved environmental management as a means of improving and diversifying livelihoods.

Located on the northern foothills of Mount Kenya is the 5,300 hectare indigenous Ngare Ndare Forest, with pencil cedar, podo, African olive, wild fig and acacia trees. Ngare Ndare is a safe haven for large mammals including elephant, and a paradise for monkeys, birds and butterflies. The forest – which traverses two districts and provinces  - is a critical piece of the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy’s ecosystem.
In charge of protecting this forest is the Ngare Ndare Forest Trust (NNFT), a small organisation comprised of local stakeholders whose only goal is to ensure the forest survival. The Trust was officially registered in December 2001.
Today, the Trust proudly stands on its own, and has made remarkable achievements in the conservation of the forest and community empowerment having planted over 1 million trees on adjacent farmlands and undertaken enrichment planting in the degraded areas within the forest. Forest canopy has improved, while utilisation of the forest resource by the local community is now planned with sustainability highly emphasised. Forest fires have been significantly reduced through increased community scouts patrols and introduction of modern honey harvesting technology and capacity building of community groups.

The Ol Pejeta Conservancy is an important “not-for-profit” wildlife conservancy in the Laikipia District of Kenya and the largest sanctuary for black rhinos in East Africa. Their mission statement reads as follows: The Ol Pejeta Conservancy works to conserve wildlife, provide a sanctuary for great apes and to generate income through wildlife tourism and complementary enterprises for re-investment in conservation and community development.
Their revenue-generating enterprises include world-class wildlife tourism and a fully integrated livestock production system. All surplus internally generated revenues are used in conjunction with donor funds to support an extensive community outreach programme, and to sustain conservation initiatives beyond the boundaries of the Conservancy.

Pack for a Purpose®  is a nonprofit web site which provides information to enable travelers to bring requested supplies to lodgings which are sponsoring community projects. In five minutes, a traveler can go to the site, find the lodging and the requested supplies and see how to pack them. The underlying idea behind Pack for a Purpose®  is that giving back to the communities a traveler visits is a great way to enhance a trip.

Save the Elephants was founded in 1993 by Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, who made a pioneering study of elephant behaviour in the late '60s in Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania, and has worked on elephant status Africa-wide since. Explorers, conservationists and elephant scientists serve as fellow trustees or advisors to the board.
Save the Elephants (STE) approaches conservation from an elephant’s perspective. They believe elephants deserve special respect from humanity because they are sensate beings with a higher order consciousness, and  intend to safeguard their future in an increasingly insecure world. They focus on research, education, grass-roots conservation, monitoring and protection.
Research on long distance movement by radio-tracking elephants helps them understand why elephants choose to do the things they do. The most detailed information on movement is found by radio-tracking. They have developed a new system of radio-tracking relying on Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. These high-tech collars measure exact position, activity level and outside air temperature every three hours. Their researchers also follow specific elephants on the ground and their day to day observations of these known individuals reveal how elephants make decisions. By meeting elephant needs they are better able to conserve them. Vital corridors in their range have been identified that need protection. Further afield in Congo, Mali, South Africa and Tanzania they are collaborating with scientists to develop an international database on elephant movement.

The Nature Conservancy (TNC) works around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy’s mission is to preserve the plants, animals and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive.
Through support from more than 1 million members, we work in more than 30 countries — protecting habitats from grasslands to coral reefs. We address threats to conservation involving climate change, fire, fresh water, forests, invasive species, and marine ecosystems.
Lewa’s partnership with TNC aims to forge a future in which natural cycles of majestic wildlife migrations will continue for countless generations to come, while recognizing that such a future depends on conservation providing new economic opportunities for local communities, ultimately enabling them to steward their own lands and economic enterprises. For more information, please visit www.nature.org/wherewework/africa/.

Tusk  Trust was formed 15 years ago in the UK with a clear aim to support conservation initiatives throughout Africa. Since it’s launch the Trust has raised approximately $10,000,000.
The Trust aims to provide practical support to conserve areas of natural habitat for the benefit of both wildlife and surrounding communities. It contributes substantial funds for the protection and conservation of many endangered species. Tusk is a major contributor to a number of key wildlife areas such as the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, the Mkomazi, Selous, and Niassa Game Reserves, as well as Ruaha, Meru, and Tsavo East National Parks.
Tusk also provides significant development funding to remote rural community projects to enable them to preserve their wildlife and eco-systems. Eco-tourism lodges such as those at Il Ngwesi, Namunyak and Lekurruki in northern Kenya, are prime examples of how Tusk’s support is being put to good use.
TUSK TRUST is the official NGO associated with the Safaricom Marathon. Tusk has been instrumental in the organisation of the event and distribution of the funds raised by the event since its inception in 2000. The last four marathons have raised a total of $400,000 for a wide variety of projects benefiting wildlife conservation, community development, education, and healthcare in northern Kenya.