Health Update - Sight for the Blind!

A very inspiring story today, one that has already touched many lives and has the potential to touch many more.  One afternoon in late October, a party of Campi ya Kanzi guests visited Iltilal village and its residents to volunteer with the Trust for an afternoon.  In speaking with MWCT doctor Dr. Edward Omete, ophthalmologist Pamela Thiene, here purely on vacation, volunteered to help at the clinic with any eye-related diseases she could for an afternoon.

Njeda and his grandmother on their way from Kuku Group Ranch to Nairobi.

Njeda, a two-year old Maasai child born to a fifteen year-old mother who abandoned him and living with his grandmother, was born blind thanks to bilateral congenital cataracts.  In the Western world, this is a simple problem easily solved by surgery, but on Kuku such access to healthcare is not available.  Inspired by Dr. Thiene's generosity and selflessness, MWCT volunteer Jessica Hardy and health coordinators Dr. Omete and Lena Koh began searching for a hospital to perform the operation.

Njeda waiting at Lion's SightFirst Eye Hospital in Nairobi for his surgery.

Lions SightFirst Eye Hospital in Nairobi was willing to help, and upon hearing about the situation offered to perform the operation for no charge.  Campi ya Kanzi donated the necessary funds for Njeda and his grandmother, Jessica, and Dr. Omete to travel to Nairobi for the procedure earlier this month, and it was a tremendous, heartbreakingly wonderful success.

Njeda at the hospital with eyes covered by bandages following the surgery.

Lions Hospital was instrumental in making this project work, and they have agreed to help more Maasai with eye problems at a reduced rate, even to the point of setting up a temporary clinic much closer to Kuku Group Ranch to save travel to Nairobi.  There are thousands of Maasai living with easily treatable eye problems; please visit this fundraising page to see how you can help.

The first light seen by this little boy's eyes in his whole life.

Terrified of what was happening to him but unable to see what it was, Njeda clung to his grandmother before the surgery.  Afterward, as his bandages were removed and he saw light with his eyes for the first time in his life, he smiled up at her and touched her cheek.  Driving back to his home in the bush, he stared in wonderment at the gorgeous scenery all around him.  This was truly a case of selfless giving, and a wonderful collaboration between Campi ya Kanzi, the Lions Hospital, and the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust. 

TeachAIDS Blogs About MWCT!

Exciting news on the publicity front for MWCT's Health Program - we're being featured and blogged about on TeachAIDS' website!  TeachAIDS is a fantastic organization we're proud to partner with; they are an interdisciplinary team of researchers in many fields working together to develop interactive and rich-media applications to promote the prevention of HIV/AIDS.  But what makes them even more special is that they produce these materials specifically to overcome social and cultural barriers - in MWCT's case, all other available materials are in English, but TeachAIDS' are in Swahili!

An HIV education presentation in a local village using TeachAIDS materials.

You can read more about our collaboration and the success we had this summer combining the educational materials with a community soccer tournament in TeachAIDS' blog post here:

http://teachaids.org/blog/sports-and-hiv-education-in-rural-kenya

Stay tuned for more updates on this wonderful organization we're proud to partner with, our ongoing use of these education materials, and the other great stuff currently going on with the Health Program!

Kanzi Academy Excursion to the Chyulus!

As part of Kanzi Academy’s continued efforts to take learning outside the classroom and find new ways for its students to interact with their unique wilderness environment, last week the schoolchildren went for a walk in the Chyulu Hills.  Hemingway’s famed Green Hills of Africa, the Chyulus are a volcanic range that were active as recently as the 19^th century, but have been dormant since that time.  The drive up provided an opportunity for the students to test their knowledge of the region’s geography and geology, including distinguishing between ancient granite formations and more recent volcanic ones.

Heading up into the Chyulus with the students of Kanzi Academy.

The drive and walk also gave ample opportunity to study and learn about the wildlife and botany of Kuku Group Ranch.  We saw giraffes, impalas, elands, hartebeests, hornbills, lilac-breasted rollers, and even an elusive bushbuck!  The beautiful Erythrina abyssinica, also known as the red-hot poker tree, was in its full-blooming October glory, punctuating the green hills with dashes of crimson. 

The beautiful Erythrina Abyssinica tree blooms in October.

After a break in the forest for a spirited game of Hide-and-Go-Seek, we continued our hike through the cloud forest, identifying trees such as the strangler fig and discussing its parasitic relationship with its host tree.  Finally we arrived at a bluff atop the range from which we could see for many kilometres, all the way to the Yatta Plateau.  We returned via the forest path and drove back to Campi ya Kanzi after a very successful morning, and we're planning to continue these educational outings in the future!

The students of Kanzi Academy look out from a bluff atop the Chyulus.

Maasai Olympics Coming Up!

Traditionally, young Maasai warriors have engaged in the killing of lions to compete for recognition, express bravery, attract girlfriends, and identify leaders.  However, because lion populations have dwindled so much in recent years, this tradition is no longer culturally acceptable.  A special group of Maasai elders called the Menya Layiok (Fathers of the Warriors) has come together to create a history-making alternative to lion-killing – the first-ever Maasai Olympics, to be held this December!

The Maasai Olympics seek to replace traditional lion-killing with sports.

The inaugural Maasai Olympics are an organized Maasai sports competition based upon traditional warrior skills, allowing the tribe to retain many of its tradition while adapting to the modern world and peacefully co-existing with its ecosystem.  There are five events in the program:  

1) 200m sprint

2) 5000m run

3) Spear throwing

4) Rungu throwing

5) High jumping

A moran, or Maasai warrior, throws a spear in one of the five contests.

There are three levels of competition (local, regional, and ecosystem-wide), allowing all Maasai to participate and culminating in the Maasai Olympics on 22^nd December 2012.  Regional competitions are now ongoing, and the build-up toward what will become an annual event has been exciting thus far!  The Maasai Olympics are being jointly arranged by the Maasailand Preservation Trust, the Amboseli Trust for Elephants, and the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust.

The competition rules are explained to a group of warriors in Kuku.

MWCT is also offering the overall winner participation in the 2013 New York Marathon - stay tuned here for more updates, and consider joining our warrior in next year's marathon!  And finally, Campi ya Kanzi is offering a discounted rate should you desire to come and enjoy the Maasai Olympics final competition - contact luca@maasai.com for more details.