A few years ago while visiting friends in Kenya, Terry Anderson discovered a self-grown example of free market environmentalism. Without knowing the intellectual roots of the movement, Maasai tribes had figured out a good way to increase income and at the same time revitalize their grasslands, attract wildlife back to the region, and in turn attract paying tourists.
Sammy, the Community Warden on the Olare Orok Conservancy opened Terry’s eyes to the ways in which the local Masai communities were responding to economic incentives. Giving up their grazing lands for wild animals provided a better return than the traditional grazing of large herds of livestock.
Assisted by a local entrepreneur with tourism experience, Sammy spent many months negotiating and contracting with village elders. Today, the tented tourist camp is up and running and Sammy, who along with a good job, has gotten the Suzuki motorcyle he has been dreaming about and now uses to patrol the reserve.
Read Terry Anderson’s whole story: Sammy’s Suzuki
