The Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT) is a community-based conservation network operating across northern Kenya's arid and semi-arid rangelands. Founded in 2004, the NRT has grown to coordinate 43 community conservancies covering approximately 44,000 square kilometers. The network represents a major model for community-based conservation, where pastoral communities manage land for wildlife conservation while deriving economic benefits from tourism and conservation-related employment.
Founding and Mission
The NRT was established to provide an alternative to fortress conservation models that excluded pastoral communities. The founding vision recognized that pastoral communities had long managed rangelands sustainably and could be partners in conservation if economic incentives aligned conservation with community interests.
The trust functions as a coordinating organization providing technical assistance, funding, training, and market linkages for member conservancies.
Member Conservancies and Network
The NRT network spans northern Kenya from Laikipia Plateau through Samburu, Isiolo, and Marsabit counties. Member conservancies operate under community management, with boards of directors representing community stakeholders. Conservancies vary in size, ranging from approximately 5,000 to 200,000 acres.
The network includes diverse conservancy types from primarily wildlife-focused areas to mixed livestock-wildlife operations. This diversity allows adaptation to local conditions and community preferences.
Conservation Outcomes
The NRT network has protected substantial wildlife populations and diverse habitats. Endangered species including Grevy's zebras, African wild dogs, and reticulated giraffes are protected in NRT conservancies. Elephant and lion populations have expanded into conservancy lands from protected areas.
Biodiversity monitoring suggests that protected wildlife populations can recover and persist when adequate protection and habitat are provided.
Economic Model and Community Benefits
Conservancies generate revenue through wildlife tourism, with visitor fees and lodge concessions. Community members benefit through direct employment as rangers, guides, and hospitality workers. Additional benefits include wildlife viewing fees for residents, training programs, and infrastructure development.
The economic model creates direct alignment between wildlife protection and community income, providing incentive for conservation.
Wildlife Corridor Protection
A critical NRT function is habitat connectivity and corridor protection. The Laikipia-Samburu corridor, connecting central and northern Kenya, is protected through NRT conservancy management. Corridor protection allows wildlife movement and maintains genetic connectivity between populations.
Community Ranger Deployment
The NRT employs community rangers who conduct wildlife protection, habitat monitoring, and wildlife conflict management. Ranger employment provides training and livelihood for community members while building conservation capacity.
The ranger force has grown substantially, representing thousands of community members employed in conservation.
Livelihood Diversification
The NRT model provides livelihood diversification for pastoral communities traditionally dependent on livestock. Alternative income sources reduce pressure on rangeland from livestock overgrazing and create economic buffers during drought periods when pastoral production declines.
Climate Adaptation
The NRT explicitly integrates climate change adaptation, recognizing that changing rainfall patterns affect both pastoral and wildlife populations. Diversified livelihoods and wildlife tourism revenues enhance community resilience to climate-driven shocks.
Challenge and Controversies
The conservancy model faces challenges including the 2017 Laikipia invasions, where pastoralist communities invaded conservancies protesting land access restrictions. The invasions highlighted tensions between conservation and pastoral interests and questions about benefit distribution equity.
Additionally, some critics argue that conservancies restrict pastoral livelihoods and grazing access disproportionately, despite community participation in management.
Land Tenure and Security
The Community Land Act (2016) provided legal recognition of community land ownership and control of conservancies. This tenure security strengthened the model by providing confidence that benefits would accrue to communities that own the land.
Tourist Demand and Market Risks
Conservancy revenue depends on international and domestic tourist demand, which is vulnerable to global economic fluctuations, security concerns, and pandemic disruptions. COVID-19 caused dramatic tourism collapse in 2020, creating financial crisis for conservancies.
Reducing tourism dependence through economic diversification is important for sustainability.
Integration with Government
The NRT works with government at national and county levels. Government support for the model has increased, with recognition that community-based conservation complements government protected areas.
However, coordination between government and community management remains sometimes contentious over authority and benefit distribution.
Research and Learning
The NRT network hosts research and monitoring that contributes to understanding of community-based conservation effectiveness. Long-term data on wildlife populations, livelihood outcomes, and conservation costs provide evidence for assessing the model.
Scaling and Replication
The NRT model has been considered for replication in other regions and other countries. The demonstrated success in northern Kenya suggests potential for similar models in other pastoral areas facing conservation and development challenges.
See Also
- Community Conservancies Model - Broader conservancy framework
- Wildlife Corridors Kenya - Habitat connectivity management
- Pastoralists and Conservation - Pastoral community relationships
- Tourism Revenue and Communities - Economic benefits distribution
- Laikipia Plateau - Geographic context for operations
- Samburu National Reserve - Protected area complementarity
- Climate Change and Wildlife - Adaptation through diversification
Sources
- https://www.nrt-kenya.org/
- Lamprey, R.H. & Reid, R.S. (2004). Expansion of Human Settlement in Kenya's Maasai Mara: What Conservation Policy Implications? Biological Conservation, 123(2), 267-277.
- Oldekop, J.A. et al. (2016). A Comparative Assessment of Social and Environmental Impacts from Private and Community-Based Ecosystem Conservation Approaches. Global Environmental Change, 40, 89-101.
- Karenyi, N. (2008). Community-Based Conservancies in Kenya: A Preliminary Assessment of Social and Economic Impacts. Conservation and Development, 15(3), 18-29.