5 Phases
Phase 1 (Re-Wilding for Veterans)
Members of the military develop a stronge sense of identity and self-worth. This will allow them to bring many skills and traits which are beneficial to employers once they leave the service, no matter the industry they move into.
Unfortunately this confidence and identiy is easily lost if they have been unfortunate enough to leave the military through mental or physical injury. These problems will regularly lead to a feeling of isolation and abandonment which can often escalate to depression, a feeling of uselessness, resentment and self-loathing.
Re-Wilding for Veterans will develop an activity programme which will push veterans through mental and physical tasks aimed to rekindle their self-worth and prove that they are still a benefit not only to themselves, their families but also to their community and employers.
Phase 1:
Re-Wilding for Veterans
This project will help the local communities of Laikipia by working with schools, orphanages and medical facilities. Using skills that the veterans have developed to show the children how different skills can be used.
Accommodation will be comfortable but basic, 10 bomas will be constructed for the veterans. Here they will have their privacy and a safe place to store their clothes and equipment as well as a comfortable bed and ensuite shower facilities.
Planned activities include:
•Climb Mt Kenya
•Plant trees
•Horse husbandry
•Horse ride
•Orphanage visit
•Assistance at a local ranch
•Visit a forge and receive an introduction to iron-work
• Predator deterrent system.
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Phase 2 (Aquarium and Pollinators)
For all of the natural splendours which are showcased in Laikipia, many of the local community won’t have had the opportunity to learn about marine wildlife.
Very few commercial aquariums currently exist in Kenya and so observing marine wildlife is a rare opportunity.
Red List Conservation will aim to build an Aquarium during Phase 2, one that will a national attraction.
The aquarium will look to demonstrate Kenya’s varied marine life from the riverbeds, to the coast and even the deep sea. This will be the first of it’s kind in East Africa.
Pollinators
An often overlooked class of animals, that are critical to our food chain are pollinators. Red List Conservation will develop a wild area with trees, shrubs and flowers native to Kenya.
A glass house will be created to house butterflies that are ‘In decline’ and ‘Endangered’, with the aim to grow these populations.
It has been discovered that bee hives can be used as part of farmstead perimeter fencing which will deter elephants from causing damage and destroying crops. Encouraging the local community to utilise beehives will not only protect their property but will provide them with potential financial gains and an increase in crops through the close proximity of pollinators.
Phase 3 (Small mammals education center)
As part of the growth of the animal park, Phase 3 will see the introduction of small Kenyan mammals.
As mentioned in the introduction, every project to be delivered by Red List Conservation will be based on at least one of the three pillars:
•Security
•Community
•Education
As we increase the variety of species we will also build an education Centre. The Centre will not only look to provide informal education to tourists and the local community but Red List Conservation will also incorporate formal training, where students will be able to gain qualifications up to Level 4.
Phase 4 (Large mammals and Bird display)
The idea behind the animal park is to give the animals comfort, space and security whilst providing an area for local communities and tourists to learn. Space and comfort are difficult for larger mammals and so to incorporate larger mammals to the animal park it will be vital to expand on the area.
Rhinos and elephants are still at great risk against poachers and unfortunately this will often mean that young ones are orphaned and left on their own. The Red List Conservation Animal Park will act as an orphanage to these young ones and like the Daphne Sheldrake Elephant Sanctuary, we will look to re-introduct these animals back into the wild.
Lions and other predators are at risk from local retribution as they can kill livestock, causing farmers to react trying to protect their livelihoods.
This can lead to poisoned meats being left out or poisoned spears being used in hunting them down. Unfortunately, poisoned meat will lead to other animals that feed off carion being poisoned and killed as well as innocent predators being killed during hunts.
Red List Conservation will use these animals as an education tool for the local communities to prevent this conflict and reduce the number of wildlife killings in the area.
Bird Display - All types of birds will be housed from game birds to raptors. This will be the last type of animal introduce to the park. It is planned to introduce a raptor display, showing these graceful creatures in full flight and educating people to how they hunt and the speeds that they can reach.
Red List Conservation will be looking at introducing a breeding programme for all the animals within the park and will therefore not only require experts to care for the animals but we will require experts to assist with the design of the enclosures and the procedures needed to not only successfully care for these beautiful animals but to provide a suitable environment for them to breed in.
Phase 5 (The University)
According to the QS World University Rankings, there wasn’t a single university in Africa that entered the top 200 university’s in the World.
Red List Conservation is aiming to change this; by developing a World Leading environment to learn conservation studies and by having experiences available to students, not seen anywhere else in the World, we will create a university that will attract students from across the globe.
We aim to develop a programme of topics that will not only assist in helping local and national students become experts in their dedicated fields but provide hands on experience to them, making them valuable to multiple organisation internationally.
The university and animal park will not only provide World leading opportunities to students but it will also provide employment to the local community.
Using local expertise through community partnerships, students will receive a learning experience never seen before creating the next generation of conservation experts.