Daraja Academy for Exceptional Kenyan Girls

The diversity of Kenya is represented at Daraja with girls coming from almost every district in the country.

Blue dot – City, town, or village a Daraja girl(s) is from
Yellow star – Daraja Academy campus

When the Daraja students traveled home earlier this month, many traveled for only a few hours or a day while others journeyed for two or even three days. Girls from Mombasa on the coast can share stories with students from Pokot in the west and Isiolo in the north. Daraja also understands the importance in providing an education to girls from the local villages and town of Nanyuki, where twenty-two Daraja girls call home.

Rose

Hometown:  Marsabit

Form 1 Rose Buda is from Turbi in Northern Kenya, ten hours north of the nearest major city, Marsabit. Rose travels for three days before she reaches her home, only three hours south of the Kenya-Ethipoia border. Seven Daraja girls live in Marsabit, a city located on the southern edge of Chalbi Desert. The city itself is surrounded by mountains, volcanoes, and small forests; but soon the landscape turns into dry, flat desert.

Mary

Hometown:  Mombasa

Form 2 Mary N is from Mazeras, a small town north of the large port city of Mombasa, located on the Indian Ocean. Mombasa is the second largest city in Kenya and is the main port for all of East and Central Africa. It is also a big tourist attraction. Mary travels for two days to get home along with eight Daraja students who live along the Mombasa-Nairobi Highway. Mombasa has extremely diverse culture and history going back to the Sixteenth Century.

Molly

Hometown:  Kisumu

Form 2 Molly is from Kisumu, located on Lake Victoria in Western Kenya. Lake Victoria is an extremely important for fishing, commerce, and tourism. The Nile River begins at the lake, which shares a border with neighboring Uganda. Surrounding Lake Victoria are numerous important cities and towns that are home to thirteen Daraja students.

Daraja welcomed Mpala researcher Corinna Riginos, to discuss land conservation and guest teacher Penina, to prepare Forms 3 and 4 for the K.C.S.E.

Daraja students challenged to take on land conservation, generate ways to make an impact on the cause in local communities.

Riginos: “Conservation is about more than preserving the land. Its about loving the land”

The partnership between the Mpala Research Centre and Wildlife Foundationand the Academy has provided Daraja students with many opportunities to explore science as a field of study and to examine their land and land use with scientific lenses. Last night, Mpala researcher Corinna paid a visit to Daraja for an interactive lecture about degradation versus conversation of land. Corinna explained how excessive grazing contributes to the degradation of land that could take anywhere from three to five thousand years to regenerate.

“How do we change this? What can we do?” Corinna posed to the Academy.

Form 1 student, Yvonne, suggested an education campaign to spread awareness about the harmful effects of improper land use. Ultimately, each Daraja club will generate ways that they can make a positive impact on land conservation efforts and report back to Mpala on their findings.