Enhancing Climate Resilience: People and Wildlife

We want to share a quick update on how your support for our climate resilience campaign is making a tangible difference on the ground.

Water security remains our biggest priority on Ol Pejeta.

Past dry spells have shown just how fragile this ecosystem can be—most notably in 2022, when critical water shortages contributed to the tragic loss of 1,000 more buffalo than the previous year.

Downstream communities face a parallel struggle; while more than 75% of local household incomes rely on agriculture and livestock, less than 30% of these families have access to piped water.

Your support is helping us address these challenges by overhauling our water infrastructure—repairing dams, solarising water pumps, and replacing inefficient pipelines. But what does a stable water network actually mean for a family living on our borders?

For pastoralists like Jackson, cattle are everything. "They mean dignity and survival," Jackson says. "Cows paid for my education, fed my family, and provided security." Historically, Jackson faced an unpredictable market run by brokers.

Today, Ol Pejeta’s Cattle-to-Market Program changes that by using standardised scales to buy livestock at fair, guaranteed weights, providing reliable income to local families. This is where your impact comes in. This fair market safety net completely relies on the water infrastructure you are helping to fund. During severe dry spells, livestock rapidly lose weight. If they drop below the minimum weight requirements, they can't enter the program, and a family's primary economic safety net vanishes.

By upgrading dams, securing downstream river flows, and optimising our pipeline networks, your support ensures that local pastures stay green and cattle stay healthy enough to meet market standards—even when water is scarce.

Thank you for helping us build a resilient ecosystem where wildlife thrives, downstream communities are secure, and people like Jackson have a fair shot at the future.