In June, I visited Mara Elephant Project to learn about the work behind protecting elephants in the Greater Mara ecosystem. We heard from the team about their work across the region, and came away struck by their passion, dedication and depth of knowledge.
[One moment from the visit: what you saw first, where, and who showed you round.]
Mara Elephant Project does nothing by halves. Richard Roberts, who has lived in the Mara since he was three, founded it with Liz Roberts in 2011. Fifteen years on, the organisation fields more than 100 Kenyan rangers and researchers, working with Kenya Wildlife Service, the Wildlife Research and Training Institute, Narok County and the conservancies.
On safari, we see elephants moving through the landscape. What is less obvious is the network of people, research and daily monitoring that keeps them safe as they move between wildlife habitat, farms, settlements and borders.