Animals 4Ever: Please attend #GMFER's free events on behalf of Elephants and Rhinos in LA and San Francisco

Please attend #GMFER's free events on behalf of Elephants and Rhinos in LA and San Francisco with Amos Kipeen from Kenya! Oct 7 in LA & Oct 15 in SF!

#GMFER’s March Against Extinction events in Los Angeles and San Francisco will take a different shape this year. To amplify the voices representing indigenous peoples in Africa, we are excited to host Amos Kipeen of the Maasai Mara in Kenya, who will lead engaging conversations about conservation at both events.

Amos will share his experiences advocating for wildlife and nature in the context of a continent dominated by colonial modalities of conservation. If conservation in Africa is to succeed, inclusion of its indigenous people as full partners in the conversation about conservation is necessary. (See Amos’ full bio below.) Please join us for these free and unique events.

Los Angeles Event:
What: A conversation about the role of indigenous communities in wildlife conservation
When: Saturday, October 7, 4 – 6PM
Where: G2 Gallery, 1503 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, California
Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/269522036785901/

San Francisco Event:
What: Conversation about animal liberation and conservation in Africa
When: Sunday, October 15, 7 – 9PM
Where: Berkeley Animal Rights Center, 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, California
Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/849063101923534/

The Los Angeles event is co-organized by Generation Awakening, Global March for Elephants and Rhinos and In Defense of Animals, who are all pleased to host Amos Kipeen for a conversation about the successes, the failures and the future of conservation in Kenya and Africa. If conservation in Africa is to succeed, its indigenous communities must be full partners in the conversation. The conservation ethic in Africa has been dominated by colonial paradigms that do not fully serve the imperatives of justice and "Justice for All.” Amos will discuss the difficulties, hopes, fears and joys of indigenous communities striving to find a voice and place in the global community governing the fate and future of Africa's dwindling iconic wildlife as well as its disenfranchised human inhabitants.

The San Francisco event, featuring Amos Kipeen, is co-organized by Direct Action Everywhere and March for Elephants, San Francisco, together with the Global March for Elephants and Rhinos (GMFER) and In Defense of Animals. Amos will share his experiences, successes, difficulties, hopes and goals advocating for wildlife and nature in the context of a continent dominated by colonial modalities of conservation, and DxE, IDA and MFE will share with Amos their experiences and ideas governing the fundamentals of Animal Liberation. It is our hope that this creative exchange of ideas will help western advocates understand our African brothers and sisters and the animals they strive to protect better, and that in turn, our African brothers and sisters will take home with them the governing principles of animal liberation as practiced by DxE.

Amos Kipeen Bio

Amos Kipeen has wide experience in both the tourism and nonprofit sectors in Kenya. In 2009, he founded the Mara Discovery Center, a community-based organization that combines tourism, conservation, environmental education, and micro-enterprise to promote non-consumptive use of natural resources. Since 2015, he has also been with Basecamp Foundation Kenya-BCFK, currently as program manager in charge of implementing the Foundation’s programs in the Maasai Mara, including the Mara Lion Project, the Talented Girls Leadership School, and various programs in green energy and clean water. Amos was previously general manager for the Salt Springs Mara Camp, marketing officer for KETAS Safaris, and a guide and naturalist for other camps and tour companies. In his work in eco-tourism, Amos shared his deep knowledge of the Mara ecosystem with visitors from around the world and shared local Maasai heritage at the same time.

Amos is passionate about sustainable livelihood, wildlife conservation, good governance, and empowerment of underserved populations, and sees all of these things as connected. Among his volunteer activities in this regard, he was co-founder of the Maasai Buffalo Dance and Cultural Group, a performing arts group of young men and women whose mission is to promote Maasai culture and provide disease-free living through linkage with the outside world. Amos has a BS in Wildlife Management and graduate diploma in Tourism and Wildlife Management from the Maasai Mara University. He has also done further study in management and in 2015 was a participant in the Young African Leaders Techcamp in South Africa, with training on digital strategies for community organizing.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Sincerely,
Global March for Elephants and Rhino