Tree Conservation Challenges among the Indigenous Pastoral Rendille Community in Marsabit, Kenya

Abstract

Every environment is surrounded by traditional people who have lived in the geographic location for a long time and use their particular knowledge to cohabit with the natural ecosystem. This study assessed challenges encountered towards tree conservation by the Rendille pastoral community in Kenya. Selected tree species; Olea europaea, Terminalia sp. and Hyphaene compressa, that are commonly used by the community were identified and the probable threats towards their conservation. Some of these tree conservation challenges by the indigenous Rendille were: charcoal burning and fuel wood consumption, demand of traditional tree medicinal value, climate variability extremes and demand for land for settlement by the community. The results indicate that, charcoal burning (84.4%) and demand for traditional tree medicine (77.3%) were leading causes frustrating tree conservation among the Rendille. To mitigate these challenges, the respondents indicated that, creation of awareness (89.1%) and promotion of other sources of fuel (78.9%) could be vital factors. The study recommends Integration of Indigenous Knowledge (IK) with formal education to enhance conservation of the mentioned tree species.