Tembo naming festival

Actor Edward Norton is festival ambassador

Kenya has appointed US actor, filmmaker, and producer Edward Norton as the Magical Kenya Tembo Naming Festival ambassador. Norton, who is a star in prominent movies, will help raise the profile of the festival, an annual activity meant to support conservation of elephants in the country.

In 2021, the government of Kenya launched the Magical Kenya Tembo Naming Festival as a part of the efforts towards the preservation and protection of elephants in the country. The annual event is also geared towards encouraging people to involve themselves in Kenya’s conservation efforts.

In addition to this, the Tembo Naming Festival will also offer an opportunity to learn about elephants, other wildlife and Kenyan heritage. The festival is anchored on the basis that everybody has a role to play in the protection of wildlife for future generations to enjoy and, more so, to support the expansion of the coverage of community conservancies/ranches in an effort to win more space for elephants.

Aside from his acting career, Norton has been a committed social and environmental activist for many years. He has used his celebrity status as a platform for social activism, and his work with charities has been recognised by many organisations.

He was named the first Goodwill Ambassador for Biodiversity by the United Nations in 2010. Norton's primary focus in this position is to help improve people's understanding of biodiversity and its importance to human wellbeing. His passion extends to other areas as well, including habitat loss and deforestation, species extinction, and the need for sustainable consumption patterns among people in industrialised countries.

MISSION

He serves on the Board of Trustees for Enterprise, a New York City-based nonprofit organisation whose mission is to help people facing adversity achieve self-reliance. He is also the President of the Board of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust, a community conservation organization that helps to protect wilderness areas in Kenya and Tanzania.

The Ministry had chosen to work with Edward because of his passion for conservation and biodiversity and his social status as an actor”

His interests extend to areas that include habitat loss, deforestation, species extinction, and the need for sustainable consumption patterns among people in industrialised countries. These are critical elements in conservation which are important to Kenya.

In 2010, Norton co-founded CrowdRise, along with wife Shauna Robertson which is an online platform for individuals to fund and donate money to charity.

Commenting on the appointment, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism & Wildlife Najib Balala said that the Ministry had chosen to work with Edward because of his passion for conservation and biodiversity and his social status as an actor. The attributes would help in realising the goals of raising awareness and solving the problems that face wildlife. His experience in fundraising would also be invaluable in achieving the targeted KES 100 million within the financial year.

Norton said that Kenya was a shining example of integration in the way life should be, adding that sustainability should be addressed within the context of human activity in the world, Kenya has led the way in showing this. He added that a huge need of tourism in Kenya is the need for people to come and see what they don’t have in their own countries. Norton will help to highlight the conservation needs in Kenya, highlighting community initiatives and bridging the information gap.