Conservation Organisations – the kind of jobs they provide

Big Life – Wildlife Protection, Tanzania & Kenya.

Big Life is an NGO that works in East Africa. They work closely with local communities, other NGOs, national parks and government agencies to help protect a vast area (1.6 million acres) of what is called the ‘Amboseli-Tsavo-Kilimanjaro ecosystem’. It is home to one of East Africa’s most important elephant populations, Eastern Black Rhino and other savannah wildlife.

Big Life’s focus is to reduce poaching and human-wildlife conflict. They also support education, medical outreach and other activities that bring the benefits of conservation to communities. Their philosophy is that Conservation supports the people and people support conservation.

Big Life employs 432 people* in Kenya, more than 400 are from the local Maasai communities. It is one of the largest single employers in the project area. Nearly 300 people work as rangers, supported by additional field staff. The rangers are well-equipped and expertly trained. They are trained in anti-poaching techniques, arrest and scene of crime procedures, first aid, radio communication, data collection. They have very effective and well-coordinated teams working on both sides of the Tanzania-Kenya border. They have 40 ranger units which use tracker dogs, 2 airplanes and 40 vehicles. They use the most up-to-date techniques and technology, coordinated from a high-tech control centre pictured below. The work of these teams is to protect wildlife and their habitats, mitigate human-wildlife conflict, and support communities, you can read more about Big Life in the PACE Wildlife Module.