Transforming the next generation through citizen science in Kenya: The Kids Twiga Tally

Abstract

In 1984, E.O. Wilson wrote about biophilia, the notion that humans have an instinctive bond with other living systems and vice versa. It explains why nature tourism is such a rapidly growing global business, and why millions of people around the world raised a huge public outcry after the killing of Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe and Satao the elephant in Kenya. This notion also suggests that the loss of wildlife species and the degradation of valuable ecosystems could be reversed if we re-establish the direct connections between people and nature that are largely missing in the modern, urbanized world. This is vital in Africa where wildlife species and wild areas are under massive threat from all sides as the continent enters a period of rapid industrial development.