Kenyan bags global award for conservation

Mary Wanjiku during the interview in Nakuru on Tuesday. [Kennedy Gachuhi Standard].

A woman from Nyandarua County has won an international award for her efforts to conserve environment. Mary Wanjiku, from Mwihoti village was awarded the Messengers of Peace Heroes Award in Kuwait by the country's Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak last week.

This was the first time the award, sponsored by the World Organisation of Scout Movement, was recognising environment conservation.

Wanjiku, 24, is involved in environmental conservation through her organisation, Brown Olive. "It was the least of my expectations. I never thought such a humble project would attract global attention and win an award. To me it is still like a dream,” Wanjiku told The Standard in Nakuru yesterday after jetting back into the country.

The global award came exactly one year after she received the Chief Scout Award (CSA) from President Uhuru Kenyatta.

“I will present this award to President Kenyatta at State House in Nairobi on November 24. It shall also be the Awards Day for the Kenya Scouts Association where the President is our patron,” said Wanjiku.

The journey of Wanjiku, a senior scout, started with her concern about continued environmental degradation and the risk of extinction of indigenous trees. Wanjiku, a tour guide at Lake Nakuru National Park, has been educating locals, on agroforestry.