Alumna returns to talk about African Wildlife Conservation

Laly Lichtenfeld, the president and co-founder of the African People and Wildlife Fund (APWF), returned to University of Richmond's campus for the first time since graduating in 1996 to give a speech as part of the Global Environmental Speaker Series.

In her lecture, "A 21st Century Approach to African Wildlife Conservation," Lichtenfeld discussed the demand for effective conservation methods that benefited both the people and wildlife in Africa. During her presentation, she led a crowded auditorium through her work and the development of her non-governmental organization located on the Maasai Steppe of Tanzania.

"We want to conserve Africa's rich and diverse wildlife in a way that proliferates and benefits local communities," Lichtenfeld said. She and her team of more than 50 full-time and part-time workers, help to educate the people and find simple economical solutions to solve the conflict between animals and humans.

According to Lichtenfeld, the majority of land in Tanzania is protected and reserved for National Parks, where scientists are conducting research on the wildlife. But, despite these efforts, there are still significant declines in wildlife populations.

"In Tanzania alone, we have seen a 50 percent decline in the last 20 years," said Lichtenfeld.

She said the main problems arose when the animals wandered into rural communities in search of food and when people went into the protected reserves for resources. Lichtenfeld said, of the 40 million people who lived in Tanzania, 75 percent of them lived in rural communities that shared land with the diverse and sometimes dangerous wildlife. The boundaries that separate the Maasai people and the wildlife allow the wildlife a large enough space to roam, but prevent people from entering the reserves and using the land for grazing or cultivation.

"There is a massive exodus of these natural resources by people from the cities who come to farm and strip the land, without any of the benefits going back to the rural people who depend on these resources for themselves," Lichtenfeld said. She also attributed the decline of wildlife to illegal poaching and hunting of bushmeat.

"As habitats are lost and human populations grow, people and wildlife come closer and closer in proximity, and thus they come into conflict," she said.

The African People and Wildlife Fund operates year-round in the Maasai Steppe of the Tarangire National Park. Lichtenfeld said the park contained one of the only year-round water supplies in Tanzania and acted as a major watering hole for almost all the animals in the area. It is also a place of refuge from the brutal drought for the Maasai people, who often herd their cattle into the area for water, she said.

To create peaceful coexistence between human beings and animals, the African People and Wildlife Fund developed the Noloholo Environmental Center, which was built in 2008 on land donated by the Maasai people. According to the APWF website, the center acts as the regional headquarters for the organization and as an educational facility where local people can come to learn about the environment or address any conflicts they may be having with the wildlife.

"What makes us different is that we are present 365 days of the year," Lichtenfeld said. "We are living with the same issues as the rural people, and we work together to build common ground and understanding."

The Noloholo Environmental Center provides education and after-school activities for local school children interested in the environment and conservation.

"Even though these children live within 5 miles of the national park, many of them have never even heard of it," Lichtenfeld said. "I believe that they should all have the opportunity to witness the incredible wildlife that their country has to offer. It is their national right."

Along with educational courses, APWF employees have now established scholarship opportunities for young men and women going into high school. The scholarships are awarded each year to 12 students who show potential in academics. These scholarships guarantee them six years of high school at a private school, where they will receive the best available education, Lichtenfeld said.

"I knew that when I started the community conservation project, one key element was missing," she said. "This project could not be as successful as it has been without education."

Through working and collaborating with the Maasai community, the African People and Wildlife Fund has helped protect over 25,000 heads of livestock and more than 2,000 community members, as well as countless species of wildlife, Lichtenfeld said.

Contact staff writer Nabila Khouri at nabila.khouri@richmond.edu