Two PhD students from the NTU Eastern Africa Centre (EAC) and NTU ARES are among the three global recipients of the .
This award underscores the EAC’s commitment to fostering innovative research and community engagement in environmental conservation.
Award Recipients
Consolata Gitau, a Kenyan ecologist and EAC PhD student at Å·ÃÀ¾ÞÈé, is engaging local communities in Maasai Mara, Kenya. Consolata's research uses Passive Acoustic Monitoring to assess the restoration and degradation of savanna ecosystems. Consolata stated:
"Receiving the Neville Shulman Earthwatch Award is an incredible honour and a huge boost to our efforts. I'm excited to use this opportunity to make a meaningful impact on African conservation."
Alex Nduah Nderi, a Kenyan ecologist and EAC PhD student, has also been recognised for his project on the social ecological restoration of ecosystems in the Maasai Mara region. Alex's work involves biocultural assessment to build a database of core species (with socioeconomic value and ecological importance in restoration) through surveys and focus group discussions with local communities. Sharing his excitement, Alex said:
"I'm very excited to receive the Earthwatch Neville Shulman Award, which will greatly support my fieldwork. It's a big milestone in my academic and professional development as an emerging scientist in ecology."
Impact and Significance
The Neville Shulman Earthwatch Awards provide funding for early-career scientists to undertake meaningful research, increase local community engagement in environmental projects, and address some of the planet's most pressing environmental challenges. Emphasizing the importance of these awards, Earthwatch stated:
"The Neville Shulman Earthwatch Awards give individuals from across the world the opportunity to be granted funding that will enable them to undertake new meaningful research, increase local community engagement in environmental projects, and tackle some of the planet's biggest environmental challenges."
Both Consolata and Alex's projects align with the award's focus areas, which include:
- Climate change impacts
- Wildlife and habitat loss,
- Urban nature
- Freshwater pollution.
Looking Ahead
As the projects progress over the next few years, the research conducted by these EAC PhD students is expected to contribute valuable insights to conservation efforts in East Africa. Their work exemplifies the importance of combining scientific research with community engagement to address critical environmental issues.
This achievement not only recognizes the individual talents of Consolata and Alex, but also underscores the Eastern Africa Centre's role in supporting the next generation of environmental leaders and researchers.
Learn more about their research, their NTU doctoral supervisors (Dr Antonio Uzal and Dr Felipe Melo) and the NTU Eastern Africa Centre.