The Maasai Media Center for the empowerment of the indigenous Maasai people
As a minority indigenous group that has been left out of the benefits of formal education and the tourism industry, the nearly 300,000 Maasai people in southern Kenya struggle with economic impoverishment and a lack of resources, such as clean water. One of the greatest obstacles they continue to face is difficulty in educating and organizing Maasai people across geographic distances without vehicles, roads or electricity. We believe that access to multi-media communication tools will allow them to organize to protect their traditional land and to create educational models that strengthen their culture while bridging to the outside world.
Maasai people have one of the most widely represented indigenous cultures in the world, yet they have virtually no technical resources to represent themselves on their own terms. They have much of value to share with the outside world, about how to exist sustainably on our planet and how to resolve conflict peacefully through consensus. Our initial plan is to open a media branch at our community center where we can record the views of elders and educators to disseminate ideas between communities and to share ideas with the world. Ultimately we hope to build a radio station.
This media center is one of many projects of the Maasai Environmental Resource Coalition, an organization I have been involved with for over fifteen years. In the summer of 2007 I went to Kenya to help set up this media center. I brought with me an iMac, a video camera and a microphone plus all the required interfaces to create multimedia. The only thing lacking was electricity to run the equipment. The next year through fundraisers and the sale of the Osingolio CD we were able to raise enough money to buy solar panels, inverters and batteries.
We are seeking high quality video cameras, microphones, recording devices, speakers, amplifiers along with all the necessary media and accessories for recording and disseminating interviews, videos and music. Click the donate button to make a tax deductible donation.
Maasai Education