Visitors from Ireland, Nepal, Kenya, and Mexico Tour Ondiri Wetland

Yesterday, the Friends of Ondiri Wetland Kenya (FOWK) had the honour of welcoming visitors from Ireland, Nepal, Kenya, and Mexico. The visitors hold various positions, including Irish representatives of the bogs, representatives of freshwater sources, and members of ENTER International, an organization that focuses on sustainability and education.

The visitors were particularly interested in the ecological role of Ondiri as a peat bog and source of fresh water. Members of ENTER International visited Ondiri to learn more about peatlands as part of the Sustainability Beyond Frameworks Project, which includes a peatlands conservation module that will be introduced in rural high schools across Kenya to raise awareness of the importance of peatland conservation. They were happy to see how local actions like the ones conducted by FOWK conserve this vital ecosystem. Our continued collaboration with the Irish continues to show how our local grassroots activities are crucial in driving and creating global impact.

The ceremonial trees planted by the Irish Ambassador and the Irish Minister of Nature and Biodiversity are a living legacy, where the visitors were fascinated, and it was evident from the photos they took with the trees, which had conspicuous name tags.

The Citizen Science Department, through its lead, James Gichomo, explained its role in SDG No. 13 alignment through its activities and highlighted the ecological importance of Ondiri Wetland. We learnt a lot from their side on the role of peat bogs in carbon sequestration and flood mitigation, and the importance of conserving the ecosystem as a source of fresh water. The encounter with birds like the reed cormorant and the grey crowned crane, with their offspring, continued showing how pollution-free Ondiri Wetland is.

Such activities, and the many foreigners visiting the wetland, continue to vividly show how the work conducted by FOWK is creating ecotourism, in line with the work currently on site under the Nairobi River Regeneration Programme, which will further create sustainability through ecotourism. They just experienced a fraction of what Kikuyu has to offer and will soon revisit and tour the other fascinating sites within the Nyongara River and the Kikuyu Springs. This continues illustrating to us that the future is definitely bright.