(Posted 20th October 2023)
By Charlotte Beauvoisin for ATCNews, pictures courtesy of Charlotte Beauvoisin
Diary of a Muzungu and ATCNews extend hearty congratulations to Jim Justus Nyamu, one
of this year’s 157 men and women honoured by the President of Kenya William Ruto at this
year’s Mashujaa Day national holiday celebration in Kericho.
Writes Charlotte Beauvoisin:
The environmental conservation award is in recognition of Jim’s tireless campaigning to
push African countries to collaborate in conserving elephant populations.
Jim briefly paused his East – Central Africa walk campaign to collect his award, before
returning to Murchison Falls National Park in northern Uganda to resume the campaign next
Monday, the 23rd of October. (https://atcnews.org/ugandawildlifeauthority-announces-an-elephantwalk-in-murchison-falls-np/)
Jim writes “Today we honour all those who committed towards the struggle for Kenya’s
independence and have positively contributed to the society afterwards. A lot of sacrifice goes into building a nation and we all have a role to play to ensure we uplift the society, leaving a positive mark that we shall be remembered for. Let us all acknowledge that ‘Wewe ni Shujaa’; (You are a Hero), and move with grace as we accept that we are stronger together, living in the spirit of Ubuntu ~ humanity to others.”
Jim Justus Nyamu, OGW* – often called Africa’s Elephant Man – is the Founder and Executive Director of the Elephant Neighbors Center, a non-profit whose mission is “to protect the African Elephant and secure landscapes for elephants outside protected areas.”
The brand Ivory Belongs to Elephants™ focuses on raising awareness locally, nationally, and internationally of the plight of African Elephants, primarily through their advocacy walks.
Contnued Jim: “This most iconic of African species is being pushed towards extinction – slaughtered by poachers to supply a worldwide ivory trade worth up to US$20 billion a year. Despite a ban in many countries, the killing is only getting worse. There are now estimated to be only 350,000 elephants left in Africa, with approximately 20,000 being killed every year. African elephants will be extinct in our lifetime if this rate of loss continues.”
Jim and his team have been walking to raise awareness since 2013. By the end of the
current campaign, they will have walked more than 27,500 km across Africa, the United States,
and the UK, connecting with over 16,000 schools, and holding over 900 community meetings
along the campaign walks.
In President Ruto’s address to Kenyans on Mashujaa Day, he said “The need for heroism is
as urgent as it was in pre-independence Kenya. The power of individual action is still as
powerful today.”
This year’s heroes include men and women that fought for Kenya’s independence; actors
and musicians, human rights activists, a news reporter, a philanthropist, a tennis player who
is a wheelchair user.
President Ruto concluded the event by renaming the Kericho Green Stadium Wilson Kiprugut Chumo
Stadium in celebration of the first Kenyan to win an Olympic medal.
The National Heroes Council was established by The Kenya Heroes Act, No. 5 of 2014. The
Council’s mandate is to “identify, select and provide for the recognition of national heroes
and heroines.”
These fall into 14 categories including freedom fighters, peacemakers and
spiritual leaders. “Extraordinary patriotism, selflessness, courage, perseverance, integrity,
commitment, expertise, talent, innovativeness, discipline, optimism and creativity” are some of the characteristics demonstrated by nominees.
We know from watching Jim in action that he embodies all of these traits and more. We wish
him all the best in his future campaigns.
Follow the Ivory belongs to Elephants Facebook page.
(*OGW is the Order of the Grand Warrior of Kenya is an award presented to individuals in
recognition of an outstanding service rendered to the country).
Jim was incidentally walking in Queen Elizabeth National Park earlier this week after his return from Rwanda and DR Congo, not only to continue his walk for Elephants per se but also as a show of support and solidarity with Uganda’s tourism industry and conservation fraternity.
#UgandaWildlifeAuthority announces an #ElephantWalk in Murchison Falls NP
