(Posted 29th May 2026)
In the past four months, we’ve successfully run another Tropic Air 10to4 Mountain Bike Challenge to raise critical funds for frontline conservation work, continued our journey with LEAD Conservation, who are training our field staff and managers on proactive threat reduction, distributed more dignity packs to young girls in Meru county to end period poverty and ramped up our Junior Ranger Project by training teachers on our digital learning platform.
We have also updated and refreshed our website to reflect our growing programmes and our strategy for the next 5 years. Susie and Daisy have completed a year-long Leadership course with the African Conservation Leadership Network, a cohort-based leadership development program that equips conservation leaders with the skills, knowledge and networks to strengthen their organisations and scale their impact.
In January, Hugh Sloane, Chair of the Mount Kenya Trust’s UK Registered Charity, our Trustees, and supporters hosted a reception to celebrate and spread the word about the Trust’s work. This was attended by the then Amb. Makoloo from the Kenya High Commission. Bentley and Skinner were our generous venue hosts in London.
The Tropic Air 10to4 Mountain Bike Challenge, held in February, was a huge adventure for all, and the feedback was phenomenal. Thank you to all our hosts, sponsors, participants, volunteers, and, of course, the MKT Team. 82,000 US$ was raised from all the events. Huge gratitude to Tropic Air for being our title sponsor for 10 years in a row.
The Community Health Care programme gave 334 more dignity packs to girls at two Meru County schools, bringing the total to 1038 (6228 pads). This helps recover 36-60 lost learning days yearly. Thanks to Paddy & Scotts, OLVEA Foundation, and CHASE Africa for their support. The story was on national TV
Our Patrol Teams Manager, Enock Ochieng, was invited to this year’s Tusk Partners Symposium in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, in March. He participated in a panel discussion on Ranger wellbeing, with other partners from across the continent. Tusk Symposiums are always a powerful networking and learning experience.
Trustees from the Ragati – Chehe Mountain Bongo Conservation Trust were at the Kenya Forest Service HQ in Nairobi to sign a new Special Use Licence for the Bongo reintroduction programme, which has been taking shape over the past 4 years. Confirmation of the licence is a significant milestone for the project partners and the Government Agencies involved in the ambitious project. The SUL is for the proposed Mountain Bongo release site. The Trust includes Rhino Ark, Ragati Forest Management, Mount Kenya Trust, and the Bongo Project.
Susie Weeks, our Executive Director and our Grants and Communications Manager, Daisy Owiro, completed a year of leadership training as part of the 6th Cohort of the African Conservation Leadership Network. The programme consists of three online learning modules, interspersed with 3 ‘live’ weeks of workshops built on digging deep and showing up with an open mind and heart. The interactive teaching style literally keeps you on your feet and surprises you in the most unexpected ways. The cohort now feels like a family, and the benefits and growth will last a lifetime, and transform the organisation.
Between January and April, significant progress has been made in developing digital literacy modules for our Junior Ranger program and other learning platforms. This has included tech training for teachers and the rollout of another term of the teaching programme, featuring hands-on and outdoor games and digital lessons. We’re so delighted to be moving forward with new modules for kids that allow them to access conservation content and enhanced learning tools for their general curriculum beyond the active JRP activities.
Thanks to a partnership between the Game Rangers Association of Africa and Jim Green, who makes excellent-quality boots, MKT received 80 pairs of brand-new Jim Green boots for all of our Field staff and many of the Community Forest Association Scouts we work with back in April. We could not be more thrilled with this amazing gift. The boots have saved us on tight budgets and ensured our dedicated teams have the proper footwear they need to keep actively protecting and monitoring the landscape! Thank you
Our forest restoration projects are our pride and joy. Protecting ancient forests and establishing new ones in degraded areas are possible when communities are put at the center of each of our programmes as partners. Coexistence and sustainability become possible for both future generations and ecosystems when managed as intertwined, holistically linked systems. This season, we planted another 31,000 indigenous trees!
The Tropic Air 10to4 Mountian Bike Challenge 2026
Watch the highlights from our biggest day of events – Day 2 of the Tropic Air 10to4! 
Our Annual Reports and Publications are all here!
