Exploring the Savannah

To prepare us for the safari we had a session on the history of the safari. The word safari comes from the arab word ’safra’ which means ’journey’. Many years ago the safari was about shooting animal especially the ‘big five’. Now the concept of a safari is not shooting with guns but with cameras and to preserve the wild life. We were introduced to the big five: the lion, the leopard, the buffalo, the elephant and rhino. We learned about their characteristics as it relates to leadership development. We had the chance to mould and portray a picture of the animals in the safari based on their characteristics.

We were asked to reflect about ourselves as leaders and our own personal safari in leadership development.

The Safari park

JLS participants visited a walk-in Safari Park in Nairobi and had the chance to see some of the big five animals (the lion, leopard, buffalo and the rhino). They also managed to see some other wildlife animals like monkeys, tortoises, ostriches and the hyena. It was a learning experience for the participants to see the animals in their habitat.

After the Safari walk, the participants went to explore the market and had time to buy some souvenirs.

An encounter with Friends of Londiani (FOL)

For the evening session we had some guests from Friends of Londiani (FoL). FoL are an Irish NGO based in the Londiani community, Rift Valley. Sixteen of the JLS participants were involved in one of their projects a week before the JLS started. They travelled to northern Kenya to participate in community projects focusing on the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Read the full story

The guest speaker, Dr Meabh Ni Bhuinneain, a JLS Alumni in 1992, talked about her own safari (journey) after her JLS experience. 

Patrol number 9 (from left to right)
Agnetta – Zimbabwe
Bekina – Lesotho
Jocelyn – Senegal
Sasha – Russia