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MERC

Institute for Maasai Education, Research, & Conservation

We Are MERC

A collective of Maasai community organizers and collaborators working for the cultural survival of Olosho le Maa and our right to the stewardship of Maasailand.

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Land Justice & Community Organizing

The Maasai Community is organizing across Maasailand to reclaim lands stolen under British colonization and reoccupied under the state of Kenya.

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Indigenous Based Tourism & Conservation

MERC collaborates with the Dopoi Center and Mara Guides Association to build a tourism industry that benefits the Maasai community and environment. 

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Decolonizing Knowledge & Education

What is written about Maasailand has typically not included the input of Maasai people themselves. MERC supports Maasai scholarship and collaboration on knowledge production and research that supports our community.

Explore Our Work

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Current Updates

Here you can find recent updates on MERC's current work, including projects, land rights cases, and more. 

Image by Helena Pfisterer

Suit Against Marriott Hotels

MERC is currently leading an effort to halt the illegal operation of  high-end Ritz Carlton lodge that just opened on the Sand River in the Maasai Mara, which blocks the annual wildebeest migration and jeopardizes the future of wildlife in this entire area. The suit is brought by many community members and backed by coalitions of conservationists, scientists and human rights advocates worldwide. For more information, read this Reuters articleTimes article, and see updates on Metamei's Facebook page.

Book cover of Decolonizing Maasai History with title and Maasai beadwork in back
Meitamei, Ole Keiwa & others celebrating in Maasai Shukas the release of book, Nairobi
Meitamei, Mary & others standing on red stage with other Maasai community members celebrating book launch
Meitamei standing in red Shuka surrounded by press at Nairobi book launch
Maasai music artists performing onstage at Nairobi book launch wearing Maasai colors and jewelry

Decolonizing Our Own History

In this open format book Maasai leader and activist Meitamei Dapash teams with historian Mary Poole to offer a new version of Maasai history based on Maasai memory and concerns. Through their rich and detailed narrative, we learn not only about the history of the Maasai as they understand it, but also about the relations between politics and Western history; about the untold history of Kenya both pre- and post-nationhood; about why the creation of nation-states is not synonymous with liberation; and about how and why Indigenous approaches to land obstruct global processes of resource extraction. All of this finds wider resonances that upend received narratives of post-“independence” Africa and offer new opportunities for the emancipation of Indigenous communities from neo-colonial regimes the world over.

Meitamei distributing food to Maasai community members

Make A Difference

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