Chepkemoi Milcah is a Kenyan woman forester working in environmental land management and planning. She holds a MA in environmental planning and management from the University of Nairobi, with experience in different conservation organizations. She has a great passion for nature and the conservation field, be it wildlife, wetlands or forestry.
In this interview she shares with us some of her professional experiences and the challenges she has faced as a woman in the field of conservation.
Interview
Lili: Please Chepkemoi talk to us about your job and your experience in the industry.
Chepkemoi: My job was to work hand to hand with the farmers, and at the end of the day take the reports back to the office, but at that time I felt I could do better, much better. That’s when my contract became over, and I had to leave the company. At that time, I started knocking on doors and looking for opportunities in other organizations, but when a woman decides to work in the conservation field, she is not taken into account, so it is difficult to find a job.
I got out of KTVA in 2018 and kept looking for jobs elsewhere and doing contracts here and there, until they considered me back. They called me and said now that we have seen your effort; we need you to go and help us in planting exotic trees that in the factory are used in the production of tree leaves, because as we buy or cut a tree, we have to replace it. That’s how I got the job, and I kept supervising people, teaching them how to plant trees and managing their farm.
Lili: Chepkemoi what are the biggest challenges that you have faced professionally as a woman?
Chepkemoi: We must keep in mind that in Africa gender inequality still exists, especially in this area, where if you intervene in a territory, men question being “governed” by a woman, because for years they have been doing things according to their own criteria. In my case, I continued to befriend them and talk to them nicely, and in this way we have managed to work together in harmony. For me it has not been so difficult to tackle conservation, planting trees or taking care of the environment together with the men, it depends more on how you relate to them.
Another challenge you face as a woman is that you have to balance your professional life with your family life. For women, it is more difficult to go to the field early in the morning and come back in the evenings, because it is already dark, and you are exposed to more dangers. It is not easy, but you learn to manage it. Sometimes you have to go to far away places, but I take it in a positive way as part of my daily exercise. And that’s how I’ve managed to be one of the women in the conservation field.
Lili: Chepkemoi what skills have you developed in this kind of job?
Chepkemoi: While you are studying you are trained on how to deal with any situation that comes up in the conservation field, because you know it will not be an easy task. There I developed skills to work with the local communities, which are the people you really need when you execute a project, those are the people who will help you succeed in the conservation field.
I developed my leadership skills when I watched my father lead and warn my brothers. By planting trees on his farm, I learned how to manage a farm without anyone’s interference.
Lili: What advice do you bring to a woman that wants to work in the conservationist field?
Chepkemoi : My advice to any woman interested in the field of conservation is that she should be a strong, persevering, intelligent and hardworking person. In this area, more than working hard, you have to work smart because you are going to encounter all kinds of people. Many times you are going to be sent to remote areas where you are not going to find supplies, and you may encounter people who will give you a hard time. You have to work smart depending on the environment, if you behave like the boss it is difficult to empathize with people and make them your allies.
As women we don’t work in conservation because the salaries are huge, we work in this area out of passion for our work. If you stay working just for a monetary issue, in the end you are going to work without passion for what you do, it is as if you are forced to work. So you have to do everything with passion.
It is also very important to know in which area of conservation you want to work, and how to articulate all the areas, it is not easy but you have to work on it.
Lili: Chepkemoi I have already finished with the questions but do you want to share anything else?
Chepkemoi: Yes, I want to do one last reflection. Being a master’s student, and combining it with field work is not an easy task, you are in the field, in remote areas where internet access is very bad and many times you don’t have access. You are supposed to catch up with your classes, write essays and take exams, but the internet is not on your side, and in addition to that you have all the concerns of your daily work. So it’s not an easy task at all, but if you are resilient and very focused on what you want, you will make it.
Thank you!
Lili: I’m so happy to have interviewed you, and I hope everybody enjoys it. And for the people listening or reading to us, don’t forget to share it. Thank you all! See you in the following interview.
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