Njenga has worked in the community-based natural resource management field for two decades. During this time, he developed a deep network and understanding of community conservation in Kenya. His experience ranges from local-level implementation work to project design and management, land tenure governance research to organizational development, and from policy development to public service.

Prior to joining Maliasili, Njenga previously worked as a Minister for Water, Environment and Natural Resources for the County Government of Laikipia. In this role, he provided both strategic and operational leadership that led to more than 100,000 households accessing clean drinking water, and new policies and laws governing natural resource management at the county level. He also served at the leadership level at the Council of Governors caucus of county ministers in charge of natural resources management. Njenga has previously worked as the Executive Director for the Zeitz Foundation and also worked with Maliasili before as Kenya Portfolio Manager. He is a 2013 Kinship Conservation Leadership Fellow and a 2011 ESRI Society for Conservation GIS Scholar. He has degrees from Moi University and Durell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE) at the University of Kent, Canterbury.

Janelle joined Maliasili in October 2019 and provides strategic leadership around financial management, international financial management, grants administration, and human resources. She has more than 20 years of experience in nonprofit administration. Janelle is passionate about building capacity of community-level efforts and serving as a resource for local nonprofit organizations. Previously, Janelle served as the vice president of administration and CFO for Kansas Action for Children in Topeka, Kansas, where she worked at all levels of operations over the course of 15 years. In addition to nonprofit administration, Janelle has experience in governance, capacity building, strategic planning, and advocacy evaluation. She earned her bachelor’s in mathematics from Union College in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Akshay joined Maliasili in June 2020. He has spent most of his career working on the governance aspects of natural resource management in Eastern and Southern Africa. He has wide-ranging experience in the fields of water resource management, landscape and wildlife conservation, community participatory approaches, advocacy and lobbying, and strategic planning. Akshay is passionate about mobilizing people, communities, and organizations to tackle our most pressing environmental challenges. It is to this end that Akshay seeks to combine his experience, background in environmental studies, and his business education to work with Maliasili’s partners to help them on their journey to becoming strong institutions that deliver great impact.

For over a decade, Jestina worked for donors in planning, designing, executing, and monitoring programs and projects in various sectors ranging from Education, Nutrition, WASH, Reproductive and maternal Health, Agriculture, Conservation, and Natural resources Management. She joins Maliasili from USAID, where she first worked as the Budget Specialist in the Economic Growth office, managing over $270M annual budget, and later as the Project Management Specialist in the Environment & NRM portfolio, overseeing the implementation of conservation and NRM projects with an accumulated budget of $52M over five years by International and local NGOs. She also co-led the climate change working group whose mandate was to enforce and monitor the implementation of USAID's whole Agency climate change strategy across all sectors.

Jestina is passionate about local NGOs development in becoming self reliant and having the capacity to deliver what is expected in their communities. One of Jestina’s great achievements was summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro in October 2022.

Gathoni joined Maliasili in June 2020 providing support to the East Africa team and Portfolio partners. She is a Sustainable Development professional with over 9 years of experience working on social development issues across Africa with a strong focus on the use of data, technology, and innovation for development. Having been brought up in Kenya she is passionate about the country, its people, and beyond that seeing Africa thrive. Gathoni has worked for NGOs and social enterprises in Kenya, focusing on developing partnerships for sustainable development and programs focused on environmental conservation, natural resource management, and community development. She holds a Masters’ degree in Sustainable Development and Corporate Responsibility from EOI in Spain and BA in Social Sciences from Durham University.

Peace joined the East Africa portfolio team at Maliasili in March 2022, to follow her life-long passion for nature and conservation. She has experience working across several social and economic development themes in Africa ranging from rural development, livelihood strengthening, economic empowerment, impact measurement, monitoring and evaluation, knowledge management, design and learning, and action research. Peace is passionate about working with communities to create home-grown innovative and disruptive solutions to challenges in Africa for sustainable transformation and development.

Naiya joined Maliasili in March 2022, as a new member of the East Africa Portfolio team. With an undergraduate in Human Geography from the University of Durham, and Masters in Environment, Politics and Development from SOAS, the University of London, Naiya focused her studies on the intersection between community development, wildlife conservation, and livelihood resilience. Her previous experience includes human-elephant conflict and coexistence research and education, and she is interested in the importance of communication for NGO’s, with experience in digital content creation and visual storytelling. She previously worked for Save the Elephants, as the Communications and Education Manager for the Elephants and Bees Project, the Human Elephant Coexistence program. Naiya is passionate about the intersection between indigenous knowledge and natural resource management, developing sustainable solutions for environmental problems and supporting communities. She is on a mission to learn, grow, expand her knowledge of CBNRM, and bring her experience to help with Maliasili’s mission of strengthening partner organisations.

Dickson joined Maliasili in March 2022 as an Associate for the East Africa Portfolio with the view of supporting organization development for achieving greater conservation impact. He is a Natural resource professional with 9 years of experience during which he has gained a deep understanding of community planning and management, Land governance, organizational development specifically in water services and resource management, and public policy.

Omagano joined Malisiali in May 2021. Her expertise lies in climate change adaptation and natural resource management, with a focus on community based approaches. She has worked with international grassroot organisations such as 350.org and local organisations such as NACSO. In 2017, she was awarded the “Supporting Climate Change Leaders 2017” grant by the International Development and Research Centre, which saw her working in Berlin as a Research Analyst on decision-making support for climate change adaptation.

Apart from her academic skills, she has hands-on experience working with rural communities in strengthening their institutional frameworks. She has a deep appreciation of nature and the people at the heart of conservation by virtue of being Namibian, and as a result of her upbringing. She has seen first-hand the power in empowering people. She hopes to bring her experience and expertise to help strengthen Malisili's partner organisations. Omagano holds a MSc. in Climate Change and Development from the University of Cape Town.

Joana joined Maliasili in May 2021, as a new member of the Southern Africa team. She was born and raised in Mozambique, where, from a young age, she developed a passion for nature and the ocean. With a master's in Conservation Biology, Joana worked for the last 7 years with marine conservation in Mozambique and Tanzania. After running a Conservation and Community project in Northern Mozambique, she spent the last two years as the Executive Director of Sea Sense, a Tanzanian organization working with coastal communities and marine wildlife.

Joana joins the Maliasili team to help grow the Southern Africa Portfolio, particularly in Angola and Mozambique. Having led small conservation organizations herself, Joana will use this experience to support the growth and development of partner organizations. Whether surfing, sailing, or diving, Joana spends as much time as she can in the ocean. When on land, she enjoys practicing and teaching yoga, as well as spending time with friends and her dog.

Monicah is an ecologist who loves working at the people-nature interface to safeguard biodiversity and improve the lives of rural communities. She has broad-based experience in community program development and partnership building, conservation education, biodiversity research, and consultancy. She was a Senior Program Manager leading the Thriving Futures programs in Northern Kenya. Prior to that, Monicah was a lecturer in wildlife and rangeland management in Zimbabwe.

Cristina was born and raised in Mozambique. She loves her family, her friends, the people, the beautiful scenery, and the rich biodiversity that her country has to offer, especially the coast and the sea. This interest in the coast and sea led her to pursue her Honours in Biological Sciences at the Eduardo Mondlane University in Mozambique and her Masters of Applied Science in Natural Resources Management at James Cook University in Australia. These degrees, combined with almost 20 years of experience working in a national non-governmental organization, Centro Terra Viva, have contributed to her understanding of the great challenges Mozambique faces regarding the management of its natural resources, especially subsistence and artisanal fisheries resources and the protection and conservation of valuable species and ecosystems due to the lack of capacity and resources. Throughout these years, she came to realize that people, the different stakeholders that are part of a society (e.g. communities, government, research institutions, national and international organizations, and private sector), have to work together through sharing information, creating knowledge and capacity and having, above all, the will to contribute to change. She understands that this, although it makes all the sense on paper, is one great big challenge, but you cannot manage natural resources and conserve biodiversity without the will of the people.

Apart from that, she loves to spend time with her two daughters, drive long distances, go camping, and watch television, especially humor (e.g. Ricardo Araujo Pereira, Trevor Noah) and history. In March 2024, she was offered the opportunity to collaborate with Maliasili, and she hopes to give her best and contribute to the goals of the Southern Africa Portfolio team.

Cristina is based in Maputo, Mozambique.

Collen joined Maliasili with a community-based natural resources management experience spanning some 15 years back. He started as a high school Geography teacher in the late 1990s before enrolling for a Masters in Social Ecology at the University of Zimbabwe that focuses on social aspects of Natural Resources Management, and later for a Ph.D. in environmental economics with the University of Cape Town. Taught natural resources management at university for a couple of years before joining full-time conservation intervention work, first under the university of Zimbabwe, and since 2018 under African Wildlife Foundation. He is passionate about improving the wellbeing of communities living near or with wildlife and has led interventions focused on livelihood improvements, human-wildlife conflict mitigation, entrepreneurship development, wildlife protection through supporting community scouts, growing and supporting community-based initiatives and organizations, and supporting cross-border collaborations, among others. Has been part of the team that led the review of the CAMPFIRE program in Zimbabwe and is working diligently to see the devolution of powers to the wildlife producer communities.

Alihasina embarked on a new chapter in April 2024, joining Maliasili as a member of the Madagascar portfolio team. With over ten years of experience steering and coordinating impactful environmental and local community projects, Alihasina’s journey has been marked by a profound passion for people and biodiversity. Prior to his tenure at Maliasili, Alihasina served as the Senior Fundraising Officer at WWF Madagascar, where he played an instrumental role in shaping the trajectory of large-scale projects for five years. He has honed his skills in Project and Program Management, fostering donor relationships within multicultural settings, developing strategies, building capacity, and crafting concepts and proposals. Alihasina has contributed to securing WWF’s funding for the next five-plus years. Outside of work, Alihasina seeks solace and renewal amidst the serene beauty of the high hills mountains of Madagascar, reflecting his deep appreciation for the wonders of nature. In Antananarivo, he resides with his beloved wife and their three-year-old son.

Resson will lead Maliasili's efforts to help our partners increase their influence in the conservation space, with a significant focus on increasing the amount of funding going to grassroots organizations driving community conservation solutions. She’s a leader in the community conservation space when it comes to tackling challenging topics in our field, such as colonialism, racism, power, and inequality (with a great TED talk and opinion piece). Resson joins us after having served as the Deputy Director of Ewaso Lions, a Kenyan NGO, and she is a member of our second African Conservation Leadership program cohort.

Anna is a South African with 15 years’ experience working in the broader conservation space across multiple African countries. She started her career as a wildlife veterinarian where she focused her efforts on solving complex challenges at the human-wildlife interface. After her PhD in rhino
conservation, she delved deeper into systems thinking, and the strategic management of non-profits. She is a wellbeing and circular economy enthusiast, championing value systems that incorporate natural and social
capital. Anna is passionate about working across disciplines to find and unlock leverage points that will accelerate high-impact community-led conservation.

Anna’s specific areas of expertise include the design and facilitation of processes that take individuals and organizations to new and different levels of engagement. With 25 years of experience in Namibia and southern Africa, Anna is specialized in leading organizational and personal development and facilitating organizational learning, having built her expertise working with a range of community-based, government, non-government and private sector organizations. After many years working with leading NGOs in the environment, health and education sectors, Anna also brings a wealth of experience in programme design, management and evaluation.

Kasmira has spent most of her professional career working for community and indigenous-led conservation organizations in Kenya, with an interest in strengthening links between indigenous knowledge and academic research. This depth of research experience and local knowledge of community conservation strengthens the relationships and organization development support Kasmira provides to Maliasili’s partners. She holds an MSc and BSc from the University of British Columbia in Canada, focused on governance and institutional function of community conservation organizations.

Fransisca is a well-trained and self-motivated senior Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist with excellent research and project design, implementation, project management, and Evaluation skills. Her comparative advantage lies in Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning(MEL) broadly for a wide range of socio-economic, natural resources, and environmental management projects. She has over 12 years of experience working in the MEL field. She possesses practical skills and experiences in research design (including proposal development, data collection, analysis, data interpretation, and report writing), design of Result Frameworks and M&E Plans, and digital data collection and Management.

Fransisca has studied Master of Science in Forestry, and a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Management, both attained at Sokoine University of Agriculture(SUA) in Morogoro Region East Central part of Tanzania. Before joining Maliasili, Fransisca worked with the Aga Khan Foundation for six years, leading the MERL component for around eight projects related to Climate Resilience, Agriculture, Food Security, Education, Economic Inclusion, Health, and Nutrition. Fransisca has also worked with Swiss contact, a Swiss Foundation, as a Monitoring and Result Measurement Coordinator. Fransisca started her career journey with Care International as a Project officer working in Environment Management and Women and Girls Empowerment programs and later as an M& officer.

Fransisca is motivated to work as a MEL personnel as she believes that MEL allows us to learn and adapt and helps us to know that we do our job successfully.

Ellen Mndima joined Maliasili in December 2021. A self-starter, she joins the team with a role to achieve effective communication within Maliasili and for Maliasili partners through developing meaningful content, design, and measuring the impact of Mailiasili’s online platforms. Previously, Ellen used her skills in developing holistic marketing strategies, creating versatile designs, and realizing brand identities to elevate grassroots non-profit organizations’ strategies, programs, and communication as an Independent Consultant. Before this, she gained valuable experience in Leadership and Management, Project Management, and Program Development within the non-profit ecosystem providing practical knowledge and skillsets to social businesses and innovators in the form of extensive consultations, tailored programs, monitored support, and mentorship.

Ellen is passionate about giving local communities opportunities to become their own challenge solvers. She believes that given the chance, local communities have the capacity to transform their lives through exposure, experience, and valuable opportunities to learn.

Bariki Gerald re-joined Maliasili in July 2024 as the Finance and Administration Associate, building on his earlier tenure with the organization from 2017 to 2021. With a strong background in financial management, trade finance, and financial analysis, Bariki brings a wealth of expertise to his role.
His professional journey includes impactful positions such as Trade Finance Specialist at Euro Exim Bank, where he advanced international trade finance solutions, and Procurement and Logistics Manager, where he streamlined operations for enhanced efficiency. At Maliasili, Bariki oversees a range of financial and administrative functions, demonstrating his commitment to using financial data for strategic decision-making.
Bariki holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance with IT from St. Augustine University of Tanzania and a Master’s in Accounting and Finance from Mzumbe University. His diverse experience across both for-profit and non-profit sectors highlights his comprehensive skills in financial management and administration.

As Administration and Development Manager, Amy focuses on building philanthropic support and the day-to-day operations to advance Maliasili’s mission. Amy has worked in non-profits for over 20 years, guiding the generosity of foundations, corporations, families, and individuals to support a range of causes including the arts, conservation, education, historic preservation, and social enterprise. She has worked as a convener and community organizer leading conferences, committees, and innovating ideas for building local economies that value people and nature. Amy has a Master’s Degree in Natural Resources from the University of Vermont. She is an overambitious gardener and enjoys learning about local flora and fauna wherever she travels.

Laura Hattendorf is a Senior Advisor with the Mulago Foundation, a key Maliasili supporter, and was formerly their Head of Grants and Investments. She also teaches at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and formerly ran the Bay Area conservation organization Sustainable Conservation. She brings a tremendous experience with many leading international development organizations and social enterprises through her work with Mulago over the past 15 years and knows Maliasili very well through that relationship.

Dickson Kaelo is the founding CEO of Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA), a long-standing partner organization and the key national association leading the country’s conservancies movement. Before taking over as the first head of KWCA at its founding in 2013, Dickson played a key role in the formation of group conservancies in the Maasai Mara, the region where he is from. Dickson is an increasingly prominent voice and leader in African conservation regionally, based on his work with KWCA and vision for community-led conservation.

Scott O’Connell graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with a BS in Economics in 1979. He worked as a Research Economist for the United States Department of Commerce in the Bureau of Economic Analysis and for the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC. He worked for nineteen years in non-profit fundraising, specializing in direct response fundraising, major gift solicitation, and planned giving specializing in charitable trusts and other philanthropic giving vehicles. For the last seventeen years he has been a financial analyst with Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb, a money management firm in New York with $20 billion of assets under management.