Helen Wanjiru Gichohi is a Kenyan ecologist who was President of the

African Wildlife Foundation The African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) is the leading international conservation organization focused exclusively on Africa's wildlife and wild lands. AWF's programs and conservation strategies are designed to protect the wildlife and wild lands of ...

(AWF) from 2007 to 2013.

Education

Helen Gichohi was born into an agricultural community in central Kenya. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in zoology from

Kenyatta University Kenyatta University (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Nairobi County, Kenya. It acquired the status of university in 1985, being the third university after University of Nairobi (1970) and Moi University (1984). As of O ...

and a Master of Science degree in biology of Conservation from

University of Nairobi , mottoeng = In unity and work , image = Uon emblem.gif , image_size = 210px , caption = Coat of Arms of the University , type = Public , endowment ...

. She went on to the

University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_labe ...

, where she gained a PhD degree in ecology. While working for her PhD, Helen studied the effect of controlled burning on wildlife grazing areas in the

Nairobi National Park Nairobi National Park is a national park in Kenya that was established in 1946 about south of Nairobi. It is fenced on three sides, whereas the open southern boundary allows migrating wildlife to move between the park and the adjacent Kitengel ...

. Her conclusion was that, properly managed, fire could be helpful in maintaining an open savannah that provides food for wildlife. She has said that she drifted into ecology, partly because she much preferred to work outdoors than inside in a laboratory.

Career

In 1990, while a researcher at

Wildlife Conservation International The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a non-governmental organization headquartered at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, that aims to conserve the world's largest wild places in 14 priority regions. Founded in 1895 as the New York Zoological ...

(WCI), Helen Gichohi prepared an environmental impact statement on a commercial

Export Processing Zone A free-trade zone (FTZ) is a class of special economic zone. It is a geographic area where goods may be imported, stored, handled, manufactured, or reconfigured and re-exported under specific customs regulation and generally not subject to cust ...

for the Kenyan government. She became Director of the

African Conservation Centre The African Conservation Centre (ACC) is a non-governmental organization based in Kenya. The group was founded in 1995. In 2007, it received a US$200,000 grant from the Ford Foundation. Their work has focused on capacity building "to conserve wildli ...

(ACC), supported by

Wildlife Conservation Society The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a non-governmental organization headquartered at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, that aims to conserve the world's largest wild places in 14 priority regions. Founded in 1895 as the New York Zoological ...

. In 1998 she was appointed to a five-person panel to advise US President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

about

environmental issues in Africa Environmental issues can be defined as the harmful effects of any human activity on the environment. African environmental issues are caused by anthropogenic effects on the African natural environment and have major impacts on humans and nearly a ...

. She joined the African Wildlife Foundation in February 2001 as Director of the African Heartlands Program and in February 2002 she was appointed program vice-president. In January 2006 the President of Kenya awarded Dr. Gichohi the Order of Great Warrior of Kenya Award in recognition of her contribution to conservation. In January 2007 the board of trustees elected her as President of the AWF. She also serves on the board of trustees of the

Kenya Wildlife Service Kenya Wildlife Service is a state corporation under the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife established by an act of Parliament; Wildlife Conservation and Management Act CAP 376, of 1989, now repealed and replaced by the Wildlife Conservation and Ma ...

. Helen Gichohi features as an expert speaker in the award-winning 2009 movie ''

Milking the Rhino ''Milking the Rhino'' is a 2009 documentary film, produced by Kartemquin Films, that examines the relationship between the indigenous African wildlife, the villagers who live amongst this wildlife and conservationists who look to keep tourism doll ...

''. As of 2011 she was a member of the Local Advisory Committee in Kenya of the Global Give Back Circle. She was a member of board of trustees of the Kenya Land Conservation Trust and of Beads for Education, a non-profit organisation that helps mothers earn money to send their daughters to school. She was a board member of the

Equity Bank Kenya Equity Bank Kenya Limited is a financial services provider headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya. It is licensed as a commercial bank by the Central Bank of Kenya, which is the central bank and national banking regulator of Kenya. In 2010 the bank in ...

, which started as a building society, later becoming a microfinance institution and then a full-fledged commercial bank.

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gichohi, Helen Kenyan environmentalists Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Kenyan women scientists 21st-century Kenyan scientists