The Malpai Borderland Group, an association of cattle ranchers from Arizona and New Mexico, recently visited Maasai and Samburu herders in Kenya to discuss herd management methods. The Arizona and Kenyan rangelands are both arid zones, creating similar challenges for herders in times of drought and development pressure on resources. During the week-long visit, the herders compared methods for dealing with threats from land subdivision programs and ecological degradation. These are urgent problems for the Malpai group, and growing ones in Kenya due to the freehold land management system and the weakening livestock industry. The herders also discussed the Malpai’s success with establishing “grassbanks” for use in extremely dry seasons, and their potential for use by the Maasai and Samburu. The Maasai will visit Arizona in April.
