Tourism

A meaningful safari

Many travel companies provide their clients with cultural tourism, including exposure to the Maasai. But access to an authentic experience with the potential to build a future connection is rare.

The ICSEE welcomed clients of Planeterra and their partners, G Adventures into our Project villages for the first time in 2014.  While visiting Tanzania’s famous nearby parks, such as the Ngorongoro Crater pictured below, the G Adventure tourists now have special access to a first-hand introduction to the Project women, to witness what they are doing to improve their lives.

Ngorongoro crater

Ngorongoro crater, wildlife site near the Project

Tourism helping to support the ICSEE

Our new partners contribute a small percentage of each tourist’s travel fees to help support our Project. We share a portion of that with local leaders to contribute to their preschools.

Maasai women from Losirwa and Esilalei villages along the popular safari path, are proud and happy to demonstrate stove installations to the tourists during their stop. For many, the visit with Project staff and Women’s Installation Team members are tour highlights.

Power to the people

The Project recently installed new solar-electric micro-grids in several additional bomas in the villages of Baraka and Mungere, far from the national grid. Once our smoke-free stoves are installed in all the boma’s homes, we share the cost of grid installation with the boma owners.

Electrification Maasai Stoves & Solar Project

Work with electrification

We are now scaling up our micro-grid installations by adding electrification to the experience of the tourists participating in G-Adventures safaris .

Before the tourists visit, the Project readies the boma with solar panel, battery, and controller. After working with the women to install a stove, the tourists help wire the home into the micro-grid for light and cellphone charging capability. This expands the tourists’ experience with the Maasai who are working for a better life. It also helps the Project to bring life-changing electricity to yet another boma.