LAMP has trained 2,098 community leaders. In 2024, 255 graduates were surveyed from a pool of around 1,500 graduates available at the time: 132 women and 123 men. Three Forward Consulting staff spent eight months contacting past participants, face to face where possible and by phone where that was more practical. The sample gives a 95% confidence level with a margin of error of ±5%.
| Result | Measure |
|---|---|
| 2,098 | Community leaders trained |
| 94% | Improved conservation behaviours |
| 29% to 93% | Men always proposing solutions |
| 55% to 99% | Women holding a leadership role |
| Zero | Impact decay at 3 to 7 years |
Changes in leadership positions
Had a leadership position
| Before LAMP | After LAMP | |
|---|---|---|
| Female | 55% | 99% |
| Male | 85% | 97% |
| Total | 69% | 98% |
Conservation-related leadership role
| Before LAMP | After LAMP | |
|---|---|---|
| Female | 47% | 84% |
| Male | 84% | 93% |
| Total | 64% | 88% |
Entering LAMP with no leadership role (N=66)
| Before LAMP | After LAMP | |
|---|---|---|
| Leadership position | 0% | 97% |
| Conservation position | 15% | 70% |
These figures exclude respondents who already worked at conservation organisations such as Grevy’s Zebra Trust, Northern Rangelands Trust and Ewaso Lions.
Chair positions held by graduates rose from 24 to 64, across conservancy boards, women’s groups and committees on tourism, finance, grazing, forestry and beach management. More than two-thirds of the increase came from women moving into chair roles for the first time.
Changes in leadership behaviour
Graduates were asked how often they attended meetings, spoke up in meetings, participated in decisions and proposed solutions, before and after LAMP. The tables show the percentage who answered “always”.
Female respondents
| Always… | Before LAMP | After LAMP |
|---|---|---|
| Attend meetings | 10% | 93% |
| Speak up in meetings | 11% | 92% |
| Participate in decisions | 9% | 92% |
| Propose solutions | 7% | 92% |
Male respondents
| Always… | Before LAMP | After LAMP |
|---|---|---|
| Attend meetings | 24% | 95% |
| Speak up in meetings | 29% | 92% |
| Participate in decisions | 30% | 92% |
| Propose solutions | 29% | 93% |
Results over time
The percentage answering “always” after LAMP, by year of training. There has been no follow-up training in the intervening years.
| Cohort | Years since training | Attend meetings | Speak up | Participate | Propose solutions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 (n=11) | 7–8 | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| 2019 (n=20) | 6 | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| 2020–21 (n=27) | 3–5 | 100% | 96% | 100% | 100% |
| 2022 (n=101) | 2–3 | 96% | 95% | 94% | 94% |
| 2023 (n=50) | 1–2 | 92% | 90% | 90% | 90% |
| 2024 (n=46) | Under 1 | 87% | 85% | 78% | 80% |
Overall satisfaction and perceived impact
| Measure | Result |
|---|---|
| Benefited from LAMP | 99% “a lot” |
| Would recommend LAMP to others | 100% |
| Enabled to improve conservation | 94% “a lot” |
| Report more income opportunities | 97% |
| More confidence and status in their family | 100% |
| More confidence and status in the community | 93% |
What the open-text responses show
The survey collected 1,937 open-text responses. A thematic analysis identified three themes.
Awakening. 119 participants described a shift in how they saw themselves using metaphors of “waking up” or “opening eyes”, without being prompted.
Economic decoupling. 97% of graduates established new income streams that do not depend on taking from the land.
Family harmony. The survey recorded 295 mentions of improved household peace and reduced domestic conflict.
“When I started this training, I thought it was only for the literate people. But I came to realize that even the illiterate can also be taught. We have been taught together, both literate and illiterate, and we have gained knowledge to lead our people, our children, even to lead yourself in your home, to manage our land, to manage our conservancy both cows and other livestock in it and our wildlife.” Illiterate pastoralist.
“In the first month our heads were down. We didn’t understand anything. The second time we lifted our eyes because of this knowledge we had found. The third time we expanded our minds and started looking at the activities we are going to do. Now I am a teacher, I am a leader, I can lead! In the coming years I will vie for the Women Rep (member of the county government) …because of the leadership training we have gone through here.” Women leader
About the before and after measures
Participants gave both their before and after ratings at the time of the survey. This follows Howard’s 1980 research on response-shift bias, a recognised method for evaluating training and behaviour-change programmes.
Supporting LAMP
Lead Manage Conserve, a US 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, makes it easier for US-based and international funders to support the expansion of LAMP across Kenya and the rest of Africa.