The 29^th of May was the day when the world celebrated all the Peacekeepers of the world.  It was World Peacekeepers? day and it was celebrated all over the world. In Kenya it was celebrated at the United Nations Offices in Nairobi with members of the UN peacekeeping forces, Police, Military and Prisons department present. 

A few days before that, I had the honor of attending the Model United Nations discussion on the role of youth in peacekeeping at the UN offices. It was a wonderful event where we got to learn and get insight on the normal UN proceedings and got to listen to the Kenyan UN Ambassador among various other delegates.  It was a great opportunity to learn and I encourage all of you who are yet to join Model United Nations (M.U.N) clubs to do so. In case it?s not in your institution yet, take a step and introduce it. It?s a great platform to air opinions and discuss to find solutions to global issues, environmental and otherwise.

An organization called ?Walk with Rangers? also took the weekend to celebrate another group of peacekeepers. Rangers.  This group of peacekeepers often goes unrecognized and under appreciated. They protect our wildlife, our ecosystems and mediate the various human-wildlife conflicts that come up. Without the rangers our wildlife could very easily be poached to extinction. The organization therefore works to appreciate the Rangers. They recently put up a walk that raised money to purchase kits and amenities for them as they stay out in the wild. Another walk will soon be undertaken.

From the 30^th of May to the 1^st of June, they created the general set up of the camps Rangers live in while they patrol and take care of our wildlife in one of the malls in my country, Yaya centre. A few Rangers were present as well. They had seats where people could sit and have a one on one discussion with the rangers about their experiences. This created awareness of the challenges they face such as extreme weather conditions, possible attacks from the animals and encounters with poachers who are ruthless and do not hesitate to shoot at them. This leads to a greater appreciation of the great service they provide for my country.

While doing last month?s biodiversity event, I was saddened by the high number of endangered species I found. What?s even sadder is that Rangers do so much, endure so much and risk their lives as well to protect our biodiversity and yet more and more wildlife are lost. This should be more motivation for us to find ways to make sure the rate of biodiversity loss is reduced to a minimum. I?d also like to challenge you to find a way to appreciate the rangers in your countries and regions because they are the real MVPs.