Ecopro Initiative Community Based Organization is a registered network of different youth groups from Central Province of Kenya with a vision of Improved livelihoods through sustainable resource management. Yesterday we commemorated the 2015 World's Wetland Day which is celebrated worldwide on 2^ND February at Ondiri Swamp in Kikuyu Town, Central Province of Kenya under the theme ,WETLANDS FOR OUR FUTURE.. We purposed to accommodate a capacity of 100 participants including industrialization stakeholders, corporate organizations, researchers, government agencies, lectures and students from higher learning and tertiary institutions among others at Ondiri Swamp for a clean up exercise and environmental conservation education among youths from the area and different part of Kenya.

Like many other developing countries in Africa, Kenya faces loss of natural habitats and environmental degradation through destructive anthropogenic activities as a result of industrialization, urbanization and population increase. The need to conserve various ecosystems in Kenya cannot be ignored, this is so especially when the country is vulnerable to effects of climate change due to her dependence of rain fed agriculture that plays a big role in the growth of the economy, the country is also famous for its well known abundant biodiversity which is under threat of extinction from human activities. The youth form the majority Kenyan?s population but even with their large numbers, unemployment, drug abuse remains to be the factors that affect their productivity. Education for sustainable development is among children and youths is important in shaping the attitudes and mindsets toward environmental responsible future citizens /generation.

Wetlands ecosystems and their associated riparian catchments play an important role in improving the livelihoods of the local communities as well as other natural ecosystems. Ramsar defines wetlands as ?areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, blackish or salt, including areas of marine water the depth which at low tide does not exceed six meters?.  Ondiri Swamp in Kenya, is the  Only Quaking Bog and the second deepest wetland in Africa after Doula in Cameroon . This wetland is important to the surrounding communities in various ways. First, hydrological benefits of the wetland range from source of Nairobi River within the Athi drainage basin to local water supply for irrigation and domestic use. The second ecological importance of Ondiri wetland is attributed to its unique feature of macrophytes growing on a floating peat, thus the ecosystem provides crucial breeding ground for birds and fish that are attracted by the insects and crustaceans during breeding and migration. Ondiri Bog is an ideal place for Eco-tourism and recreational activities such as Bird watching. An earlier study noted the biodiversity richness with huge presence of storks, egrets, ibises, hamerkops, kingfishers, cranes, plovers and painted snipes feeding on frogs, tadpoles and other aquatic fauna during the dry seasons.

With changing climatic conditions and global warming, wetlands can contain and offer solutions to reducing disaster risk, adapting to climate change and building community resilience.

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For more information about Ondiri Swamp in Kenya

http://wikimapia.org/9599867/Ondiri-Swamp

http://www.safari254.com/ondiri-swamp/