Jeneria received the Disney Hero Conservation Award for his work with Samburu warriors to conserve lions. Photo by Rachel Kramer.
We are extremely happy to announce that Jeneria has been honored with a Conservation Hero Award from the Disney Conservation Fund. The award recognizes local citizens for their efforts to protect wildlife and wild places and engage communities in conservation. Recipients from around the world were nominated by nonprofit environmental organizations, and each honoree and his or her nominating organization will share a $1,500 award from the fund.
“This is a very big honor for me,” said Jeneria upon hearing the news. “I accept this award on behalf of my warriors, who are the most dedicated lion conservationists. I have hope for Kenya’s lions now.”
The Disney Conservation Fund focuses on protecting wildlife and connecting kids and families with nature. Since 2004, Disney has honored more than 100 Conservation Heroes from around the world for their extraordinary conservation efforts.
As a livestock herder and Samburu warrior in Kenya, Jeneria Lekilelei realized at a young age that he needed the help of other warriors to protect threatened lion populations surrounding his community. Jeneria created Warrior Watch to train others to monitor lion populations and to advocate for peaceful coexistence between people and carnivores. In addition to supervising 17 warriors who monitor an area of more than 1,700 square kilometers, Jeneria also manages community programmes to engage women and children in conservation efforts, and spends countless hours monitoring lions in the field.
For information on Disney’s commitment to conserve nature and a complete list of 2015 Conservation Hero Award recipients, visit Disney.com/Conservation.
