Our Board
Dr. Irene Amoke (Chair) is the Executive Director, Kenya Wildlife Trust. A landscape ecologist with over fifteen years’ experience in field ecology, GIS and project management, Dr. Amoke has worked in academia, government and the private sector both within and outside Kenya. She has worked with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) on human wildlife co-existence projects, ground and aerial surveys and managed a national elephant mortality database. She led field surveys in private game reserves in South Africa and managed several environmental and sustainability projects under the Department of Environment Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), Oxford Brookes University, both in the United Kingdom. Dr. Amoke graduated with a BSc in Zoology from University of Eastern Africa, Baraton, and Kenya holds an MSc in Environmental Assessment & Management, and PhD in Landscape Ecology, both from Oxford Brookes University (UK). She is interested in the interface between wildlife and emerging land uses with the aim of formulating policies as well as practical and sustainable ways to mitigate adverse impacts, particularly in fragile ecosystems across developing countries. She sits on the Boards and Advisory Councils of several local and international conservation organisations.
Moses Kamau (Secretary) is the Executive Director and a founding member of Uvumbuzi Africa- a conservation NGO. His passion for conservation was sparked at an early age by a father who loved nature. He possesses a wide range of experience at a non-governmental organisation, governance and legal level. He has worked on fair trade, conservation and human rights initiatives over the past 20 years and has also worked on media advocacy for the Constitution of Kenya 2010. He has an intrinsic understanding of the governance issues affecting Kenya and the African continent and applies this to the conservation sector. His love for nature and the nurturing, protection and conservation of natural habitats are a passion initiative for him. Moses has worked in various capacities with BBC radio, Kenya National Commission of Human Rights, Cooperative Group UK and is an advocate of the high court of Kenya.
Peter Njoroge (Treasurer) is a Senior Research Scientist and Head of the Ornithology Section at the National Museums of Kenya (NMK). He completed his PhD studies at the University of Reading (UK) and Post-doc Research fellowship at the University of Copenhagen. His research interests encompass diverse topics such as conservation of threatened species, species distributions, eco-agriculture and ecosystem services as incentives for conservation in Kenya. As well as running a portfolio of ornithological research projects, Njoroge is the curator of the national ornithological collection at the NMK and also mentors young and upcoming ornithologists through internship programs at NMK and supervision of graduate students.
Frank van Langevelde is professor and chair of the Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Group at Wageningen University, The Netherlands. He did his PhD research on the effects of habitat connectivity on local populations of the European nuthatch, a songbird living in patches of forest in The Netherlands. Since his PhD research, Frank developed his research about ecological and evolutionary adaptations of animals to stress (e.g. diseases, poor food quality, predators, high temperatures, humans). Environmental stresses can constrain movement and searching for habitat and food, such as the presence of predators and exposure to extreme ambient temperatures or periods of drought. He coordinates/d several projects about wildlife in tropical savannahs. Currently, he is member of the board of the graduate school WIAS in The Netherlands.
Peter Hetz is an ardent raptor enthusiast. His career began in Kenya in 1977 with the Wildlife Conservation and Management Department and Wildlife Clubs of Kenya. His Eastern Africa work has included long-standing engagements in Tanzania (TANAPA), Rwanda (Parc des Volcans), and Uganda National Parks (UWA) among others. He has worked internationally in other African countries, Asia and Eastern Europe on matters related to teaching and consulting on protected area establishment and planning, natural resources conservation, ecotourism and land tenure. He returned to Kenya in 2015 and is presently the Executive Director of the Laikipia (Wildlife) Forum, a 20,000 strong membership organisation focused on natural resources conservation in the Greater Laikipia Landscape.