Establishing a biocultural heritage territory in Rabai

Rabai’s sacred Kaya forests in coastal Kenya have traditionally been conserved by customary laws and taboos but are being steadily degraded, as many youth and middle aged people have turned away from their culture.

This learning exchange and community dialogue brought together ten Rabai villages that have decided to establish a collectively governed biocultural heritage territory to conserve their Kaya forest landscapes and unique culture.

It used a community dialogue approach to share stories about cultural loss and revival and explore how to revive traditional clan governance, while inspiring cultural revival through the process.