Jully is a chemical engineer by training, but an environmental conservationist at heart.
Since her childhood, she has always been intrigued by the near-magical rich biodiversity and unique heritage embraced and preserved by local communities over centuries.
“I am fortunate enough to call Narok home.”
That conservationist spirit stayed with her throughout her formal education journey. The prospect of a 9-to-5 job was fascinating, but not quite like “providing solutions for an ecosystem that doubles as home”.
"Chemical engineering intrigued me even though I’d never heard of it before. Truth be told, I did not know what I was signing up for either."
“Chemical engineering intrigued me even though I’d never heard of it before. Truth be told, I did not know what I was signing up for either. In my mind this course allowed me to combine my love for math and chemistry.”
After her studies, she worked as Narok County Director of Environment, where she was responsible for the development and implementation of policies and conservation strategies.
It was during her stint at the county government that she came to the realisation that lack of data, and reliable one at that, was an impediment to proper planning in the counties.
What was needed, she reasoned, was a centralised hub to be the panacea of environmental research.
In 2019, she founded One Mara Research Hub, which has come in handy in the region’s conservation work by harmonising communication, and collaboration in research.
The hub brings together more than 200 professional researchers locally and from abroad.
She is currently a PhD student of conservation ecology. With proper research, she reckons that no conservation problem is insurmountable.
Daniel Ogetta