In her role as Charity Ambassador, Amaia successfully pioneered for Lewa Wildlife Conservancy to be nominated as an official charity partner. We spoke with Amaia about her successful bid for Lewa’s grant and the journey to securing it.

Hi Amaia, lovely to meet you, please can you tell us a little about yourself?

Hello! I am 10 years old, I live in London with my parents and my little brother. I study at a wonderful school called Garden House School. My favourite subject is maths and humanities, and I am currently loving learning to play cricket. My favourite colour is sage green and in my spare time I love doodling, drawing, and singing.

Please tell us a little about your passion for East Africa and conservation.

I am very lucky to have developed a strong connection and bond with Kenya, being my mother’s place of birth and where my grandparents and family live. It is very much home away from home as I have grown up visiting Kenya every year since I was four months old. My passion for the natural world and wildlife conservation comes from my love for animals and nature which I experienced for the first time when I was six years old on my first safari in the magical Masai Mara. This felt like a very special and incredible place, and a very different world to the one I live in London. Every year I would visit the Daphne Sheldrick Elephant Sanctuary in Nairobi and would find the spirit of the elephants so strong and the kindness of their keepers so touching. I believe the people who fight every day to protect and nurture wildlife to be the real everyday superheroes and they inspire me. I am very much hoping one day soon I will be able to experience the Serengeti in Tanzania and see the Gorillas in Uganda.

I understand you are the Charity Ambassador for your school, congratulations! How long have you been part of the team and what do you hope to do with this platform?

I have been the Charity Ambassador for Garden House School for five months now. Every year our school chooses one charity to support and champion. There are many fundraising initiatives that happen through the year, and I really hope to get directly involved with promoting, organising, and coming up with new ideas to put forward at the School Council.

We understand Lewa Conservancy has been chosen as the charity project for your school to support this year, why did you propose Lewa?

It was very exciting when Lewa Wildlife Conservancy was shortlisted as one of the top 3 charities for consideration by the School Council. Lewa has my vote because it is a truly incredible charity which has found a way to protect animals through supporting and partnering with local communities. I am particularly inspired by the impact of zero poaching, providing education for the local children, and equipping the wildlife rangers with the best technology and tools to be able to do their amazing work.

How was Lewa selected as the final charity?

Three shortlisted charities made their presentations to the Garden House Students, then students from Junior to Upper School voted on their favourite charity. It was a tough competition for Lewa as the other two charities were also great with powerful purpose, but I will continue to spread my “Love for Lewa” to any open ear!

Can you share some of the fundraising ideas you have for Lewa?

One of many ideas I have is to set up a lemonade and karaoke stand at our annual Summer Fair. Where people could drink fresh lemonade and sing to their favourite songs. It would also be great to exhibit and showcase some iconic wildlife photography and paintings which could be sold to raise money.