A tale of two rivers: development, destruction, and despair in Ongata Rongai, Kenya

Simple item page
cg.authorship.typesCGIAR and advanced research instituteen
cg.contributor.affiliationUniversity of Liverpoolen
cg.contributor.affiliationInternational Livestock Research Instituteen
cg.contributor.donorGlobal Challenges Research Funden
cg.contributor.donorUnited Kingdom Research and Innovationen
cg.contributor.donorBiotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, United Kingdomen
cg.contributor.donorWellcome Trusten
cg.coverage.countryKenya
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2KE
cg.coverage.regionAfrica
cg.coverage.regionEastern Africa
cg.creator.identifierOlivia Howland: 0000-0003-4109-7833en
cg.howPublishedFormally Publisheden
cg.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1164881en
cg.isijournalISI Journalen
cg.issn2296-2565en
cg.journalFrontiers in Public Healthen
cg.reviewStatusPeer Reviewen
cg.subject.ilriANIMAL HEALTHen
cg.subject.ilriHUMAN HEALTHen
cg.subject.ilriONE HEALTHen
cg.subject.ilriWATERen
cg.subject.impactAreaEnvironmental health and biodiversity
cg.subject.impactAreaNutrition, health and food security
cg.subject.sdgSDG 3 - Good health and well-beingen
cg.subject.sdgSDG 6 - Clean water and sanitationen
cg.volume11en
dc.contributor.authorHowland, Oliviaen
dc.date.accessioned2023-09-05T07:56:14Zen
dc.date.available2023-09-05T07:56:14Zen
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/131740
dc.titleA tale of two rivers: development, destruction, and despair in Ongata Rongai, Kenyaen
dcterms.abstractIntroduction: Ongata Rongai is a rapidly growing peri-urban space in Nairobi Metropolitan, Kenya. The last 10 years have seen exponential population growth and building development leading to overcrowding and pressure on water and environmental resources. This original research sheds light on interactions among humans, animals, and this rapidly changing urban environment. It is therefore a quintessentially One Health study. Methods: Qualitative and ethnographically informed methods are employed to better understand the impact of rapid growth on the riparian environment and the effect of this on those who depend on it. The reflexive use of archival material and a historical ethnographic approach enabled in-depth narratives to address these issues within a longitudinal context, and the use of deliberate walking alongside visual methodologies and more traditional anthropological methods make this study novel both in terms of methodological approach and findings. Results: This study finds that people cite high levels of pollution from solid waste and sewage have made the rivers almost unusable and a hazardous place for both humans and animals. Yet, in the past, these rivers played key roles in daily life. There is frustration with structural-level actors' moribund attitude to the environment. The poor health of the rivers and riparian environment leads to human and animal health challenges, increased pressure on water resources, and economic pressure due to a loss of livelihoods. Discussion: The study contributes to what is currently a fairly small literature on urban riparian spaces globally, but one which is of growing and vital importance given the rapidly increasing percentage of humans who now reside in urban spaces. It contributes to WASH and urban clean water knowledge as well as One Health, public health, and urban growth narratives, and directly addresses challenges faced by SDG 6.en
dcterms.accessRightsOpen Access
dcterms.audienceAcademicsen
dcterms.audienceScientistsen
dcterms.available2023-08-25en
dcterms.bibliographicCitationHowland, O. 2023. A tale of two rivers: development, destruction, and despair in Ongata Rongai, Kenya. Frontiers in Public Health 11: 1164881.en
dcterms.extent1164881en
dcterms.issued2023-08-25en
dcterms.languageen
dcterms.licenseCC-BY-4.0
dcterms.publisherFrontiers Mediaen
dcterms.subjectone health approachen
dcterms.subjectanimal healthen
dcterms.subjecthealthen
dcterms.subjectwateren
dcterms.subjecthygieneen
dcterms.subjecturbanizationen
dcterms.typeJournal Article

Files

License bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.75 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description:
Download

Collections

ILRI articles in journals
One Health regional network for the Horn of Africa (HORN)