UDTR Global Rights of Nature Radar

Resilience and Rupture in East African Ecology: Mwea Landscapes under Colonial Pressure

Identification

Public canonical key

doi:10.37284/ajhg.5.1.5061

Authors

Thomas Njiru Gichobi · Peter Waweru Wagura · Babere Kerata Chacha

Reported year

2026

Reported language

en

Source type

article

First detected

2026-11-09T19:04:47.745274+00:00

Last metadata observation

2026-11-09T19:04:47.745274+00:00

Last HTTP verification

Not checked

Institutions reported by the source

Laikipia University

Reported affiliation countries

KE

Documentary abstract — original language

The Mwea Plains of central Kenya have long been misunderstood as ecologically degraded or ungoverned, obscuring the sophisticated pre-colonial systems of environmental stewardship that once thrived in the region. This study critically examines the communal governance of natural resources among the Aembu, Mbeere, Akamba, Ndia, and Gicugu sections of the Agikuyu before colonial disruption. Drawing on archival records, oral histories, and interdisciplinary scholarship, the research reveals that these communities maintained polycentric governance systems characterised by overlapping resource rights, elder-mediated conflict resolution, adaptive institutional responses to environmental stress, and spiritually grounded stewardship that ensured sustainable management of common-pool resources for generations. This analysis challenges colonial-era narratives that misrepresented African landscapes as ecologically depleted or unmanaged, exposing such portrayals as ideological tools that legitimised land alienation and resource dispossession. The findings demonstrate that sustainable commons governance is possible without privatisation or state control, relying instead on social capital and adaptive institutions, a model that was systematically undermined by colonial interventions. These insights offer critical lessons for contemporary environmental policy, suggesting that restoring or revitalising indigenous governance frameworks could strengthen sustainable resource management in postcolonial settings.

Identifiers

OPENALEX

W7163195016

DOI

10.37284/ajhg.5.1.5061

Documentary context

Documentary family

Scholarship

Source-reported types

article

Natural entities mentioned

Landscape

Entity mentions are not evidence of legal recognition. Jurisdiction studied is separate from author affiliation country.

Sources

OpenAlex · Record 1 · Record 2

• DOI · https://doi.org/10.37284/ajhg.5.1.5061
• OpenAlex · https://openalex.org/W7163195016

Documentary status

Relevance pending

Library

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