Chongqing — Tens of thousands of raptors soaring above the parallel ridge-and-valley landscapes of Chongqing, China. Lions and rhinos roaming the vast grasslands of Kenya's Masai Mara. Two strikingly different ecosystems, separated by thousands of kilometers, converged last week in Kenya's Narok County as conservation leaders from China and Africa gathered for a landmark biodiversity forum.

Group photo of Chinese-African delegates and local youth participants in Narok, Kenya. (Photo/The Organizer)

The China-Africa Biodiversity Conservation Exchange and Training Program, featuring the global touring exhibition "Eagle City," took place August 21-22 in the Narok community, bringing together representatives from ecological authorities, protected-area administrations, non-governmental organizations, and universities from China's Chongqing municipality, Kenya, and Tanzania, alongside 200 local teachers and students. The event has been designated a flagship program of the 2026 China-Africa Year of Cultural and People-to-People Exchanges.

Community-Based Conservation Takes Center Stage

During the experience-sharing session, African conservation experts presented grassroots models that have shown measurable success in protecting wildlife and habitats.

Chinese and African experts exchange practical conservation experiences. (Photo/The Organizer)

Eston Murithi, Director of the Adept Conservation Network (ACN), described how local communities in Kenya are mobilized to safeguard forests, rivers, and wetland ecosystems through skills training, community patrols, sapling cultivation, and ecological restoration - efforts that have effectively reduced human-wildlife conflict.

Zakayo Lairumbe Kipuyo, Co-Founder of Tanzania's Joy and Hope for Rural Community Foundation, shared community-led initiatives from Arusha that integrate forest restoration, wildlife migration corridor maintenance, and water-source protection while developing eco-friendly alternative livelihoods to scale up conservation outcomes.

Aminga, Researcher at the Kenya Wildlife Service, presented the Masai Mara lion protection model, in which GPS-collared lions are tracked in real time and early warnings are sent to communities when prides approach residential areas, reducing livestock losses and preventing retaliatory killings. Stephan Kenta, a rhino expert at the Masai Mara National Reserve, described a smart command center that uses location ear tags on rhinos, with automatic alerts triggered when animals approach border areas, alongside infrared cameras that help identify additional wild rhino individuals.

Chongqing's Urban Conservation Model Shared With African Peers

Liu Ming, Deputy Director-General of the Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment, shared the municipality's achievements in urban biodiversity governance, migratory raptor protection, and public engagement. He noted that Chongqing has enforced a decade-long fishing ban on the Yangtze River and conducted systematic species surveys, monitoring, and habitat restoration. The city is now home to nearly 6,000 species of wild vascular plants, more than 800 terrestrial vertebrate species, over 180 river fish species, and hundreds of nationally protected wildlife species.

"Both China and Africa are endowed with rich biodiversity resources," Liu said, calling for deeper exchanges to develop locally adapted conservation approaches.

Peter Sanki, Head of the Masai Mara National Reserve, expressed strong interest in broadening cooperation with China, particularly in conservation technology applications and personnel exchanges. "African conservation practitioners look forward to field study visits to China," he said, adding that joint work on equipment and technologies would improve field patrol capacity for harmonious coexistence between humans and wildlife.

Chinese-Made Technology Boosts Wildlife Monitoring

A ceremony was held for the donation of wildlife monitoring equipment, including infrared cameras, radar cameras, and bird acoustic monitors, to the Masai Mara National Reserve and the Adept Conservation Network. Following the ceremony, Chinese and African partners conducted on-site installation and commissioning of the equipment inside the reserve.

Sanki remarked that the donated devices would strengthen local wildlife monitoring capabilities and deliver tangible conservation outcomes in Kenya.

The Chongqing Luhai International Communication Foundation also awarded "China-Africa Friendly Partner Organization" certificates to the Joy and Hope for Rural Community Foundation in Tanzania, the Mara Predator Project, the Mara Siana Conservancy, and the Masai Mara University, formalizing partnerships for ongoing collaboration.

Representatives from Chongqing Luhai International Communication Foundation present certificates to African partner institutions. (Photo/The Organizer)

"Eagle City" Exhibition Resonates With African Conservationists

A major highlight of the event, the "Eagle City" global touring exhibition uses documentary photography to tell the story of Chongqing's efforts to protect migratory raptors. Each spring and autumn, hundreds of thousands of raptors pass over Chongqing, with more than 200 nature reserves, including Jinyun Mountain, Jinfo Mountain, and Yintiaoling, serving as critical stopover sites along their migration routes. The city's unique parallel ridge-and-valley topography creates natural "air highways" of rising thermals that raptors use to glide across the landscape.

Chongqing has established a raptor monitoring network, adopted satellite tracking technology, set up professional rescue platforms and bird-friendly habitat demonstration zones, and engaged international volunteers in environmental outreach, exploring a path for megacity development to coexist with wildlife.

Chinese and African representatives jointly install donated infrared camera traps at Masai Mara National Reserve. (Photo/The Organizer)

The exhibition resonated deeply with African practitioners. Mary Dapash from the Mara Siana Conservancy expressed interest in adapting the "Eagle City" model for local reserves. Eston Murithi of ACN said he had gained valuable insights from the sessions and looked forward to building partnerships with China to turn conservation concepts into tangible action.

Biodiversity Education Reaches African Schools

Parallel to the main forum, Chen Can, Deputy Secretary-General of the Chongqing Luhai International Communication Foundation, delivered a themed China-Africa youth biodiversity conservation course. The course integrated ecological practices from both China and Africa, using videos and board games to help young people understand conservation through interactive learning. The organizers have shared full course materials and teaching methodologies with African NGOs and schools for further promotion.

A delegation of Chinese practitioners delivers a biodiversity-themed class for local African teenagers. (Photo/The Organizer)

The course had previously been piloted at Mringa Secondary School in Arusha, Tanzania. Omari Nyangu, Principal of Kiranyi Secondary School, said the teaching resources would raise conservation awareness among students, teachers, and surrounding communities, with the school planning to officially introduce the course. Kleruu Zachariah, Principal of Mringa Secondary School, noted that the program encourages student-led conservation efforts and strengthens Tanzania-China friendship. Looking ahead, young creators from both sides will produce eco-themed works for joint exhibitions, building a cross-cultural bridge for youth-led ecological knowledge sharing between China and Africa.

Though separated by vast distances, China and Africa share the same vision for ecological protection. This series of events in Kenya has brought together joint conservation efforts through experiencesharing, material support and youth science education. In the future, both sides will further advance practical green cooperation to safeguard our shared home for all living beings.