A scene from the IPAL study area: The Ndoto Mountains as seen from the road to Ngurunit.

In 1976, the United Nations Educational and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) funded the Integrated Project on Arid Lands (IPAL) to find solutions to problems associated with the ecological degradation of arid lands. Studies carried out by the project over the next eight years were centered in Kenya’s most arid district, Marsabit.

Half a century later it’s worth reviewing IPAL’s findings and recommendations, as well as its long-term impact on understanding and managing Kenya’s (and Eastern Africa’s) arid land ecosystems. You can do that at https://storiesofeastafrica.com/integrated-project-on-arid-lands-ipal-marsabit-district-kenya/