Learning Where the Water Flows: Mercy Ogwayo’s Internship at the Kenya Nile Discourse Forum

Posted in : Articles on 8 June 2026

Over the past four months, Ogwayo has been doing the kind of environmental work that rarely happens behind a desk — and she has the field visits, community conversations, and restored wetland insights to prove it.

Driving Into Kenya’s Most Vital Ecosystems

Attached to the Kenya Nile Discourse Forum under the Nile Basin Discourse (NBD), she has been an active participant in the organization’s NCSCR project, gaining deep exposure to two of Kenya’s most ecologically significant river systems: the Mara River and the Sio-Siteko wetlands. Her work has given her a granular understanding of the ongoing efforts to restore these ecosystems, as well as the complex dynamics of flooding and drought that affect communities living within them.

Indigenous Knowledge at the Heart of Conservation

One of the defining moments of her internship was a reconnaissance visit to Narok and Busia, organized by NBD. This visit placed Ogwayo in direct conversation with local communities and traditional leaders who shared invaluable indigenous knowledge about the Mau wetlands and the Mara River ecosystem — knowledge that often exists outside formal institutional records but is critical to any meaningful conservation strategy.

From Kenya to Kigali: A Regional Perspective

Beyond Kenya’s borders, Ogwayo had the opportunity to attend the Annual General Meeting of the Nile Basin Discourse held in Kigali, Rwanda — a regional gathering that broadened her perspective on transboundary water cooperation and the collective efforts being made across Nile Basin nations.

Grounding Data in Lived Reality

Her experience has also included multiple field visits to communities affected by flooding and drought, reinforcing the lived realities behind environmental data and policy discussions.

In relatively few months, Ogwayo has built both knowledge and practical experience that will inform her contributions to environmental and water governance for years to come. She looks forward to continuing to learn and contribute through the NCSCR project during the remaining period of her internship.

Her journey is a compelling case for investing in youth environmental leadership — not just as future custodians of ecosystems, but as present contributors to their protection.

Mercy Ogwayo is a Batch 1 – 2025 intern with the Nile Basin Discourse, attached to the Kenya National Discourse Forum.