The Rift faces challenges like habitat destruction, wildlife poaching, and resource exploitation. Activities include conservation programs, anti-poaching patrols, and community education. Projects involve reforestation, sustainable tourism, and partnerships with local communities to promote biodiversity.

Christine Adongo is currently an early stage researcher doing PhD at l’Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS – Paris), and a member of Institut Interdisciplinaire d’Anthropologie du Contemporaire (IIAC). She attained both her bachelors and Masters degrees in Environmental science at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, Kenya. Broadly, her research interests encompass environment, natural resources, local landscapes, pastoral socio-ecological transition and livelihoods. More specifically, she has worked on natural resources conservation and livelihoods, focusing on the Kenya coastal sacred Kaya forests, and pastoral futures in northern Kenya in so far as climate change adaptation and WASH management at the local level in concerned. Her most work focuses on ‘green’ projects’ implementation (geothermal energy project in Kenya) and their socio-ecological and livelihood implications on the resilience of local pastoral landscape. Christine will use the mobility funds from GDR as a post-doctoral undertaking, to advance her fieldwork and facilitate the dissemination of her work on the contested futures of geothermal in the greater Olkaria geothermal area in Kenya’s rift valley.

Sonia Harmand is an archaeologist and the director of the Mission Préhistorique au Kenya / West Turkana Archaeological Project in Kenya. Her research focuses on reconstructing the skills and cognition of the earliest tool-making hominins in Africa, and particularly pre-Homo species.

She is also interested in biomechanics involved in stone tool production, as well as primate archaeology.

Benoit Hazard is working on anthropo-scenes in Africa. Research are based on two ethnographic sets:

1. the invention of “modern water” in the wells system of pastoralists groups (Chalbi Desert, North Kenya);
2. the study of the socio-ecological changes due the energy transition in the Central Valley of the Kenyan Rift.

I have been conducting ethnographic research in the lower Omo region (Debub Omo Zone, Ethiopia) since 2016 in the Muni (Mursi) society and in the regional urban centers. Now a PhD candidate in Social Anthropology, I am writing a monography about the town of Jinka as a hub for the production of images and knowledge about “cultural others” and for activities of culture brokerage.

Earlier career in the field of development communication, working with NGOs and then as a consultant in the geothermal domain. Now, Phd student addressing the gap between the design of larger industrial geothermal projects and the needs of the local population (participation in geothermal development decision-making processes of local populations).

Jacques Varet is the current President of SARL Geo2D (a consulting company specialized in geological resources for sustainable development) .The company works for several French companies such as ( ALCEN group, ELECTERRE de France, AFD, CLEMESSY, ENERTIME, IMERYS, BOORTMALT (Axereal group), MERIDIAM) , and various other clients in both Europe and other parts of the world eg (Tuscany Region, European Union, UNEP (Kenya), UNDP (Djibouti) ,kenya and Ethiopia).Futhermore he is an associate professor at the Nyeri Technological University (Kenya), he was incharge and co-directed the regional geopower Africa small geothermal exploration programme with USAID funding (Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania)between the years 2014-2017. He is the president of the Steering Committee on the Energy-Climate Program and member of the Steering Committee for Research, Innovation and Technology (CORIT) in center region of France, Committee for Prevention and Precaution ( CPP), as well as the member of the Expert Committee of the DEEPEGS European Geothermal Research Program and last but not least memberof the Technical Adisory Team (TAT) of the Geothermal Center of Excellence in Africa.