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Summary: Saving the elephants: the ultimate management challenge.
Review: Anyone who has ever been to Kenya's extraordinary game parks to see the elephants, or dreamed of doing so, will be fascinated by this story of how these parks came to be the refuges they are and not the corrals for government-sanctioned poaching that they were. When paleontologist Richard Leakey took over the Department of Wildlife and Conservation in 1989, rampant corruption, theft, absenteeism, and a don't-care attitude were hallmarks within the department. The Kenyan government lacked a real commitment to conservation, and the burgeoning population exerted pressure on national park borders, clearing land for farming and threatening wildlife, unimpeded. Poaching, patronage, a general ripoff mentality, and collusion between park rangers, politicians, blackmarketeers, and smugglers, were so interconnected and seemingly so ineradicable that the department resembled a many-headed hydra. Tribal rivalries within Kenya, a porous border through which Somalian thieves made forays, and a lack of agreement between Kenya and neighboring African countries about the best way to conserve animals made this one of the most daunting management challenges imaginable. In prose that is as direct and to the point (and sometimes as self-congratulatory) as he is, Leakey tells how he managed a multimilliondollar corporation in a country in which everyone wants a piece of the pie, usually under the table. As Leakey tells of cleaning up the department and conserving the elephants, the reader also learns about the economics of the ivory trade, the tug-of-war between immediate political realities and long-term goals, the role of the World Bank in African development, and the politicking involved in deciding what is an endangered species under the U.N.'s Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). It's a fascinating tale, equally intriguing to the lover of wildlife, the student of management, and the East African history buff.
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Summary: A wildlife conservation story to inspire
Review: Dr. Richard Leakey has authored a compelling account of his time at the helm of Kenya Wildlife Services. The book recounts the bush war against poaching, and contains a very vivid description of Kenyan political life. Sadly - and ironically - the success of Dr. Leakey's management of KWS created a long list of political adversaries that eventually forced Leaky to resign from the post. There can be no doubt that Dr. Leakey has been the chief architect behind the saving of the African elephant from extinction by the hands of poachers. Dr. Leakey's work stands as one of the most important wildlife conservation achievements of all time. Finally, I believe Dr. Leakey is one of the - perhaps last? - great Kenyan patriots. This story inspires. If there were ever a Nobel Prize for bravery and commitment, surely it would be his.
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Summary: Less About Elephants, More About Bureaucracy & Ego
Review: No one should dispute Leakey's dedication to the wildlife and people of his native Kenya. This book, however, is a rather dull account of the political intrigue and manouvering Leakey faced from 1989 to 1994 when he was involved with Kenya's various wildlife services. Those in the field may value his insights and perseverance, but the average reader may find his grandstanding and, at times, painstaking defensiveness a bit hard to stomach. I'd much rather read a book by those out in the field (such as rangers) who saw the elephants every day and who would have many a tale to tell about fighting off poachers and dealing with tourists and natives. Leave this book for the bureaucrats in world wildlife agencies.
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