Welcome Speech: MBA for Conservation Leaders, Class of 2020

Last night, I finally decided to sit down and write this speech, as I sat on my bed, an empty word document in front of me, I thought to myself — how did we even get here?

I realised that it was no longer just about saying a few welcoming words. It was about you and me. How did we get here? Where are we going? Who is coming along? Will we have company at all on this journey?

It’s precisely a year and a half since most of the MBA for Conservation founding class members received emails from Fred Swaniker….which read in part,

“We are very pleased to inform you that you have been offered admission to the ALU School of Business (ALUSB) Master of Business Administration (MBA) Class of 2019.

You were selected from a large and exceptional group of applicants based on your impressive accomplishments and leadership potential. Being selected in this competitive admissions process is an achievement of which you can be very proud!”

To most of us, this email marked the beginning of an incredible journey that has been both sweet and sour. Life has since then never been the same.

We realise that the time at ALU is a very special part of the journey that we are on. We all took a couple of rights and a couple of lefts and found ourselves sharing the same little bumpy stretch, but the journey is not yet complete. Here we are, a year later walking it and making it. Our first cohort, the ones to find the road in the first place graduated today and we are very proud of what they have achieved as founders. It’s hard to believe that a year ago when we started this journey, things were not as clear — who had ever heard of an MBA with a conservation specialisation….but there wasn’t even a road yet, just bits of sand, gravel and dust — different components that were put together to mark the path.

Like grains of dust, core modules,… you’re not really sure what they are all about at the beginning. until the dust settles down and then they form the base upon which the program is founded and you start to see the path more clearly.

Then enter Elizabeth and Aaron, who started unleashing a cocktail of celebrity speakers we normally would not have had access to. People like Helen Gichohi​ (former President of African Wildlife Foundation and past board member of Kenya Wildlife Service), Richard Vigne (CEO of OjPejeta conservancy in Kenya), Dr Francis Vorhies (Founder and Executive Director of Earthmind) to name a few. Things started to make even more sense as we examined the composition of our (2019) cohort. These people provide a wealth of knowledge and experience from forest management experts, land management specialist, conservation planners, community engagement specialists, ecologists, wildlife specialists, and professions not traditionally related to conservation such as advertising and information technology. The amount of knowledge and learning I personally get from this group has been invaluable.

Together, each part I have mentioned constitutes the road that we are all on. Each component is unique in itself and yet they complement each other in their interdisciplinary nature and diversity. And certainly, something would be missing on the road if they weren’t there.

The first cohort of ALUSB aka The Founders have graduated today. In many ways they are at a similar stage as you — with a new path ahead of them and new roads waiting to be shaped. While they have their own sets of challenges to face up ahead, there are yet many for those of us in the MBA for Conservation leaders’ program. This is a road still under construction and as we continue to lay the sand and stones, the dust is slowly settling and beginning to make sense.

Dode, Boaz, Charity, Ndlovu, Balemba, Josephat, Samir, Alex, Catherine, Charles, Akshay, Jearn, Fredrick, you complete us. You will be able to choose whether you find stones or sand more interesting. You took some lefts and some rights and here you are, beginning your road and we would like to warmly welcome you to ALU.

There is not much to say except for a few words of advice on how to walk the road.

I personally have come to realise that MBA is about relationships, networking and not just about the assignments!!

Cold calls are the in-thing at ALUSB…if you get called, fake it till you make it!!

If you are unsure about something and too embarrassed to ask, ask anyway and say you are #Askingforafriend.

There is no such thing as a secret romance… the whatsapp group has ears!

But most importantly, the path of CMBA is still young. For one, it exists thanks to the Visionaries. They are the ones that realised that stones and dust and soil are actually incredibly interesting and build upon each other. And they are also the ones that can help you sift through it.

And the path also exists because of you who have dared to walk it with us. You are sharing this journey with us. You can look left and you can look right, to find great friendships, interesting debates and thriving minds.

You are walking this road and by doing so you are shaping it. Every step you take makes a mark for those that are yet to follow. You may explore and develop it in the way you believe is best because every footprint is unique.

Inspire and be inspired. We hope that you are excited about what is yet to come. We certainly are. Welcome to ALU!