Digital Democracy (East Africa)
Digital Democracy (Dd) partners with marginalised communities worldwide, including Indigenous Peoples and ethnic minorities, to co-develop and apply technology for environmental and social justice. Through co-creating digital tools and direct technical training, they empower frontline environmental defenders to protect their ancestral lands and livelihoods, fight for environmental justice, and counteract climate change. Since 2008, Digital Democracy has driven change in 28 countries on six continents and continues to have a direct impact worldwide.
Their tools reduce dependency and challenge the colonial legacy of technology. At their invitation, Digital Democracy supports local communities not just as data collectors, but to own and manage their data, mapping and monitoring process themselves. Tools are free, easy to learn, and do not depend on an internet connection.
In 2022/2023, the Eurofins Foundation is supporting the project East Africa Earth Defenders Community Monitoring.
Chepkitale Indigenous Peoples’ Development Programme (CIPDP), a representative organisation of the Ogiek, an Indigenous group native to Mount Elgon in Kenya, have approached Dd for urgent help to map their lands. This will help them to gain legal title and conduct ongoing environmental monitoring to protect against threats to the forest ecosystem along the slopes of Mount Elgon and to their livelihoods.
They need accurate information about resources and threats to self-govern and challenge discriminatory narratives and policies. Through this project, Digital Democracy will implement additional training, develop materials, and work with this community to ascertain precisely which security features should be added to support local priorities.
This project will also help CIPDP become a regional leader by engaging with and supporting similar efforts by additional Indigenous groups such as the Batwa, Bagungu and Benet (Uganda), the Sengwer, Yaaku, Aweer and Ogiek of Mau (Kenya) and the Maasai of Simanjiro (Tanzania).
This project contributes to the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
