Growing up a child of rural farmers, Patricia noticed that many of their problems could be traced to lack of information. So she decided to dedicate her life to connecting the dots.

“Information generated by our scientists usually stays on the shelves gathering dust without getting to the people who need it,” Patricia says.

Growing up a child of rural farmers, Patricia noticed that many of their problems could be traced to lack of information. So she decided to dedicate her life to connecting the dots.

“Information generated by our scientists usually stays on the shelves gathering dust without getting to the people who need it,” Patricia says.

As a community projects manager at the Zeitz Foundation, Patricia coordinates communication between the villages, encouraging farmers to undertake projects on their own as community custodians.

Patricia mainly works in the semi-arid Maasai area; empowering local women groups towards sustainable alternative income generation, conservation agriculture development, food security and rainwater harvesting initiatives. 

“Most residents depend on raising livestock for income. Food security is a challenge in these areas as they are frequently hit by droughts.”

During every cropping season, Patricia organizes a farmers’ field day to educate the community on the latest farming techniques.

Her interest in the YPARD mentoring program lies with helping mentees appreciate the link between research-extension in steering rural development. 

“Young people must be taught how to think, not what to think. Mentoring only provides guidance that, if well followed, it can lead to mentees achieving their full potential.”

She expects to help her mentee to grow professionally. She plans to share her knowledge, experience and networks with the entire YPARD family and be part of the change that will see more youths adopt farming as a career, especially in the arid and semi arid areas.