The Mama

As head keeper of the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in Kenya, SASHA DOROTHY LOWUEKUDUK is saving more than just animals.

- Sasha Dorothy Lowuekuduk

Traditionally, the Samburu women of northern Kenya are married off at a young age without an education, let alone a chance to work. But as the first female head keeper of the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in the remote Mathews mountain range, Sasha Dorothy Lowuekuduk is breaking new ground. Though she and the women who work for her encounter resistance, the team at Reteti is united in its mission to rescue abandoned elephant calves, nurse them back to health, and reintroduce them to the wild. It requires vigilance and round-the-clock care, but Lowuekuduk’s passion for saving these 200-plus-pound babies knows no bounds. When she first arrived at Reteti in September 2016, Lowuekuduk would search for orphaned elephants by tracking their dung in deserted forests. “There were no human beings, just you and the footsteps of the wild,” she says. “I was a bit afraid that my life could be in danger.” Now the team at Reteti has rescued 30 elephants, and the ripple effect tied to wildlife conservation, employment, and economic stability is changing the region. National Geographic photographer and documentary filmmaker Ami Vitale visited Reteti and spoke to Lowuekuduk about the obstacles facing the community-owned sanctuary and the progress she’s making.

AMI VITALE: What did you do before you came to Reteti?