About Mpala Research Centre

The Mpala Research Centre (MRC) is a facility for scientific research, education, and training in central Kenya, emphasizing environmental sciences, biodiversity conservation, and natural resources management. MRC is located in Laikipia District, at the core of a vast savanna ecosystem that hosts abundant wildlife.

MRC is funded through the Mpala Wildlife Foundation, and administered by the Mpala Research Trust, in collaboration with Princeton University, the Smithsonian Institution, the Kenya Wildlife Service, and the National Museums of Kenya.

MRC welcomes applications by graduate students and scientists wishing to conduct research. There is a formal research application process entailing proposal submission, and review, by the Science Advisory Committee. Most research projects at the Centre are at graduate level and above, with students or senior scientists conducting academic research over a range of spatial scales, from the Mpala property (19,465 ha / 48,000 acres) to the Ewaso ecosystem (25,000 km² / 9,563 mi²). Research and accommodation facilities include comfortable housing, basic laboratories, a team of research assistants, phone, email, and scientific journal services.

MRC’s institutional research agenda focuses on, and aims to conserve, key ecosystem processes and services, such as wildlife migration and river water flow, through informed and systematic approaches. These include a geospatial database for the ecosystem, and a GIS facility. MRC works closely with the Laikipia Wildlife Forum to develop tools and policies for improved conservation and management of natural resources in the ecosystem. Visiting researchers are encouraged to collaborate with MRC to these ends.

The Centre also hosts field research and courses for up to 25 (usually undergraduate) students and faculty in a comfortable camp on the Ewaso Ny’iro River. Universities and training organizations are encouraged to use these facilities for field courses and instruction.

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