Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The Mwea Plains of central Kenya have long been misunderstood as ecologically degraded or ungoverned, obscuring the sophisticated pre-colonial systems of environmental stewardship that once thrived in the region. This study critically examines the communal governance of natural resources among the Aembu, Mbeere, Akamba, Ndia, and Gicugu sections of the Agikuyu before colonial disruption. Drawing on archival records, oral histories, and interdisciplinary scholarship, the research reveals that these communities maintained polycentric governance systems characterised by overlapping resource rights, elder-mediated conflict resolution, adaptive institutional responses to environmental stress, and spiritually grounded stewardship that ensured sustainable management of common-pool resources for generations. This analysis challenges colonial-era narratives that misrepresented African landscapes as ecologically depleted or unmanaged, exposing such portrayals as ideological tools that legitimised land alienation and resource dispossession. The findings demonstrate that sustainable commons governance is possible without privatisation or state control, relying instead on social capital and adaptive institutions, a model that was systematically undermined by colonial interventions. These insights offer critical lessons for contemporary environmental policy, suggesting that restoring or revitalising indigenous governance frameworks could strengthen sustainable resource management in postcolonial settings.
Institution: Laikipia University
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7163195016