Drylands Summer School 2025: Resilience from Below
Bringing together postgraduate students, scholars, and practitioners from across Africa for a powerful week of learning, dialogue, and field immersion.
The inaugural CRDD Drylands Summer School brought together 30 postgraduate students, scholars, and practitioners from across Africa for a powerful week of learning, dialogue, and field immersion. Hosted in Isiolo, the program focused on locally grounded perspectives on resilience, governance, and development in the drylands.
Summer School Statement
A reflection on the purpose, design, and lessons of the 2025 program.
Read the full statementCourse Overview & Lectures
A summary of the course structure, including themes, activities, and tools used through a powerful week-long immersive learning experience:
Historical Ecological Perspectives on Pastoralism in the Horn of Africa
A keynote address by Professor Emeritus Gufu Oba
A new narrative for pastoral development and policy?
Lecture by Prof. Ian Scoones
Qualitative Research Methods in Drylands
by Prof. Elizabeth Stites
High Reliability Professionals; Pastoralism as Critical
by Dr. Rahma Hassan and Jackson Wachira
Field Work
Practical research experience in pastoral communities
Panel Discussion
Interactive sessions with experts and community leaders
Film: Battle for Laikipia
Documentary screening and discussion
Research Outputs & Publications
Field Notes & Interviews
FGD with Women Pastoralists in Yaaq Barsadi
Gendered resilience in action
Interview with Prof. Scoones
Reframing resilience and research
Community-led reflections
Insights from Waso, Barambate, and Malbe
Blogs & Articles
- 1.Declaration by the Student-Participants of the Dryland Summer School
- 2.Beyond the Numbers: Why Qualitative Research is the Key to Understanding Pastoral Resilience
- 3.What is the place of Gender in a Resilience from Below narrative?
- 4.Beyond Engineered Resilience: Untapped Opportunities for True Sustainability in the Horn of Africa
What Participants Say
"This Summer School helped me reframe how I understand resilience—through the lived experiences of pastoralist women."
Nyokabi Mureithi
Natural resource governance advocate
"More than just learning, it was an opportunity to rethink policy from below."
Roble Muse
Humanitarian policy researcher
How to Get Involved
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