Our
Projects
OLOIRIEN is a Maasai-led initiative preserving the healing knowledge of indigenous plants. It began with the first tri-lingual (Maa–Swahili–English) multimedia storybook, co-created by safari photographer Bibi Jordan and Maasai Elder ethnobotanist Lenkuna Kibele Kenya, capturing the wonder of the Maasai Mara’s people, animals, and plants.
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The storybook is free for everyone, and with a small donation, you can share it as a gift or access extra supplements like plant keys and a safari journal.
Our current project creates a digital Maasai Materia Medica, making this knowledge available worldwide for research into incurable and emerging diseases.
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By supporting OLOIRIEN, you help protect both the plants and the Maasai community's intellectual property, ensuring this ancestral wisdom continues to thrive for generations.
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The Storybook: A Gift That Keeps Giving
Our interactive digital storybook is available free to everyone, providing an enchanting introduction to the plants, animals, and people of the Maasai Mara. Illustrated and enriched with rhyme, music, film, and plant guides, it’s an immersive experience for readers of all ages. With a small donation, you gain the right to share it as a perfect last-minute gift or access additional supplements, including plant keys and a safari journal. Every download and contribution helps sustain the work of Maasai Elders and preserves ethnobotanical wisdom for generations.
The Current Project: Preserving Plant Knowledge
We are fundraising to create the first digital Maasai Materia Medica. This Elder-led initiative documents medicinal plants, their uses, oral histories, and traditional guidance—knowledge that has been preserved for generations in memory and oral tradition. Making this material available worldwide is critical for research into incurable diseases and newly emerging illnesses, ensuring that the healing potential of these plants is fully explored. Donations equip Maasai ethnobotanists with the tools, technology, and training needed to document, photograph, and share this vital knowledge globally.