Indigenous Knowledge, Belief and Practice of Wild Plants in Meru: Past and Present Human-Plant Relations in East Africa

Since the great scientific theories of the nineteenth-century evolutionist Charles Darwin, the pioneering work of Kenyan anthropologists have confirmed Kenya as a major part of East Africa that is indeed the Cradle of Humankind, where the unique fossil remains of our earliest ancestors and their artefacts have been discovered. Although only a relatively very few have yet been unearthed during the past few decades, in their contexts these fossils have enabled us to interpret their significance and further reconstruct human evolution within its ecological context. Evidence from living peoples interaction with their wild vegetation in Meru, has revealed hidden insights into the effect of such environment on human behaviour, resulting to an increased interest in understanding the underlying factors that led to the extinction of our species. People from all walks of life are invited to read this book and know what these factors are, and their influence on human behaviour both now and in the past. Naturalists, researchers, environmentalists, educators, students, heritage lovers, plant experts, herbalists and all lovers of vegetation and its use, are invited to read this book.