Garmin teams with actor/conservationist Edward Norton to sponsor the Maasai Marathon benefitting African conservation

The mission of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust is to support the preservation of biodiversity within the Maasai tribal lands of East Africa by promoting conservation, education and health services within the Maasai community. The team, the cause, and the fundraising effort can be tracked on www.maasaimarathon.com

Norton has maximized his training efforts by using Garmin’s Forerunner 405CX to accurately track real-time pace, distance and time while storing his training data and route for post-workout analysis. With hundreds of thousands of acres for training runs on unmarked routes, Forerunner’s GPS capabilities make it easy to see how far, how fast and how to get back to the beginning. And Garmin Connect helps each of these runners share and review their workouts long after it’s over. Supporters can view some of Edward Norton’s training runs at http://connect.garmin.com/explore?owner=maasaimarathonteam.

“Teaming with Edward and the Maasai was a perfect fit for us,” said Stan Brajer, director of Garmin Fitness Sales and Marketing. “We’re able to use our innovative fitness technology to benefit such a worthwhile cause, while getting to work with some of the most remarkable individuals taking part in this year’s ING New York City Marathon.”

Garmin, which has been active throughout its 20-year history with local, national and global charitable efforts, will use its innovative technology and worldwide reach to support the efforts Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust in Kenya.

Some key milestones recently achieved by the MWCT include:

•raising over $750,000 to support the programs in conservation, education and health care in the Maasai community

•preventing killing of any lions or other large predators for the second year in a row through the predator compensation program, resulting in a tripling in the local lion population within 24 months

•opening the new Chyulu Conservation and Research Center; a fully equipped former safari camp, now the headquarters of MWCT and a base for research and collaborative regional conservation efforts

•initiating new collaborations with African Wildlife Foundation, the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Partners in Health and pro bono projects with the companies AECOM and RMJM

•securing a 5000 acre wildlife conservancy zone through a pioneering lease agreement with the community – a major 1st step toward the goal of a conservancy network that preserves ecosystem features while bringing annual revenue to the Maasai

•providing employment and other sustainable income for the local community through one of the worst droughts in memory

Many more details about the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust, the runners, and how to sponsor them can be found at www.maasaimarathon.com, where photos and videos show Norton and the Maasai training with Forerunner in breathtaking surroundings.

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