Now available: Ton Dietz's archive on Pokot, Kenya
Our latest archival collection is now available for consultation in the African Library. Visit us and explore the research collection of Ton Dietz, former ASCL Director, on his favourite spot in Africa: Pokot in Kenya. Pokot residents gave Dietz the name Ilat, or ‘thunder and lightning’.
This new archival collection on the Pokot of Kenya was created by Ton Dietz between the 1980s and 2010s. The archive highlights how the Pokot have sustained their livelihoods in a challenging semi‑arid environment and includes unique documentation from the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASAL) programme in West Pokot. This material brings together district knowledge, survey data, and locally grounded insights gathered through extensive conversations with Pokot residents and officials, offering an invaluable resource for researchers of East African history, development, and pastoralist communities.
Posted on 16 February 2026, last modified on 17 February 2026