Maya wakes up, see the dry grass outside her shack and goes to her camels. A gentle breeze stirs the red ground dust around her.
She gazes out over the vast sun-scorched landscape of Ngilai, in Kenya's semi-arid north, where the acacia trees withstand the hikes in climate.
To a foreigner, this land may seem unforgiving, but to Maya it is home, there could be no other. And home is the place worth fighting for.
In the village of Ngilai, the struggle is led by women like Maya, who put themselves in charge of the community to ensure the survival of their families and an entire tribe.
Once women were only responsible in the household and took care of raising and educating their children, now they are moving beyond traditional roles, advocating for change and shaping the future of their land and people.
Maya's biggest dream is to give her children the one thing she said she has not had the privilege to experience: education. 
‘Studying opens eyes. I want my children to know that the world is diverse and their dreams should be too. The legacy I want to leave my children is education. I know it starts with being active in making our voices heard and creating a realistic vision for our community,’ says Maya.
The Samburu community of Ngilai, known for its colourful clothes and nomadic lifestyle, has long lived in harmony with nature, grazing cattle in semi-arid lands. But the pressures of modern life, climate change, access to health care and education have forced the community to rethink how it faces these challenges. And it is women who are leading the way.
Four years ago, the Ngilai people partnered with Legado, an organisation that helps indigenous communities articulate their vision of the future. Together they developed two projects to improve the resilience and sustainability of the community in the face of growing threats.
Maya and her peers played a key role in the creation of this plan, which integrates environmental conservation with gender equity and health: ‘Women have always been the custodians of the earth, but now we are also the leaders. We are using our voice to ensure that our community not only survives, but thrives,' Maya explains.
One of the most noticeable changes in Ngilai is the way the women have transformed maternal health management in the community, gradually introducing modern medical care and placing it alongside the ancestral birthing practices of the Samburu.
For example, traditional birth attendants use herbal medicine in their work, so maintaining their role in the community encourages the protection of the land where the medicinal plants grow.
The need to align with the times and keep up with them has increased with the impact of climate change and prolonged droughts on the community.
Together, with all-female organisation and resilience, this is how small things are born that can change the lives of so many people and build so many future lives for the better. Right from finding the right wood, preparing the hut, setting it up with all the arrangements: out of nowhere, a shelter for expectant mothers, where young women can feel supported and receive the right care. Already housing 28 newborns, it is just one example of how the women of Ngilai are finding ways to fuse tradition with modern solutions. In a community where cultural norms are deeply rooted, change can be a delicate process.
The ‘motherhood hut’ is just one example of what women, who historically have only witnessed a local history driven by men, are capable of doing to change their society, without disrupting it. This realisation, by the way, can also be seen in women's participation in local governments in Samburu, with more and more women running for important posts.