Nicholas Meitaki Soikan

Nicholas Meitaki Soikan is a Social Development Specialist working with the World Bank Group based in Washington DC. He focuses on social and environmental sustainability and social standards related to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in African countries. He coordinates Indigenous Peoples’ issues at the World Bank, and has been leading dialogues leading to inclusion of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in forests and landscapes programs. Prior to joining the World Bank in 2012, he worked with Indigenous Peoples organizations in East Africa and globally to advocate for Indigenous Peoples’ inclusion in REDD+ and other climate change programs, regionally, nationally, and internationally. Soikan holds a Master of Arts degree in Rural Sociology and Community Development from the University of Nairobi and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa. Soikan is from the Maasai Community in the South Rift Valley of Kenya.