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Juniper Publishers- Open Access Journal of Environmental Sciences & Natural Resources

Drivers of Success for Community Based Natural Resource Projects in Coast Region of Kenya

Authored by Nyiro Charles Wanje

Abstract

The paper is part of a World Bank funded study on documentation of community based natural resource management (CBNRM) projects in the Coastal region of Kenya. The paper takes a look at the drivers of success for community based natural resource projects. The drivers of success are discussed in this paper because they address some of the objectives of the study. The study was prompted by the realization that there are many initiatives under taken by environmental and natural resource management projects that have the potential to serve as a showcase for the benefits of conserving natural resources. A key attribute to achieving this is to ensure quality documentation of these initiatives and their drivers of success. It is because of this that this researcher undertook documentation of the drivers of success in order to generate the information needed to stimulate uptake and adoption with the aim of disseminating the information on such projects to various segments of the coastal communities for uptake.

The study involved 40 participants representing 40 CBNRM groups and five FGDs comprising 5-10 participants drawn from five CBNRM groups. Data was collected using interviews, document reviews, observations and focused group discussions. After collection the data was analysed both thematically and numerically and presented using descriptive statistics. All relevant ethical issues were considered. The study provides a basis upon which environmental and natural resource projects can emulate in order to be successful. It also fills a gap in the existing literature as well as contributing towards the continuing discourse on natural resource management.

Keywords: Natural resource management; Drivers of success; CBNRM Groups; Communication, Documentation; Kenya Coastal Development Project; World Bank

Abbreviations: ACC: African Conservation Centre; ACES: Association for Coastal Ecosystem Services; ANO: The Africa Nature Organization; AWF: African Wildlife Foundation; BMU: Beach Management Unit; CBC: Community Based Conservation; CBNRM: Community Based Natural Resource Management; CBOs: Community Based Organizations; CDA: Coast Development Authority; CDTF: Coast Development Tourism Fund; CITES: Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora; CWS: Community Wildlife Services; EAWS: East African Wildlife Society; EU: European Union; FGDs: Focus Group Discussions; GOK: Government of Kenya

Background

Introduction

The Government of Kenya received financing from the International Development Association (IDA] and the Global Environment Facility (GEF] towards the Kenya Coastal Development Project (KCDP] applied part of the proceeds to finance a Consultancy Service to document and disseminate successful community based natural resource sub-projects. KCDP covers a period of 6 years and was in its third year of implementation with a development objective of improving management effectiveness and enhancing revenue generation of Kenya’s coastal and marine resource.

The project is comprised of the following four components:

a. Component 1: Sustainable Management of Fisheries Resources;

b. Component 2: Sound Management of Natural Resources;

c. Component 3: Support for Alternative Livelihoods; and

d. Component 4: Capacity building, Monitoring and Evaluation System, Project Management and Communication, Development Fund of the Coast.

The project was implemented by 7 agencies of the Government of Kenya (GoK), comprising of Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute, State Department of Fisheries, Kenya Wildlife Service, Kenya Forestry Research Institute, Coast Development Authority, Ministry of Lands and National Environmental Management Authority. The activities of these agencies, within the KCDP project, are coordinated by a centralized Project Coordinating Unit (PCU) based at Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI).This paper relates to Component two (Sound Management of Natural Resources].

Rationale for the project

Under component 2 (Environmental governance and integrated coastal management), KCDP was promoting the uptake and adoption of best practices in natural resource management. In order to generate the information needed to stimulate uptake and adoption, the project sought to identify, evaluate and analyse successful community based natural resource projects in the coast region with the aim of disseminating the information on such projects to various segments of the coastal communities for uptake.

KCDP and Sustainable development in the Coastal community

Kenyans living in Coast province are among the poorest in the country, despite the province's considerable potential for economic growth from tourism, fisheries and other investments. KCDP project has helped to increase economic opportunities for coastal communities by promoting environmentally-sustainable tourism and fisheries, equitable sharing of tourism and fisheries revenues, and investment in rural micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. The project has promoted sustainable management of tourism and fisheries resources in line with the government's Vision 2030, which identifies tourism as an engine of growth, job creation, poverty reduction and wealth generation in the Coastal region. It has supported governance reforms of fisheries management in an exclusive economic zone and promoted research in near-shore fish stocks to increase sustainable and profitable fishing practices.

The KCDP project has also improved the management and regeneration of natural resources and biodiversity of the Coastal and marine environments, reflecting the environmental sustainability theme of the World Bank’s Country Partnership Strategy for Kenya. These objectives are complemented by sustainable livelihoods in a sound governance framework including spatial planning and land capability mapping, integrated coastal management and compliance with regulations and safeguards. The project has also promoted dialogue amongst national partners and regional stakeholders, and established a Community Village Fund to build capacity of micro projects through grants.

Further, the KCDP project has the potential to positively affect Kenya's coastal region, with far reaching changes in the livelihoods of the people at the Coast. This, however, can only happen if the inhabitants of the coast see the opportunity and participate in the project. Other than improving the livelihoods of the coastal inhabitants, the project has far-reaching effects beyond the coast. It has the potential to serve as a showcase for the benefits of conserving natural resources. A key attribute to achieving this is to ensure quality documentation of these initiatives. In the past, conservation of biodiversity was carried out by establishing parks and zoos and creating strict laws regarding the use of wild plants and animals. This form of natural resource management was costly and inefficient. In last decade, awareness has grown regarding the close links between biodiversity loss, human population and poverty.

It is now commonly accepted that the people who live in close contact with, and are dependent upon, wild plants and animals for their survival must be fully involved in all efforts to find solutions to address biodiversity loss. The latter forms the principle of what has evolved into Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM), which is a paradigm shift in conservation and natural resource management. The goals of CBNRM are to increase resource user participation in NRM decisions and benefits by restructuring the power relations between central state and communities through the transfer (devolution) of management authority to local level organizations. The CBNRM is compatible with the International treaties as it has a framework for integrating with economic and social development. Participation in development is a process through which people with a legitimate interest (stakeholders) influence and share control over development plans and decisions and resources that affect them. In the recent past, various countries have been redefining natural resource management to directly engage local communities. For instance in Tanzania, the Wildlife Conservation policy [1] moves beyond the outreach efforts of community conservation employed by the Tanzania National Park Authority (TANAPA) by proposing real engagement through community based conservation WD [2]. Amongst other countries which have adopted CBNRM approaches are India, China, USA, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Malawi, Zambia and Lesotho Shackleton et al. [3].

Natural Resource Management

Natural Resource Management is the management of natural resources such as land, water, soil, plants and animals, with particular focus on how the management affects the quality of life for both present and future generations. Natural Resource Management is congruent with the concept of sustainable development, the principle that forms the basis for sustainable global land management and environmental governance to conserve and preserve natural resources. Natural resource management specifically focuses on scientific and technical understanding of resources and ecology and the life supporting capacity of those resources.

Natural resource management lays emphasis on sustainability and can be traced back to the early attempts to understand the ecological nature of American rangelands and resource conservation. In the 20th Century the concept took a more holistic, national and even global form culminating in the Brund land Commission and the advocacy of sustainable development Brund land, [4]. At that time the state had a controlling role in formulation and management of NRMs. In many cases these systems led to failure and disillusionment as they were protectionist styles of management Lyons, Lewis & Carter [5,6].

In addition the colonial-era management practices based on "fines and fences" frequently failed to achieve conservation goals because they alienated people from their traditional resource base, thereby reducing the economic and social value of natural resources and causing over-exploitation and mismanagement. Finally, the state management system had inherent weakness as it was seen as a domain of either state sector institutions endowed with appropriate authority, expertise and other resources or private sector institutions pursuing individual economic interests and benefits. These weaknesses led to the paradigm shift from state-controlled NRM into Community Based Conservation groups (CBC).

Community Based Conse rvation

Community Based Conservation (CBC) became the recognized trademark of what many claimed was a "new conservation" unfolding across Africa Hulme and Murphee [7,8]. In response to the recognized failure of top-down approaches to development and ecological limits of protectionist ("fortress") conservation, "the community" has now become the catchall solution for effective conservation and development Western ,Wright, McNeely, McNaughton [9,10]. CBC shifts the focus of conservation from nature as protected through exclusive state control to nature as managed through inclusive, participatory, community-based endeavors. To effectively make this shift, CBC devolves natural resource management to local communities and hence is often referred to as community-based natural resource management.

Community Based Natural Resource Management

Community based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) is an approach to conservation and development that recognizes the rights of the local people to manage and benefit from the management and use of natural resources. It entails transferring back to communities' access and use rights, empowering them with legislation and devolved management responsibilities, building their capacity and creating partnerships with public and private sector actors to develop programmers for the sustainable use of a variety of natural resources.

Many traditional systems of natural resource tenure are known to have been sustainable and even beneficial for conservation. There is need therefore to enable this tradition to continue despite modern changes in economy and society. CBNRM concept addresses both human and natural resource issues such as the long term benefits of present and future generations given the inefficiency of state management. In addition, CBNRM addresses objectives such as equity, poverty alleviation and empowerment of marginalized user communities. The management concept focuses on communities for assessing natural resource uses, potentials, problems, trends and opportunities. In addition it also takes action dealing with adverse practices and dynamics with corporation and support from other actors linked horizontally (e.g. other communities) and vertically (e.g. higher level or external entities such as local or district government, regional bodies, government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Universities or other organizations that have interest in resource conservation and management.

The Key elements of CBNRM include detailed operation plans developed and agreed to by all concerned stakeholders. In addition, the approach is that communities are backed by a legal framework on rights, benefits and economic incentives to take substantial responsibility for sustained use of resources. The CBNRM groups operate under the following principles Bond et al. [11]

a. The benefits of managing a resource should exceed the costs and the resource must have a measurable value to the community.

b. Communities living with the resource should receive higher benefit than those who do not.

c. Smaller groups are more likely to better manage their resource than larger groups.

d. The community that lives with the resource should also be the group that makes the decisions over the resource and the same as the group that benefits.

e. Communities should benefit from practicing good management. Similarly, when communities do not invest in management, then the benefits should fall.

The main benefits accruing from adopting these measures can be categorized into direct and indirect benefits. Direct benefits include investments in rural infrastructure through community based projects, direct cash dividends and from partnerships, employment opportunities with private sector, employment opportunities with CBOs, indirect benefits maintenance or growth of stocks of natural resources, capacity building, opportunities to diversify local economy and integration into the local market .Despite the process towards devolution in the process of natural resource management the central governments still maintains a role; protecting the wider "public goods" such as watersheds, biodiversity carbon sinks and other ecological services; establishing the policy, legal and social frameworks and conditions needed for local management to succeed; mediating conflicts; providing technical assistance; facilitating and regulating private activity; addressing local inequalities of marginal groups so that downward accountabilities of organizations receiving devolved authority is assured; helping communities to defend their rights including protection against powerful external groups such as mining and timber companies and organized traders and supporting local capacity among others Shackleton et. al. [3].

In the Maasai Mara - Serengeti ecosystem the concept of CBNRM is gaining ground. For instance Tanzania has redefined its wildlife conservation agenda to directly engage local communities Goldman [12]. In Kenya, there has been increased involvement of local communities in the management of local resources especially around protected areas e.g. through KWS community wildlife service and specific projects implemented by NGOs and Government agencies in different areas and involving different resources. Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) is still relatively new in Kenya. Therefore the policy, legislative and institutional frameworks are yet to be developed that would support genuine CBNRM groups. Further there is need to reorient the existing institutions towards greater inclusion of diverse range of stakeholders in natural resource management.

Methodology

Study design

The study adapted a mixed methods design.

Many definitions of mixed methods are available in the literature (e.g., see Johnson, Onwuegbuzie, & Turner, 2007) [13,15]. For purposes of this study, mixed methods research was defined as a research approach or methodology:

i. Focusing on research questions that call for real-life contextual understandings, multi-level perspectives, and cultural influences

ii. Employing rigorous quantitative research assessing magnitude and frequency of constructs and rigorous qualitative research exploring the meaning and understanding of constructs;

iii. Utilizing multiple methods (e.g., intervention trials and in-depth interviews];

iv. Intentionally integrating or combining these methods to draw on the strengths of each

v. Framing the investigation within philosophical and theoretical positions.

The study design integrated both data triangulation (quantitative and qualitative) using several data sources e. g. primary and secondary sources and methodological triangulation - using multiple methods to achieve results e.g. literature review, use of focus groups, key informants and consultants observations.

Approach

A tried and tested participatory approach which engaged key stakeholders including: biodiversity conservation, wildlife management/conservation, forestry, fisheries, ecotourism, environment, water management, water, sanitation and hygiene, agriculture, livestock and climate change, opinion leaders, key informants and project beneficiaries was applied. The approach according to the TOR was supported by field visits to capture and document success stories from projects. Salient components of the methodology including initial assessments of existing project document, policies, and adaptation practices. Whilst carrying out the assignment, the consultant took cognizance of gender related and other cross-cutting development issues. The team recognizes the importance of good data collection instruments and methods as well as proper use of statistical tools for identifying and recruiting representative beneficiary groups and to tell success stories and document in still pictures and videos.

Phases of the project

The methodology involved a logical sequence of the following specific iterative activities which may be divided into three main phases:

a. Inception phase: This phase focused on desk reviews, development of standard questions and formats for data collection as well as outlines for stories and story lines for documentaries.

b. Field Study: This phase involved Data Collection/ Engagement with beneficiaries and stakeholders. It used several data gathering tools.

c. Drafting and Finalization of Deliverables: Upon completion of the field work, the team gathered to prepare the deliverables [16].

Data collection methods

The study involved use of both primary and secondary data. While secondary data was sourced from relevant literature, primary data was obtained from the selected respondents for this study. The following methods were used for data collection:

Literature Review

Secondary data was collected through literature reviews of documents that were of relevance to the project from various stakeholders.

Field Surveys

Field surveys were undertaken in the project site for a period 21 days. The study focused on CBNRM groups as units of analysis. The groups were be categorized into 9 [17] sectors namely wildlife, forestry, fisheries, eco/tourism, environment, waste management water, sanitation & hygiene, agriculture & livestock and mining.

Experts suggested names of CBNRM groups to participate in the field surveys during a consultative forum as shown in Table 1 below. A structured questionnaire was used to obtain primary data from the relevant officials, and beneficiaries in CBNRM groups. The questionnaire also guided focus group discussions especially in the CBRM groups visited that attracted many members. Key informant discussions were also held with specific officials of the groups e.g. project coordinators, chairmen, secretaries etc. During the field study the team ensured that pictures and videos were taken to document the process. Authority in Kilifi. Experts were drawn from the following sectors: biodiversity conservation, wildlife management/ conservation, forestry, fisheries, eco/tourism, environment, waste management, water, sanitation & hygiene, agriculture, livestock, sustainable development and climate change. The consultant presented draft criteria to participants which was discussed, refined and adapted as the criteria for identification of successful sub-projects.

Data processing

The data entry was done at a central place in tandem with data collection. After reviewing the completed questionnaires to rectify any data collection errors, the data input was made into a database to ensure quality control. Data was analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Qualitative data was analysed by consolidating emerging themes that emerged from the study while quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics and presented as charts and percentages.

Results

Community members implementing various natural resource based projects were asked to name what they perceived as the drivers to the success of their projects. Those interviewed included group members of each group visited and community members outside the project but who benefited from the project. On average, the study interviewed 400 community members. They listed community ownership, strong group cohesion, partnership with stakeholders, technical support, and availability of market for products, strong group leadership, availability of volunteer services, tangible benefits to community and good will/support from government. Rationale behind Drivers of Success.

Community ownership means that the community has accepted the project and owned it. In most cases, ownership came through membership registration by payment of a fee and participation in decision making. Ownership ensured that members came up with creative ways to raise funds to sustain the project even when donor support was not forthcoming. Strong group cohesion in most cases meant that the relationship of the members went beyond official group business to social issues. Members frequently called and visited each other's homes to find out the well-being of each other. When one group member fell sick, members visited them to find out what they can do. In one case, a male member of a group whose wife was bedridden for a period of three months received assistance from women in the group who fetched water and cleaned the house on behalf of the sick female member of the group.

Partnership with stakeholders meant that groups were able to identify other groups, donors, professionals etc. who shared in their vision and worked together to further their goals. Watamu Turtle Watch in their Turtle Rehabilitation project, for example, partnered with fishermen associations to ensure that when they sported a turtle that is hurt as they went about their fishing business, they quickly informed the project coordinator so a rescue operation could be organized. Similarly to finance such operations, the project needed funding and so they partnered with Local Ocean Trust, a private, non-profit organization committed to the protection of Kenya’s marine environment.

Technical support is necessary because most community projects are run laypeople whose levels of education are mostly below high school. These people therefore lack the knowledge required to deal with the technical issues for the project. For example, the Mikoko pamoja project. The Mikoko Pamoja Steering Group (MPSG) provides technical support to the Mikoko Pamoja Community Organization (MPCO) and the project coordinator while the project is supported by the Association for Coastal Ecosystem Services (ACES), a charity registered in Scotland. It emerged that this technical support was a major contributor to the success of this project. Similarly in Seaweed farming, KCDP has supported the seaweed farmers in the south coast in several ways: construction and setting up of seaweed model farmers (10x10 m plots) with 300 lines each; supported the construction of seaweed drying racks in Kibuyuni, Mkwiro and Funzi sites; supply of farming implements; supply of seaweed seeds; engagement of a seaweed buyer hence market and training in seaweed farming. Because the famers themselves have no capacity to perform these tasks, this may be described as technical support. The study revealed that this contributed immensely to the success of the projects [18-20].

Availability of market for products is another factor: Most of the projects that produced seedlings for sale failed because of lack of market for the seedlings. For example although the Gede Community Forest Association's Jamii Villas project had a nice hotel and accommodation facility, they hardly received any visitors because the facility was not known. Members were looking for a marketing firm that would help them market it abroad as a tourist destination. This is unlike projects like Mikoko Pamoja’s Hewa Kaa (Carbon Trading) who have market for their product (Hewa kaa) for the next 20 years through ACES with whom they have signed a contract.

Strong group leadership was necessary to bring group members together direct their efforts and inspire and motivate them to work hard to achieve set objectives. Most of those projects that scored the minimum 7 had lack of motivation as driver of failure. In most cases, the study found that the group lacked a leader to give direction to the members. Table 2 Poor leadership in projects like Wasini Women Group's: Wasini Women mangrove boardwalk, led to constant wrangles over money generated, projects to be undertaken, workers etc hence little progress in meeting objectives. Successful projects like Jimbo Environmental Group’s Mangrove conservation project ensured a level of empowerment of its members in respect to ownership and protection of their coastal and marine resources, held regular meetings, ensured that members understood the constitution guiding the group, ensured that there was transparency in handling of fund generated by the project, and decision arrived by consensus. This ensured fair play and participation by all members.

Availability of volunteer services as a factor required that members provide services for free to ensure that project does not spend funds to undertake activities instead of re-investing the money. At Rabai Cultural Village's Kaya Mudzi Muvya project, members volunteer their time and take turns on a daily basis to ensure there are people at the village even when there are no visitors. Members spend time planting seedlings, practicing traditional songs, making carvings etc. For most of those projects that scored the minimum 7 members refused to volunteer due to lack of motivation and leadership.

Tangible benefits to community means that the community must feel the benefits of the project for them to support it. For example for the community to see the benefits of Kaya Mudzi Muvya project which meant just living a huge chunk of land under forest and not cutting the trees, project members used funds generated from the project to build a nursery school, bring tap water for the community to use, pay school fees for children from disadvantaged families etc. Good will and support from government came out as a critical factor. This especially was true in terms of enforcement of rules by the project. At Mvera's Mida Creek Community Board walk, for example, conservation of mangroves has been made easy by the presence of KWS officers. While community vigilance will round up and catch people cutting mangroves, once caught they are handed over to the KWS police and undergo a government prosecution system. This support has meant that people know how serious it is to destroy mangroves.

Project Success by Gender

The data collected showed that there was a variation in project success based on gender with projects implemented by women being more successful as shown in figure 2 below. This is because women are more honest and would not for example misuse money meant for the project. As found out in Rabai Cultural village's Kaya Mudzi Muvya’s project, women were the most consistent in coming to the village to attend to issues in the village Project Success by Amount of Funding. There was a significant positive correlation between amount of project funding and project success rate. Projects with higher funding appeared to be more successful. The mean funding size for successful community projects was approximately Ksh. 6 million. This is because with more funding, groups were able to complete the projects until they started making profits. Once members started sharing the profits, they got motivated to spend more time in the project and this ensured that they had something to take home and feed their families. Project Success by Donor Agency

It was shown that there was a significant variation in project success depending on the type of donor agency (df=3, F=11.69, p<0.001) [20]. Projects funded by NGOs had the highest success score while those funded by the community had the lowest. This is because projects funded by NGOs ensured constant flow of funds. For example Mikoko Pamoja's Hewa Kaa project has been receiving funding consistently from ACES for the last four years and will continue to do so for the next 16 years. Those funded by the community like Jilore.

Community Forest Association

Mwatate CBO, Pate Mangrove Conservation, Tuungane Challa Chini, Kilifi Chivara, Tumuone Mama Group, Taita Environmental Initiative, Kizingo Development Group which were at the bottom of the ranking because they lacked money to undertake activities. Consequently this led to lack of motivation amongst members

Correlation of Results Chain Parameters with Project Success

All the seven results chain variables demonstrated statistically significant correlation with project success. Project outcomes were the most highly correlated to project success while project status was least correlated. This means that respondents associated the success of projects more with the outcome of the projects more than with the status of the project. So that although Rabai Cultural Village's Kaya Mudzi Muvya project does not have a high status, the outcome which is conservation of the forest, presence of schools and water for the community made people view the project as most successful.

Discussion And Conclusion

Based on the above analysis, the researchers made the following conclusions

Biggest drivers of success for community based projects

Community ownership, strong group cohesion, partnership with stakeholders, technical support, availability of market for products, strong group leadership, availability of volunteer services, tangible benefits to community and good will / support from government are the biggest drivers of success for community based projects. Organizations supporting these projects therefore should emphasize these attributes to ensure success. Community ownership means that the community has accepted the project and owned it. In most cases, ownership came through membership registration by payment of a fee and participation in decision making. Ownership ensured that members came up with creative ways to raise funds to sustain the project even when donor support was not forthcoming. Strong group cohesion in most cases meant that the relationship of the members went beyond official group business to social issues. Members frequently called and visited each other’s homes to find out the well being of each other. When one group member fell sick, members visited them to find out what they can do. In one case, a male member of a group whose wife was bedridden for a period of three months received assistance from women in the group who fetched water and cleaned the house on behalf of the sick female member of the group. Partnership with stakeholders meant that groups were able to identify other groups, donors, professionals etc who shared in their vision and worked together to further their goals. Watamu Turtle Watch in their Turtle Rehabilitation project for example partnered with fishermen associations to ensure that when they sported a turtle that is hurt as they went about their fishing business, they quickly informed the project coordinator so a rescue operation could be organized. Similarly to finance such operations, the project needed funding and so they partnered with Local Ocean Trust, a private, not for profit organisation committed to the protection of Kenya's marine environment.

Technical support is necessary because most community project are run by laypeople whose levels of education was mostly below high school. These people therefore lacked the knowledge required to deal with the technical issues for the project. For example for the Mikoko pamoja project The Mikoko Pamoja Steering Group (MPSG) provides technical support to the Mikoko Pamoja Community Organization (MPCO) and the project coordinator while the project is supported by the Association for Coastal Ecosystem Services (ACES), a charity registered in Scotland. It emerged that this technical support was a major contributor to the success of this project. Similarly in Seaweed farming, KCDP has supported the seaweed farmers in the south coast in several ways: construction and setting up of seaweed model farmers (10x10 m plots) with 300 lines each, supported the construction of seaweed drying racks in Kibuyuni, Mkwiro and Funzi sites, supply of farming implements, supply of seaweed seeds, engagement of a seaweed buyer hence market and training in seaweed farming. Because the famers themselves have no capacity to do these, this may be described as technical support. The study revealed that this contributed immensely to the success of the projects.

Availability of market for products: Most of the projects that produced seedlings for sale failed because of lack of market for the seedlings. For example although the Gede Community Forest Association's Jamii Villas project had a nice hotel and accommodation facility, they hardly received any visitors because the facility was not known. Members were looking for a marketing firm that would help them market it abroad as a tourist destination. This is unlike projects like Mikoko Pamoja's Hewa Kaa (Carbon Trading) who have market for their product (Hewa kaa) for the next 20 years through ACES with whom they have signed a contract. Strong group leadership was necessary to bring group members together direct their efforts and inspire and motivate them to work hard to achieve set objectives.

Most of those projects that scored the minimum 7 had lack of motivation as driver of failure. In most cases, the study found that the groups lacked a leader to give direction to the members. Poor leadership in projects like Wasini Women Group’s Wasini Women mangrove boardwalk led to constant wrangles over money generated, projects to be undertaken, workers etc hence no progress in meeting objectives. Successful projects like Jimbo Environmental Group's Mangrove conservation project ensured a level of empowerment of its members in respect to ownership and protection of their coastal and marine resources, held regular meetings, ensured that members understood the constitution guiding the group, ensured that there was transparency in handling of funds generated by the project, and decisions arrived by consensus. This ensured fair play and participation by all members. Availability of volunteer services: This required that members provide services for free to ensure that the project does not spend funds to undertake activities instead of re-investing the money. At Rabai Cultural Village’s Kaya Mudzi Muvya project, members volunteer their time and take turns on a daily basis to ensure there are people at the village even when there are no visitors. Members spend time planting seedlings, practicing traditional songs, making carvings etc. For most of those projects that scored the minimum 7 members refused to volunteer due to lack of motivation and leadership.

Tangible benefits to community means that the community must feel the benefits of the project for them to support it. For example for the community to see Figures 1 & 2 the benefits of Kaya Mudzi Muvya project which meant just living a huge chunk of land under forest and not cutting the trees, project members used funds generated from the project to build a nursery school, bring tap water for the community to use, pay school fees for children from disadvantaged families etc. Good will/support from government: this especially came in terms of enforcement of rules by the project. At Mvera's Mida Creek Community Board walk Conservation of mangroves has been made easy by the presence of KWS officers. While community vigilance will round up and catch people cutting mangroves, once caught they are handed over to the KWS police and undergo a government prosecution system. This support has meant that people know how serious it is to destroy mangroves.

Projects with greater women participation tend to perform better

The data collected showed that there was a variation in project success based on gender with projects implemented by women being more successful as shown in the Figure 3-5. This is because women are more honest and would not for example misuse money meant for the project. As found out in Rabai Cultural village's Kaya Mudzi Muvya’s project, women were the most consistent in coming to the village to attend to issues in it. More opportunities therefore should be given to women in these projects.

Positive correlation between amount of project funding and project success rate

The study revealed that there is a significant positive correlation between amount of project funding and project success rate. Projects with higher funding appear to be more successful with the mean funding size for successful community projects being approximately Ksh. 6 million. Projects with higher funding appeared to be more successful. The mean funding size for successful community projects was approximately Ksh. 6 million. The study revealed that with more funding, groups were able to complete the projects until they started making profits. Once members started sharing the profits, they got motivated to spend more time in the project as this ensured that they had something to take home and feed their families. Projects should therefore be funded at those levels to ensure success.

Projects funded by NGOs have the highest success rate

Results from the study also indicate that projects funded by NGOs have the highest success score while those funded by community being the lowest. This is because projects funded by NGO ensured constant flow of funds. For example Mikoko Pamoja's Hewa Kaa project has been receiving funding consistently from ASSETS for the last four years and will continue to do so for the next 16 years. Those funded by the community like Jilore Community Forest Association, Mwatate CBO, Pate Mangrove Conservation, Tuungane Challa Chini, Kilifi Chivara, Tumuone Mama Group, Taita Environmental Initiative, Kizingo Development Group, were at the bottom of the ranking because they lacked money to undertake activities. Consequently this led to lack of motivation amongst members. This calls for more interventions by NGOs in support of community projects.

Project outcomes are the most highly correlated to project success

It may be concluded from the findings ofthis study that project outcomes are the most highly correlated to project success while project status is least correlated. This means that communities associate the success of projects more with the outcome of the projects than that with the status of the project. So that although Rabai Cultural Village’s Kaya Mudzi Muvya project does not have a high status (income obtained is not significant, most members in the project have not gone beyond primary school etc.) , (Figure 5) the outcome which is conservation of the forest, presence of schools and water for the community makes people rate the project as most successful. This calls for emphasis on project outcomes amongst community projects. These outcomes will be most visible if the community views them as contributing to improvement of their lives.

For more Open Access Journals in Juniper Publishers please click on: https://juniperpublishers.business.site/ For more articles in Open Access Journal of Environmental Sciences & Natural Resources please click on: https://juniperpublishers.com/ijesnr/ To know more about Open Access Journals Publishers To read more…Fulltext please click on: https://juniperpublishers.com/ijesnr/IJESNR.MS.ID.555624.php

[atikaschool]

Vacancies at Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI)

Vacancies at Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI)

Government Jobs, Kenya Forestry Research Institute Jobs, KEFRI Jobs, Jobs in Kenya, KEFRI Jobs 2022, KEFRI Jobs in Kenya 2022, Kenya Forestry Research Institute Jobs in Nairobi, Jobs in Kenya 2022, Latest Kenya Forestry Research Institute Jobs in Kenya, KEFRI Job Application Form 2022, KEFRI Shortlisted Candidates 2022, KEFRI Job Online Application 2022, kefri.org Jobs Vacancies at Kenya Forestry…

[tanzaniajobs]

Job Opportunity at RTI International, Human Resources Manager

  Human Resources Manager   Research Triangle Institute (RTI) has over 30 years’ experience assisting governments, communities, and the private sector in managing their environment and natural resources. We have delivered innovative, breakthrough solutions in key development sectors including: countering wildlife crime, forestry, protected area management, climate change, economic livelihood development, community engagement, and institutional capacity building. Project Description The goal of the recently awarded Tuhifadhi Maliasili activity is to address dynamics that hinder habitat connectivity and the long-term persistence of biodiversity in Tanzania. This activity will incorporate a series of interventions that support and strengthen government and civil society capacity for biodiversity conservation in a manner that: i) increases private sector engagement in conservation and natural resource management (NRM); ii) builds the capacity of the public sector and civil society; and iii) strengthens the policy and regulatory framework for conservation and NRM. These interventions together will reduce threats to biodiversity in Tanzania while moving Tanzanian institutions further on their journey to self-reliance. Summary: The HR Manager will be responsible for implementation of HR Strategies, effective delivery of HR services and management; interpretation and application of HR policies; rules and regulations; facilitation of internal procedures and process solutions to a wide spectrum of complex HR issues. The HR Manager promotes a collaborative, client-oriented approach and contributes to the maintenance of high staff morale. They will support the formulation of solid HR strategies and implement Project human resources initiatives to attract, develop, motivate and retain the most suitable talent throughout the projects and facilitate successful performance management. Specific Responsibilities: - Review, disseminate, ensure full compliance of HR policy guidelines and country employee handbooks in tandem with local labor laws, client  rules and regulations, RTI policies, values, ethics, procedures and strategies; effective implementation of the internal control framework and proper functioning of the HR policy framework. - Provide advice and information on RTI HR Policy adjustments changes in local labor law and regulations, implementation of employee handbook, strategic use of contractual modalities, application of entitlements, change management processes. - Disseminate HR communication, priorities, and allocated tasks; and ensure strict adherence to procedures in the area of selection and recruitment of temporary and longer-term staff. - Organization of recruitment processes through the provision of input to short-listing process, screening of candidates, setting up and participation in interview panels including documentation processing for offers and deployment. - In liaison with local country insurance brokers and RTI Regional Office track Private Medical Insurance (PMI) expiry dates and follow up on renewals. - Maintain HR (including non-personnel) files; Track and compile the project leave schedules, setting up all staff absence by receiving and filing PTO authorizations, performing the functions of absence monitoring and recording; Advise staff on their leave entitlements. - Coordinate with Kenya Regional Office for the preparation of contracts of local national (LN) and other changes pertaining term of employment through timely preparation and submission of Personnel Action Forms or Offer Request Memos. - Conduct preliminary Job Grading for HR and COP review and approval, determines eligibility for salaries, entitlements, and benefits according to approved matrix, FSN and confirmed country benefits while applying Staff Regulations, Rules, and other official provisions with consistency. - Implement RTI Performance Management system – Dynamic Development in the project, including but not limited to working with staff on goal-setting, documentation in the system, and regular Check-Ins. Facilitating learning initiatives, recommending courses that are beneficial to the project and in accordance RTI University courses and individual learning plans. - Orientation and induction focal person; Provides information to staff members on their employment conditions and entitlements, including on-entry briefings, facilitate CCN orientation and file orientation reports as espoused in the project on orientation and induction. - Ensure personnel files and database are well updated accurately maintained. Maintain RTI’s projects manual and excel based personnel database and supporting use of its information by project staff for planning and administration purposes. - Perform other duties as assigned. Read the full article

[kenyajobs-blog]

Job Vacancies at Kenya Forestry Research Institute July 2017

Job Vacancies at Kenya Forestry Research Institute July 2017

Job Opportunities at Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) July 2017

Career Opportunity: Laboratory Technologist Job Description

Employment Vacancy : Secretarial Assistant Job Recruitment

Are you looking to work for the government? The Kenya Forestry Research Institute is now hiring. Apply here…

1. KEFRI Jobs Secretarial Assistant (2 Posts)

Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE)…

[ericfruits]

Africa’s big carbon emitters admit they have a problem

AN HOUR east of Johannesburg, on the rolling highveld plains, six massive cooling towers sit around two belching smokestacks. The Kendal power station (pictured) is among the world’s largest, producing 4.1 gigawatts (GW) from burning coal. A few kilometres down the road there is another coal-fired plant, Duvha, which is only slightly smaller. An even bigger one, Kusile, is under construction next door.

When sub-Saharan Africa comes up in discussions of climate change, it is almost invariably in the context of adapting to the consequences, such as worsening droughts. That makes sense. The region is responsible for just 7.1% of the world’s greenhouse-gas emissions, despite being home to 14% of its people. Most African countries do not emit much carbon dioxide. Yet there are some notable exceptions.

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Start with coal-rich South Africa, which belches out more carbon dioxide than Britain, despite having 10m fewer people and an economy one-eighth the size. Like nearly all of its power plants, many of its vehicles depend on coal, which is used to make the country’s petrol (a technique that helped the old apartheid regime cope with sanctions). A petrochemical complex in the town of Secunda owned by Sasol, a big energy and chemicals firm, is one of the world’s largest localised sources of greenhouse gases.

Zambia is another exception. It burns so much vegetation that its land-use-related emissions surpass those of Brazil, a notorious—and much larger—deforester. On a recent descent into Lusaka, four fires were visible from the aeroplane. “If you had come 30 days later, it would have been worse,” says Davison Gumbo of the Centre for International Forestry Research, a non-profit. Most burning happens during the dry season, which starts next month.

South Africa and Zambia may be extreme examples, but they are not the region’s only big emitters (see chart). Nigerian households and businesses rely on dirty diesel generators for 14GW of power, more than the country’s installed capacity of 10GW. Subsistence farmers from Angola to Kenya use slash-and-burn techniques to fertilise fields with ash and to make charcoal, which nearly 1bn Africans use to cook. This, plus the breakneck growth of extractive industries, explains why African forests are disappearing at a rate of 0.5% a year, faster than in South America. Because trees sequester carbon, cutting them counts as emissions in climate accounting.

Other countries are following South Africa’s lead and embracing coal, the filthiest fuel. A dozen of them are building or planning new coal-fired power plants totalling 40GW, according to Coalswarm, a watchdog. A big one planned for the old port town of Lamu in Kenya is one of many Chinese-backed coal projects in Africa.

Policymakers at the latest African climate summit, which concluded in Nairobi on April 13th, acknowledged the continent’s carbon problem. But they worried that development might slow if Africa meets its commitment under the Paris climate agreement, which aims to limit global warming. The two imperatives often pull in opposite directions. Africa’s sunny skies and long, blustery coastlines offer near-limitless solar- and wind-energy potential. But what African economies need now are “spinning reserves”, which can respond quickly to volatile demand, says Josh Agenbroad of the Rocky Mountain Institute, a think-tank in Colorado. Fossil fuels deliver this; renewables do not.

Foreign aid, on which many African countries depend, often leads to more emissions. To ensure that their money is used efficiently, and not stolen, Western development agencies favour large tried-and-tested projects, such as fossil-fuel plants. So do the Chinese, who want to keep their engineers busy now that they have stopped building coal-fired power plants at home.

Yet it is not all gloom. The UN’s newer green-finance initiatives are proving more generous to Africa than its old Clean Development Mechanism, which has channelled just 2.5% of its resources to the continent since 2001. Many of Africa’s proposed coal plants, including the one planned for Lamu, may never get built. Several countries are intrigued by hybrid plants where most electricity is generated by solar panels, but diesel provides the spinning reserves, says Mr Agenbroad. Adaptation will remain Africa’s chief climate concern for the foreseeable future. But it is no longer the only one.

This article appeared in the Middle East and Africa section of the print edition under the headline "A burning issue"

https://ift.tt/2Jae30K

[jobskenyaplace]

TENDER FOR PROVISION OF GROUND MAINTENANCE SERVICES 2024/2025 - KEFRI

KENYA FORESTRY RESEARCH INSTITUTE HEADQUARTERS TENDERS OCTOBER 2024  INVITATION TO TENDER Tender NO; KEFRI/ONT/004/2024-2025 PROVISION OF GROUND MAINTENANCE SERVICES. 1. Kenya Forestry Research Institute invites sealed tenders for the Provision of Ground Maintenance Services. The cover will be for a period of two years starting 1st December 2024. 2. Tendering will be conducted under the Open…

[soufcakmistress]

Wangari Muta Maathai was a Kenyan environmentalist and a Nobel laureate. Maathai was educated in the United States due to a program called Airlife Africa that John F. Kennedy, who was a senator at the time, initiated in the name of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation. This was a way to make Western educational programs more readily available to promising students in Africa. She earned a B.S. at Mount St. Scholastica College in Kansas, and later earned a M.S. at the University of Pittsburgh. Maathai returned back to her homeland and earned a doctorate degree at the University of Nairobi. She became the first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate. While attending school in Kenya, Maathai was also a professor teaching veterinary anatomy for the school. She later became the chair of the Department of Veterinary Anatomy. Committed to her civic duty to her country, she was active in the National Council of Women in Kenya and introduced the idea of community based tree planting. This idea was developed into the Green Belt Movement, which Maathai wanted to focus on the reduction of poverty and to increase awareness about environment conservation. To name a few accomplishments and titles she owned, she was named the U.N. Messenger of Peace by the U.N. Secretary General. In partnership with the University of Nairobi, she founded the Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace and Environmental Studies; the organization focused on bringing academic research in land use, forestry, agriculture, etc with the approach used with the Green Belt Movement. Maathai was also awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. The Norwegian committee noted her contributions to “sustainable development, democracy and peace”. They also stated, “Maathai stands at the front of the fight to promote ecologically viable social, economic and cultural development in Kenya and in Africa. Maathai authored 4 books and has impacted so many lives. She died on Sep. 25, 2011 due to ovarian cancer. Black history IS world history. Thank a Black woman today.

[thecountydiary]

Kitui Women Demand Arrest of Former CS Penina Malonza Over Alleged Misappropriation of Ksh 8 Million from Women’s Sacco Funds Drive

A group of women from Kitui County is calling for the arrest of former Cabinet Secretary (CS) Penina Malonza over allegations that she misappropriated Ksh 8 million. The funds were raised earlier this year during a women’s sacco funds drive held at the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) in Kitui town.The event, attended by former CSs Simon Chelugui and Penina Malonza, was intended to…

[lecho]

Wangari Maathai - First Black Woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize 

Wangari Maathai was the founder of the Green Belt Movement and the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. She authored four books: The Green Belt Movement; Unbowed: A Memoir; The Challenge for Africa; and Replenishing the Earth. As well as having been featured in a number of books, she and the Green Belt Movement were the subject of a documentary film, Taking Root: the Vision of Wangari Maathai (Marlboro Productions, 2008).

Wangari Muta Maathai was born in Nyeri, a rural area of Kenya (Africa), in 1940. She obtained a degree in Biological Sciences from Mount St. Scholastica College in Atchison, Kansas (1964), a Master of Science degree from the University of Pittsburgh (1966), and pursued doctoral studies in Germany and the University of Nairobi, before obtaining a Ph.D. (1971) from the University of Nairobi, where she also taught veterinary anatomy. The first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate degree, Professor Maathai became chair of the Department of Veterinary Anatomy and an associate professor in 1976 and 1977 respectively. In both cases, she was the first woman to attain those positions in the region.

Professor Maathai was active in the National Council of Women of Kenya (1976–1987) and was its chairman (1981–1987). In 1976, while she was serving in the National Council of Women, Professor Maathai introduced the idea of community-based tree planting. She continued to develop this idea into a broad-based grassroots organisation, the Green Belt Movement (GBM), whose main focus is poverty reduction and environmental conservation through tree planting.

Professor Maathai was internationally acknowledged for her struggle for democracy, human rights, and environmental conservation, and served on the board of many organisations. She addressed the UN on a number of occasions and spoke on behalf of women at special sessions of the General Assembly during the five-year review of the Earth Summit. She served on the Commission for Global Governance and the Commission on the Future.

Professor Maathai represented the Tetu constituency in Kenya’s parliament (2002–2007), and served as Assistant Minister for Environment and Natural Resources in Kenya’s ninth parliament (2003–2007). In 2005, she was appointed Goodwill Ambassador to the Congo Basin Forest Ecosystem by the eleven Heads of State in the Congo region. The following year, 2006, she founded the Nobel Women’s Initiative with her sister laureates Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi, Rigoberta Menchú Tum, Betty Williams, and Mairead Corrigan. In 2007, Professor Maathai was invited to be co-chair of the Congo Basin Fund, an initiative by the British and the Norwegian governments to help protect the Congo forests.

In recognition of her deep commitment to the environment, the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General named Professor Maathai a UN Messenger of Peace in December 2009, with a focus on the environment and climate change. In 2010 she was appointed to the Millennium Development Goals Advocacy Group: a panel of political leaders, business people and activists established with the aim to galvanise worldwide support for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Also in 2010, Professor Maathai became a trustee of the Karura Forest Environmental Education Trust, established to safeguard the public land for whose protection she had fought for almost twenty years. That same year, in partnership with the University of Nairobi, she founded the Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace and Environmental Studies (WMI). The WMI will bring together academic research—e.g. in land use, forestry, agriculture, resource-based conflicts, and peace studies—with the Green Belt Movement approach and members of the organisation.

Professor Maathai died on 25 September 2011 at the age of 71 after a battle with ovarian cancer. Memorial ceremonies were held in Kenya, New York, San Francisco, and London.

Click here for a list of awards, achievements, and professional affiliations.

Click here to read some of Professor Maathai’s key speeches and articles.

Click here for Professor Maathai’s statement on the AIDS crisis in Africa.

Awards, Achievements, and Professional Affiliations

PERSONAL

Date of Birth: April 1, 1940 Deceased: September 25, 2011 Place of Birth: Nyeri, Kenya Nationality: Kenyan Family: Three children (Waweru, Wanjira, and Muta) and two grandchildren (Ruth Wangari and Elsa Wanjiru)

EDUCATION

Ph.D., Anatomy, University of Nairobi (1971) M.S., Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, USA (1966) B.S., Biology, Mount St. Scholastica College, USA (1964)

PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENTS

Founder and Coordinator, the Green Belt Movement (1977–2002) Chair of the Board, the Green Belt Movement (2002-2011) UN Messenger of Peace (2009–2011) Co-Chair, Congo Basin Forest Fund (2007–2011) Goodwill Ambassador, Congo Basin Forest Initiative (2005–2011) Presiding Officer, Economic Social and Cultural Council of the African Union (ECOSOCC) (2005–2007) Founding Chair, the Green Belt Movement International (2005) Assistant Minister, Environment, Republic of Kenya (2003–2005) Member of Parliament, Tetu Constituency, Republic of Kenya (2002–2007) Founding member, GROOTS International (1985) Director, Kenya Red Cross (1973–1980)

ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS

Dorothy McCluskey Visiting Fellow for Conservation, Yale University, USA (2002) Montgomery Fellow, Dartmouth College, USA (2001) Endowed Chair in Gender & Women’s Studies named “Fuller-Maathai,” Connecticut College (2000) Associate Professor, Department of Veterinary Anatomy, University of Nairobi (1977) Chair, Department of Veterinary Anatomy, University of Nairobi (1976)

[atikaschool]

Assistant Forester job at Kenya Forestry Research Institute

Assistant Forester job at Kenya Forestry Research Institute

Responsibilities • Identifying the staff requirement for different operations; • Identifying and acquisitioning the necessary tools and equipment for field operations; • Scheduling of data collection in trials in consultation with responsible research scientists; • Liaising with scientists to facilitate data collection and management; • Ensuring adherence to seed collection, handling and dispatch…

[paullassiterca]

Over 1 Trillion Trees Need To Be Planted in the Next 10 Years

Planting more trees — to the tune of 1.2 trillion — could be the answer to saving the Earth, with the trees capable of storing so much carbon dioxide (CO2) that they would cancel out a decades’ worth of human-made (CO2) emissions.1 Further, thanks to the work of ecologist Thomas Crowther and colleagues at Swiss university ETH Zurich, it’s now known that there’s room for an additional 1.2 trillion trees on the planet.

The team global forest inventory data from the Global Forest Biodiversity Initiative (GFBI) combined with satellite data to gain an understanding of the global forest system. They also studied data from the Global Soil Biodiversity Initiative (GSBI), which revealed a first glimpse of global patterns in biomass and diversity of the global soil microbiome.

“Using this combination of above ground and below ground data we can identify regions of high priority for biodiversity conservation,” Crowther said in research presented at the 2019 American Association for the Advancement of Science conference in Washington, D.C. “Additionally, we can finally start to understand the feedbacks that determine atmospheric carbon concentrations over the rest of the century.”2

Planting Trees the ‘Most Powerful Weapon’

Crowther stated that planting trees was our “most powerful weapon” in protecting the planet, with their research suggesting an additional 1.2 trillion trees could be planted across the globe to capture massive amounts of carbon from the environment. Currently, the Earth is home to 3 trillion trees, which is seven times more than previously believed.

“There’s 400 gigatons [of carbon] now, in the 3 trillion trees, and if you were to scale that up by another trillion trees that’s in the order of hundreds of gigatons captured from the atmosphere — at least 10 years of anthropogenic emissions completely wiped out,” Crowther told The Independent.3

The United Nations already responded to the findings, changing their Billion Tree Campaign to the Trillion Tree Campaign, which states, “Global reforestation could capture 25 percent of global annual carbon emissions and create wealth in the global south.”

More than 13.6 billion trees have already been planted as part of the campaign,4 which tracks not only where trees have been planted but also where forests currently exist and where forests could be restored. The Trillion Tree Campaign states that there is actually space for up to 600 billion mature trees on the planet, without taking space away from agricultural land.

However, since some planted trees won’t survive, the target is to plant at least 1 trillion trees to reach the 600 billion mature tree goal. “Additionally, we must protect the 170 billion trees in imminent risk of destruction. They are crucial carbon storages and essential ecosystems to protect biodiversity,” they state.5

Planting Trees Protects Biodiversity

Loss of biodiversity is another major environmental hurdle that planting trees could help remedy. Deforestation, forest degradation and other factors are currently threatening about half of tree species worldwide, which could have dire consequences on the productivity of ecosystems therein.

Using more than three-quarters of a million sample plots in 44 countries containing more than 30 million trees, researchers revealed that continued loss of biodiversity would result in accelerating decline in worldwide forest productivity.6 The work, a product of GFBI, Crowther and colleagues, found that, on average, a 10 percent loss in biodiversity leads to a 3 percent loss in productivity.

“The value of biodiversity in maintaining commercial forest productivity alone — $166 to $490 billion per year according to our estimation — is by itself over two to six times the total estimated cost that would be necessary for effective global conservation. This highlights the need for a worldwide reassessment of biodiversity values, forest management strategies and conservation priorities,” GFBI explained.7

Crowther added to The Independent, “We are not targeting urban or agricultural area, just degraded or abandoned lands, and it has the potential to tackle the two greatest challenges of our time — climate change and biodiversity loss.”8

Australia Aims to Plant 1 Billion Trees by 2050

Australia, as the seventh-largest forested area in the world, is well suited to contribute to the 1 trillion trees goal, and they’ve pledged to plant 1 billion trees by 2050 as part of a forestry plan to meet Paris Agreement targets, including reducing carbon emissions by 26 to 28 percent by 2030. If the tree-planting target is met, it’s estimated that 18 million tons of greenhouse gas would be removed per year by 2030.9

The fact is, forest represents one of five carbon sinks on Earth (the others are nonindustrial regenerative farmland, atmosphere, ocean and fossil deposits), and removing the renewable grasslands and forests that not only can sustain, but also regenerate our soils and solidify this fragile carbon balance, is a major part of the problem.

If you’re wondering what a carbon sink is, the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science explains it this way:10

“The carbon cycle involves the flux, or flow, of carbon between different earth systems. An object or process that absorbs and stores carbon is called a sink, while one that releases carbon faster than it is absorbed is termed a source. For example, a healthy plant is a carbon sink because it is taking in CO2 from the air and storing it in new leaves and roots and a larger stem.”

In the U.S., although forests make up 90 percent of the carbon sink, they sequester only about 10 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions.11 Further, it’s estimated that one-third of the surplus carbon dioxide in the atmosphere stems from poor land-management processes, including clearing forests, overgrazing and tilling the soil that contribute to the loss of carbon, as carbon dioxide, from farmlands.12

Planting trees is considered to be an invaluable part of carbon sequestration, which is the process via which trees and other plants take up carbon dioxide and store it as carbon in their trunks, branches, foliage and roots. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service:13

“The sink of carbon sequestration in forests and wood products helps to offset sources of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, such as deforestation, forest fires and fossil fuel emissions.

Sustainable forestry practices can increase the ability of forests to sequester atmospheric carbon while enhancing other ecosystem services, such as improved soil and water quality. Planting new trees and improving forest health … are some of the ways to increase forest carbon in the long run.”

Mercola.com Has Planted Over 200,000 Trees

Mercola.com, in partnership with Trees for the Future, has planted over 200,000 trees.14 This organization is working to end hunger and poverty for small farmers by revitalizing degraded lands, using their Forest Garden program. They work in six sub-Saharan countries, actively planting trees in Senegal, Cameroon, Kenya, Tanzania, Guinea and Uganda. According to Trees for the Future:15

“The Forest Garden Program is a simple, replicable and scalable approach with proven success. By planting specific types of fast-growing trees, fruit trees, hardwoods and food crops in a systematic manner over a four-year period, families can positively change their lives forever.

Forest Gardens consist of thousands of trees that provide families with sustainable food sources, livestock feed, products to sell, fuel wood and a 400 percent increase in their annual income in four years.”

Their initial goal aims to work with 125,000 impoverished families to plant 500 million trees. In the last five years alone, Trees for the Future has planted more than 155 million trees, restored nearly 8,000 acres and sequestered nearly 200,000 tons of carbon.16 Further, on an individual level, 86 percent of the families they’ve worked with are food secure after one year.

The Many Health and Environmental Benefits of Trees

Beyond acting as valuable carbon sinks, trees offer invaluable benefits to human health and the environment. For example, trees and forests in the U.S. removed 17.4 million tons of air pollution in 2010, a benefit to human health valued at $6.8 billion.17

By improving air quality, forest and trees eliminated more than 850 deaths and 670,000 cases of acute respiratory symptoms, according to a study published in Environmental Pollution.18

What’s more, living around an extra 11 trees per street lowers the risk of heart disease, diabetes and obesity and “decreases cardiometabolic conditions in ways comparable to an increase in annual personal income of $20,000 and moving to a neighborhood with $20,000 higher median income or being 1.4 years younger.”19

In urban environments, green spaces including trees, are linked to better mental health, lower blood pressure and stress levels and increased physical activity. Access to natural settings like forests, or even views of them, may also reduce crime and aggression and improve outcomes after surgery.20

What’s more, when comparing the benefits of trees and grass in New York City, there was a higher reporting of “very good” or “excellent” health for those living near the most trees, but the same could not be said for grass.

The researchers concluded, “Findings imply that higher exposure to vegetation, particularly trees outside of parks, may be associated with better health. If replicated, this may suggest that urban street tree planting may improve population health.”21

Everyone Should Plant Trees

What’s great about trees being a primary solution to environmental crises is that everyone can take part in planting trees. The Trillion Tree Campaign suggests that everybody should plant at least 150 trees, although it recommends those in wealthy countries set a higher target of 1,000.

This may sound like a lot, but it’s a target for an entire lifetime, and the Trillion Tree Campaign website has a tool for you to set and keep track of your target.22

They’re officially counting all trees that have been planted since November 2006, when the campaign started, and you can invite your friends to join in too. Even if you live in a region where you can’t plant trees, or in an apartment with no backyard, you can donate or gift trees to be planted.

As Crowther told The Independent, “It’s a beautiful thing because everyone can get involved. Trees literally just make people happier in urban environments they improve air quality, water quality, food quality, ecosystem service, it’s such an easy, tangible thing.”23

Fall is a great time to plant trees due to moderate temperatures and rainfall allowing them to acclimatize and grow strong roots before the heat and dryness of summer, but springtime planting works well too, depending on your region. So, choose a tree that’s well-suited to your region and get started planting today.

from Articles http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2019/03/21/planting-trees-benefits.aspx source https://niapurenaturecom.tumblr.com/post/183601619401

[janerschaeffer]

Most Biodiverse Native Tree planting Event in East African History

As East African countries marked Labour Day on May 1st, communities living around the Kenyan coastal region were making history. Through a partnership with local communities, The LEAF Charity, Kivukoni Indigenous Tree Nursery, Pwani University, and Botanical Gardens Conservation International (BGCI, based out of Kew in London)engaged in the most biodiverse native tree planting event in East African History.

The record breaking tree planting event saw 1,000 trees planted from 127 native species. Out of these, thirty percent of the species are threatened or are coastal forest endemics (only found there!), 7 of them are vulnerable, 3 are endangered and one is a critically endangered species for  which only a handful of individuals left in the wild. To ensure the survival of species, The LEAF is using modern techniques to clone such exceptionally rare individuals and ensure their survival ex situ, with the eventual hope of restoring this species in situ.

Terming the event as a significant milestone in addressing the biodiversity crisis and the conservation of indigenous trees, BGCI and KEFRI (Kenya Forestry Research Institute) officials hailed the exercise as historical. “This is a record for the number of species planted on a single day in East Africa’s history,”.

Dr Harry Fonseca Williams, The LEAF Chair, noted that the event will have a big impact. “In 20 years, this will have grown to be a small but incredibly biodiverse forest, supporting an array of wildlife we can’t even imagine, compared to the desert wasteland we had previously, "said the LEAF Chair.

The First Project is at Pwani University in Kilifi Countyin the Kenyan coastal region. The region is a biodiversity hotspot with 100% of its endemic (i.e., species restricted to the region) predicted to go extinct by 2050 without intervention. Pwani University has a population of approximately 8,000, most of whom are Kenyan students. The project, aims at restoring the habitat to make a native forest and sequester carbon. It also serves as an entry point for most of the students, allowing them to join the planting area, get involved in biodiversity conservation, and become embedded in the conservation community that the organization is fostering in the area. The project also brings in local schools to teach them about conservation issues the world is facing and the part they can play in improving our situation.

While gracing the occasion, Norbert Rottcher, the Director Kivukoni Indigenous Tree Nursery, observed that they have created the beginnings of a protected and restored coastal forest inside the university's grounds. “We hope that the Pwani Forest will continue to be planted and be allowed to expand, so that future generations of students will be inspired and get research opportunities from it as well as providing a safe repository of species for the future restoration of Kenya's coastal forest heritage, "explained Nobert.

David Bartholomew, the Director of Science for LEAF, observed that the inclusion of native and threatened tree species in reforestation programs is important to restore fully functioning forests. “By including a wide range of tree species in our work, we will be able to recover the important functions that forests provide to local communities and the wider planet,” said David while appreciating the diverse nature and significance of the event.

The event, which was meant to draw the attention of tree planters away from the sheer numbers of trees and aimed instead at sensitizing the communities on the importance of diverse native forests.  The diversity of native trees that were planted and the inclusion of threatened tree species are important steps towards habitat restoration. LEAF also describes diverse forests as much more resilient and stand a far better chance of surviving in the face of climate change. The organization observed that planting non-native tree species brings virtually no benefits to local fauna, fungi, and other flora.

Oscar Mwaura, LEAF Project Lead, acknowledged the participation of various parties including the university community, adding that this shows the enthusiasm of fraternity in the restoration of the habitat. “It was a great event with over 50 volunteers, students, casual workers, and university staff members joining whole heartedly with their great love for trees, "explained Oscar, terming the event as historical not only in Kenya but also in East Africa at large.

About The LEAF Charity

The LEAF Charity works with local communities around the world to protect habitats and promote reforestation. With expertise in botany, zoology, marine biology, finance, conservation and sustainability, The LEAF Charity uses its diverse knowledge to make changes to the planet for the better.

Media Contact info

Dr Harry Williams

Chairperson

+254745370701

http://www.theleafcharity.com/

harry@theleafcharity.com