Planting Site Basics
Planting Site: Mount Kilimanjaro
Country: Tanzania
Site Status: Active
Forest Type: Agroforest
Planting Partner: Plant With Purpose
Where Are We Planting?
Our newest planting site is located on Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Kilimanjaro is not only the tallest free-standing mountain in the world, soaring over 19,000 feet, but it also boasts the highest peak in Africa. In recent years, its glaciers have been a focal point of concern as they’ve started to shrink rapidly. This is largely due to the effects of climate change, where warmer and drier conditions cause the glaciers to “sublimate” — a process where solid ice turns directly into gas.
Adding to this concern is the rampant deforestation on the mountain’s slopes and valleys. Many forests are cleared to make way for farms, and the selling of timber provides immediate income for those living in poverty. However, this deforestation results in problems for local communities. They often face the challenges of both flooding and water scarcity, which in turn leads to soil erosion and infertility. When the land can no longer sustain farming, many find themselves having to abandon their ancestral homes.
What Trees Are We Planting?
The trees planted at our site in Tanzania are part of an agroforestry system. This system combines farming with tree planting on the same land to create environmental, economic, and social benefits for the community. Our planting partners harvest seeds from native trees, nurture them into saplings at local nurseries, and eventually plant them. These native tree species work in harmony with farmers’ biointensive gardens to help create more nutrient-rich soil. As the land around Mt. Kilimanjaro regenerates, crop yields increase, and farmers are able to feed their families and sell extra produce for income.
Who’s Planting With Us?
We’ve partnered with Plant With Purpose, an organization focused on sustainable agriculture, to develop these systems in Tanzania. Their unique approach aims to empower local farmers by providing knowledge and opportunities rather than merely offering material handouts. As a result, landowners are more invested in the planting initiatives, ensuring that reforestation efforts are sustained and successful over the long term. To foster community spirit and engagement, a friendly competition is held among the planters in Tanzania, culminating in an annual awards ceremony.
Most of the farmers we collaborate with are women, many of whom are widows or single mothers. In this region, women and children often face pronounced economic disadvantages. Even though women head 25% of households and a significant number are engaged in agriculture, they frequently don’t have the same access to training and resources as men. To address this imbalance, we support rural microfinance initiatives. These initiatives, like savings groups, offer families a financial safety net. It’s a chance to handle larger expenses and paves the way for future financial growth.
What’s The Impact?
By planting in critical watersheds around Mt. Kilimanjaro, we’re able to restore habitat for critically endangered species, protect essential water sources, and improve farmers’ livelihoods. The trees incorporated into farming plots through agroforestry help restore the soil quality, reduce erosion, diversify harvests, and increase productivity. At the same time, trees planted along the mountain’s vulnerable slopes work to prevent deadly mudslides and floods. Protected by the forests, farmers are able to nurture their ancestral land and see it flourish again.
Environmental:
- Stabilize land and protect against erosion, landslides, and desertification.
- Regenerate soils and restore land fertility.
- Recharge groundwater tables.
- Prevent further deforestation and degradation by providing sustainable work for locals.
- Sequester carbon, helping to mitigate climate change.
Social:
- Provide food security to families through dependable, diverse diets.
- Empower the local community in the restoration and protection of their community land.
- Educate adults and children in rural communities.
- Through this program, we offer much-needed training, tools, and resources to educate adults on sustainable agriculture, financial planning, business accounting, and entrepreneurship.
- Alleviate poverty within communities.
- Providing economic resources like microfinance options for saving and borrowing so families can invest in the future and upgrade their quality of living.
Related UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Planting at this site in Tanzania brings us closer to achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These are a collection of 17 interlinked global goals that serve as a “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.”
Here are the SDGs that we’re addressing at our Mount Kilimanjaro site:
#1 No Poverty: End poverty in all its forms everywhere.
#2 Zero Hunger: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.
#3 Good health and Well-being: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages.
#4 Quality Education: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
#5 Gender Equality: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
#8 Decent Work and Economic Growth: Promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.
#12 Responsible Consumption and Production: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.
# 13 Climate Action: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts by regulating emissions and promoting developments in renewable energy.
#15 Life on Land: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.
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