Gift card with a tree in Kenya
The project is located in the Teso North region in western Kenya.
Reforestation for more biodiversity. In tropical Kenya, trees sequester carbon from the atmosphere and return it to the soil, but they also improve fertility, water retention and biodiversity.
Locally, one of the greatest threats to forest cover is charcoal and tobacco production and the collection of firewood. Community awareness is essential to reduce deforestation in forested areas.
Agroforestry has the potential to reconnect trees and agriculture, as farmers around the world have long considered trees as pests. However, when well managed, trees improve crop yields because they increase soil fertility and water retention, while increasing biodiversity.
Trees are distributed in schools with teachings to schoolchildren on the vital importance of trees for humanity. The teachings were accompanied by planting sessions, which served as hands-on training on how best to plant trees for optimal survival. Trees are linked to any positive change in a community. While a huge amount of trees could offset humanity's greenhouse gas emissions, a small number of trees can significantly improve the lives of communities at the local level. They improve soil fertility, improve soil water retention, provide medicines and cooking wood.
Reforestation in tropical regions is one of the best known ways to sequester carbon and combat climate change. Thanks to their strong growth (some species grow to more than 2 meters in just one year, as mentioned above), tropical trees can store a lot of carbon in their biomass - that is, in their organisms.
We are proud to be partnering with EMAUA, a Swiss ONG
THE TEAM: EMAUA in Kenya is made up of local collaborators, employees with diverse skills ranging from traditional agriculture to engineering and education. Its 10 members have enabled the organization to develop activities throughout the entire Teso North region (260 km2, the size of the canton of Geneva), and to start developing activities in neighboring regions. The results of EMAUA are due to the strong integration of EMAUA in the local fabric and culture as well as a participatory way of working within the team, which leads to motivation, autonomy and efficiency.
A SWISS FOUNDER: Julien Kauer is the founder of EMAUA. When he was 26 years old (2015), he decided to leave everything behind to launch a food self-sufficiency project in an elementary school in Malaba (Kenya), 40 km from the current project. There he lived with part of the team under local conditions and learned to speak fluent Swahili. A self-taught man with a passion for agro-ecology and the regeneration of ecosystems, he now lives between Kenya and Switzerland, where he regularly gives lectures and organizes with the 7 members of the committee the activities of EMAUA Switzerland.