Climate Action Tanzania, United Republic of Project #24549

APOPO HeroTREEs - a Climate-Smart Solution

by APOPO vzw

APOPO HeroTREEs - a Climate-Smart Solution

Project Report | Nov 7, 2023
Your latest HeroTREEs Update!

By Emma Mortiboy | Public Fundraising

Farm visit

Thank you for your continued support. We are delighted to let you know that during the second quarter of 2023, 13,416 HeroTREEs were planted, which is a huge accomplishment.

GPS Training by our partner SAT continued in the second quarter and 20 more farmers from the 'Hapa Kazi Tu' group from Kibundi were trained in GPS basics, which equipped them with the necessary skills to navigate their agricultural landscapes with precision and better efficiency. This GPS training improves the monitoring activities for all the farms’ data and measurements prior to planting enables the farmers to better plan their agroforestry system and decide on the number of trees they want to plant.

Since record-keeping is essential, we trained 20 farmers on how they can keep records of their farm's daily activities. This session taught the farmers how to keep records in their books until GPS is fully implemented. In a record-keeping book, the farmers take track of the status of their farms, the trees planted, what they sent out from their farms, the challenges they face, and the solutions to the challenges.

Excitingly, thanks to your incredible support, amongst the trees/seedlings planted in this quarter, 2,000 clove seedlings were distributed to three farmer groups in Mgambazi, Ruvuma, and Tulo. These seedlings aim to improve the tree diversity on the farms while adding value for the farmer. Furthermore, it is a way of preventing bushfires in the area, which is a widely used method to clear land for cultivation, leading to many losses of trees. But since farmers want to protect their perennial cash crops like clove, they are less likely to set fires. A win-win!

We reached all the participating groups, and these farm visits help promote long-term relationships with the farmers, which is vital for success.

Some of the HeroTREEs farmers also signed new contracts, which is a great sign that the project is working well and benefiting them, all whilst protecting the vital ecosystems of the Uluguru Mountains in Tanzania.

Coming up

Initiation of the local/indigenous tree seeds collection campaign.

In partnership with SAT, we have also initiated a community campaign of collecting seeds of local species to facilitate the planting of more indigenous trees on the farmers' fields. This aims to contribute to the conservation of biodiversity in the area. Including more indigenous trees plays a vital role in carbon capturing and restoring ecosystems. So far seeds from more than 10 local tree species have been collected and will soon be planted by the farmers in the area.

Further development of how the planted tree data will be managed, overseen, and collected, will continue so we can assess the actual number of trees that are thriving, as well as the impact of the program on the farmers and the environment.

Additional farm visits will be conducted for all four farmers groups, to ensure that their agroforestry systems are working accordingly and that the trees are doing well. These visits oversee the progress of tree planting, control the actual number of trees planted, and allow us to gain further insights into the perception of the farmers around the program. This should enable us to further adjust the program in the future and to give you some direct feedback from the very people you are helping.

Thank you so much as always for your incredible support. We could not do what we do, without contributions such as yours!

Contract Signing

Seeds!

GPS Training

Links:

HeroTREEs website

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Jul 10, 2023
Your latest update on APOPO's HeroTREEs project!

By Emma Mortiboy | Public Fundraising Officer

Mobilisation of the new youth group

Welcome to your latest report on APOPO’s HeroTREEs, which covers our ongoing work in the first quarter of 2023.

Most recently, on 22nd April, the world came together to celebrate Earth Day, and APOPO successfully decided to raise awareness of our HeroTREEs project. Many people chose to plant a tree to honor Earth Day to help protect the Uluguru Mountain range. Thank you if you were one of those people.

During this quarter, much of our work was focused on the inspection of the 230 (managed by 160 farmers) officially participating in the HeroTREEs program. Participating farmers spent time surveying the farms and plants and we are now keen to start mapping out where individual trees are planted in the future. A total of 156 farm maps were prepared by 100 farmers. These maps are now produced, verified, printed and filed so that we can properly assess how trees are growing and whether their growth has been successful. The next step will be to try and digitize this mapping.

Unfortunately, due to unpredictable weather conditions, or even just a new farmer, getting to grips with new agroforestry practices, will lead to some of the planted trees failing. We visit all our farmers regularly and provide refresher training to ensure that syntropic farming becomes the main agroforestry technique practised in this important ecosystem and that most of the trees planted are successful.

Your support has also enabled some exciting new developments in the first quarter – APOPO and SAT recruited a new youth farmers group for the HeroTREEs project, and they were trained and brought on board, adding 20 members from Kibundi (Mbehoni) hamlet in Mgambazi Village. The expansion of the HeroTREEs project across villages in the Uluguru Mountains, and especially among the youth, is a real symbol of success, as farmers experience the new, more environmentally-friendly, approach to farming, and how it improves the productivity of cash crops while investing in nature!

During the first quarter, your support also allowed us to distribute various tree varieties, prepared for planting during the rainy season, and the farmers were eagerly waiting to get these plants into the ground. At Ruvuma village, a grand total of 2,422 cinnamon tree saplings were distributed, for example

It is important to continually assess the project, and with this in mind, SAT and APOPO held a steering group meeting to discuss the project’s status in detail both now, looking forward and over the past five years. The meeting decided to remove some tree varieties from planting, as they are invasive or pose threats to other plants. Evaluation and learning at every step is so important.

Your support is crucial in making all of this incredible progress possible. We deeply appreciate your kindness, as it enables us to plant trees in the Uluguru Mountains, while prioritizing the ecosystem and supporting the environment where they are planted.

Thank you so much again for your incredible generosity, and we cannot wait to update you in the next quarter!

Steering Group Meeting

Tree Nursery in Tulo

Links:

APOPO's HeroTREEs

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Mar 13, 2023
Welcome to your first HeroTREEs update of 2023!

By Emma Mortiboy | Public Fundraising Officer

Nuru on her Farm

Thank you so much for your support again last quarter! We thought it would be nice to reflect on last year’s HeroTREEs project achievements for your first update of the year, so you can see how much your support has helped over an entire year!

As you know, APOPO has been working in partnership with Sustainable Agriculture Tanzania (SAT) since 2017 to protect part of one of the most important ecosystems in Tanzania – the Uluguru Mountains. The Uluguru Mountains are part of the Eastern Arc mountain range and contain at least 16 endemic vertebrates and 135 endemic plant species, with hundreds more shared only with forests in eastern Tanzania and Kenya. This degree of endemism is exceptional in tropical Africa, and the Uluguru Mountains are one of the 10 most important tropical forest sites for conservation on the continent. In the closed-canopy forest in the Eastern Arc Mountains, there is roughly the same number of amphibian species as the entire Democratic Republic of Congo! Just last week, six new chameleon species were described.

With APOPO’s operational headquarters and training center being in Morogoro, in the foothills of the Uluguru Mountains, we saw the project almost as a necessity in the face of a changing climate and could not ignore the destructive farming practices being used that were accelerating deforestation in this region. None of this would have been possible without your support of course.

Since this time, your support has achieved great things - the HeroTREEs project's initial plan was to plant 25,000 trees by the end of 2021, and after successfully reaching this goal, we are now planning our strategy for the next 5 years. Another great milestone is that from 2021 to 2022, your help has meant that we have been able to plant another 11,996, with only 1,287 lost (some tree loss is to be expected, especially with the droughts).

Your support has also allowed us to implement an impressive regenerative farming practice called Syntropic Farming. This agroecological method relieves pressure on existing forests, supplements farmer income, and teaches important sustainable farming methods that will allow farmers to do more with much less land. The small-scale farmers in the mountain communities are taught to revitalize their land, so they plant trees alongside their crops and use smart organic agricultural skills that produce natural fertilizers. These skills lead to higher crop yields, increased income, and food security, and vitally the farmers are taught to build resilience to a changing climate and to share their experiences with the wider communities so that the HeroTREEs project can expand organically. Your support saves the environment and communities of people that live in the ecosystem so that they can be more financially secure.

Much wildlife depends on the Uluguru Mountains for their existence. Thank you so much for continuing to give to our HeroTREEs project and standing with the farmers of the Uluguru Mountains, so that they can thrive and so that the wildlife, mountain range ecosystem, and biodiversity at large across the world can be sustained.

Harvesting delicious carrots!

Babu proudly showing his success

From a small seedling comes great change

Links:

APOPO's HeroTREEs

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