Support Women's WONDER Hubs in Tanzania

It's been a busy and rainy winter for the women of Itonya and Mboliboli in Tanzania’s Southern Highlands as they continue to bring One Health education to local communities. Collectively, the women in these communities have vaccinated over 300 chickens for Newcastle disease. This virus, which can wipe out entire flocks in a matter of days, is the main constraint to flock survival across the globe. Achieving this level of vaccination and raising awareness among farmers about prevention through vaccination is a huge milestone. Optimizing poultry health not only improves the welfare of the chickens, but it also strengthens food security, household income and nutrition, and reduces reliance on bushmeat hunting. Rural village chickens also have a low climate footprint which makes them a One Health hero.  

In addition to working to improve animal health, the women have also continued to provide peer-to-peer training to local famers in the areas of climate-smart farming, water sanitation, and human-wildlife conflict mitigation. With respect to water health, in particular, the women of Mboliboli report that on several occasions, pastoralist families of the Masai Tribe have actually sought the women out to learn about water sanitation. The women note that this is an unprecedented shift from previous interactions with the Masai where they have been more resistant to new ideas. However, the women believe that during the rainy season, the need for clean drinking water is critical among Masai and other pastoralists due to the heightened risk of diarrheal illnesses which cause tremendous losses for both humans and animals alike.  

As we head into the spring, the FOECOE / EVG team is gearing up to lead another women's training workshop on regenerative enterprise development in the summer of 2023. The women expressed a specific need for such a workshop to build on the One Health activities they’ve launched this past year. We look forward to providing a full update on the workshop in the fall.

In the meantime, we’d like to extend another thank you to all of the supporters of this project. You continue to make a difference in the world! With the celebration of International Women’s Day this past week, we are happy to report that the women of the Women’s EARTH Project are truly inspirational, leading the way toward a more resilient and equitable future.

Warmly, 

Kate & the EVG / FOECOE Team