Combating Climate Change with Agroecology

Dear Donor,

We thank you for hanging in with us in our quest to support sustainable farming in Western Kenya. If you didn't know, Kenya has experienced a terrible drought that killed thousands of livestock and parched the crops and then the farmers had to deal with torrential rain that damaged farmland and roads. As you would expect, it caused great hardship and hunger affecting families who count on farming as their way of life. 

It's difficult to pick one issue that feels more productive when you roll up your sleeves and tackle the aftermath. The farming experts in the area are pitching in to help the widows and families who were dealt a devastating blow.

These are the steps to deal with these weather events once and for all

1 Increase soil fertility by alternating livestock and crops. Conventional commercial farming often prioritizes profit, which can unintentionally lead to soil erosion, degraded soil, and increased greenhouse gases. Regenerative farming prioritizes healthy soil and healthy ecosystems as a long-term approach.

2. Farmers can protect their land from floods by planting trees, restoring riparian vegetation, and rethinking crops to lessen flooding impacts on farmlands as well as downstream areas. 

3. Assessing land to provide tools to reduce flood risks on farms to provide an adequate drainage system. Such a system involves maintaining watercourses, improving drainage, and removing sediment that can accumulate over time.

4. Regenerative farming practices like no-till farming, cover cropping, composting, and crop rotation can provide healthier and more drought-resistant soil to combat climate events.

Thank you for your assistance. Any donation now will be distributed through Common Groung.

Dear Friends,

No matter how passionate we feel about planting trees, I've been reminded that planting trees is too little too late. We can't give up on farmers around the world and while we plant trees consistently, and know they have an important place in sustainability, the farmers we work with are adopting a regenerative practice that if farmers around the world would adopt, it will start to roll climate change back, create jobs, and sequester carbon in the soil...and at a profit. 

Regenerative agriculture enhances food security and cuts costs. Water use is optimized because the carbon-rich soil better holds moisture. There is improved farm worker safety and the investment into local businesses will better sustain stressed farming communities because more people are needed to do work on the land that chemicals did previously. 

In Kenya and farming communities all over the world, people are having to contend with the profound and accelerating impact of climate change, from drought to flooding, from locusts to crop pests. Since industrial farming is responsible for nearly 30-50% of global greenhouse gas emissions, sustainable food systems are essential to our survival on earth. 

We are working with long-time partner, Joshua Machinga and Common Ground for Africa (CGA) who promote smallholder farming, conservation, market-based, local economics, and entrepreneurship in Kenya.  Almost half of Kenya’s extremely poor live in rural villages and lack the means and skills to boost their agricultural efforts for their livelihood. Agricultural yields and profits are only a fraction of their potential since the region is full of opportunities for growth, including labor, land, and thousands of smallholder farmers who are eager for change.

CGA has been working in five Sub Counties of Trans-Nzoia County.  The sub-counties are further sub-divided into 39 locations, 63 sub-locations and 1,610 Villages

Please join us in making this a reality for subsistence farmer and commercial farmers alike.

Thank you for your past donation for our joint future.