By Evelind Schecter | Project Leader
After 3 years and 10,000 farmers trained, co-founders Michael Shafer and Evelind Schecter were joined by Warm Heart Thailand Biochar Program Manager, Aom Kwanpirom Suksri, on a visit to meet the trainers and farmers in Malawi, Kenya, and Tanzania. Over three weeks we met with the teams in all three countries.
Our first stop was with the person who started it all in Malawi, Sister Miram Paulette in Zomba. She is as charismatic and wonderful as anticipated. She and Sylvester, the country program leader, set up training at Zomba Prison, including an introduction to the musicians who make the beautiful music that was nominated for a grammy a few years ago. If you remember the original story - when we received a random email from Sister looking for funds, Michael responded because the signature was from Zomba and he was a fan of the prison music. He told her we do not have any funding, but if she watched our videos she could teach people to improve their livelihoods with biochar. As so she did and farmers saw the benefits and her networks trained thousands of farmers.
At every stop, we were greeted by traditional songs and dances. We saw the fields with biochar and without, pleased to see how healthy and high the biochar side grew. They used biochar mixed with manure when they plant the seeds for corn and then again when it is about waist high, putting a "top dressing" of biochar and manure around the plant to hold water and protect the roots.
Thank you for changing the lives of these individuals, small holder farmers!
Dana, Evelind, Michael, and the Bichar Team
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By Evelind Schecter | Program Leader
By Evelind Schecter | Project Leader
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