Kenya has seen a downward trend in forest cover over the years. Official reports put the total national cover at 7.8%, but as a player in the industry, I can tell you for a fact, the cover is way below the official figure, I would put it at 4.7 - 5 %. What is the solution?..... I am a strong advocate of 10% minimum forest cover on private farm lands with a sustainable and wallet share approach for communities. Welcome to Kenya Eden and I was pleasantly surprised that you have hit the ground running. The fact that you reached out to me to inquire about bamboo culms as props for the seedlings nurseries that you are developing is statement enough that use of locally available and sustainable material is anchored in your projects. Welcome to Kenya!
Review from Guidestar
I am an Executive for a large United States based NGO that conserves land for people in the US. I met folks from Eden at a conference and heard their simple, yet powerful, mission to reduce poverty through environmental stewardship. They claimed to plant trees in the poorest areas of the world at a very efficient cost of 10 cents a tree. I thought "too good to be true, are the trees actually being planted and cared for?, what is the impact on the local people?" I have had a chance to go to Ethiopia and Madagascar in the last year and see the work first hand. It is impressive, I am now a donor, volunteer and Board Member. They simply hire a lot of local poor people to heal the planet, in so doing they bring healing to themselves, their village and their local environment. I am committed to helping them bring this work to scale. World wide, we all breath the same air, drink the same water and have the same dreams for out children. Let's help Eden grow and replant the planet.
Eden Reforestation Projects transforms individuals and communities by working with in-country resources to lead projects that drive profound economic and environmental change. I have seen villages in Ethiopian river valleys and highlands saved from destructive erosion while providing nursery and planting jobs for locals who would be otherwise unemployed. They have created a pragmatic and effective solution for addressing poverty and reversing the impact of deforestation.
Eden lifts people in rural Ethiopia and Madagascar our of poverty by giving them a hand-up, not a hand out. Deforestation in a place like Ethiopia is the origin of a downward spiral that leads to homelessness, lack of education, lack of medical treatment, orphans and human trafficking. It is strange to think that the restoration of the land is the linchpin in fighting these insidious almost unsolvable issues. But one has to look no further than the American experience with the Dust Bowl to realize how tearing down the trees tears down lives. Eden restores lives by employing people locally to restore the land. The land comes back, the economy comes back, the families stay together, the kids go to school and get medical treatment..all for .10 a tree
I love everything about this group! They're currently planting trees at a rate of about one every 2.18 seconds. They're close to 44,000,000 trees planted to date as of April 25, 2012, and they have the ability to scale to 50,000,000 trees a year! They plant for $0.10 per tree which is exponentially less than anyone else period. Most importantly, they are changing lives and eradicating poverty, modern slavery, hunger, the sex trade and much more through their efforts. I can't say enough good things about them! I suggest going to their site http://edenprojects.org or watching this video http://youtu.be/sJT_67YkmR0 to learn more!