Journal of the International Tree Foundation Autumn 2017 VOLUME 74 £3.95 FREE TO MEMBERS Białowiez• a Europe’s primeval forest threatened by logging Revitalising Kenya’s Forests Bringing the benefi ts of conservation to vulnerable communities in Madagascar African farmers driving their own development Planet friendly plant-based diet ENTREPRENEURS OF THE SAHEL TREE POWER AND MORE NEWS FROM THE UK In this Issue In this issue of News from Supporter 4 the UK 5 Stories Catch up on ITF’s work, including Inspirational fundraising stories Tree Power for schools and Fruit-full - from small and creative to wild Communities. and wonderful! Agroecology 6 vs. the ‘Green Revolution’ Innovative and sustainable farming practices across Africa are proving that expensive technologies and synthetic fertilisers are not the answer to hunger. Examples from Ethiopia, Mali, Kenya and South Africa. Against 16 Poverty, 20 Million For Nature 8 Trees for Kenya’s Forests Madagascar has lost over 80% of its natural forests. ITF partner Ny ITF’s Centenary Campaign expands Tanintsika believe that wellbeing to the North of Mount Kenya. and environmental conservation Aiming to restore 900 hectares to go hand in hand - and they are natural forest on three sites, the supporting the most vulnerable project will help 2,000 farmers populations to plant endemic trees. © A. Wajrak increase their income as they care for the young trees. Fairytale 12 Forest in Peril Despite threats of legal action and fines from the European Commission, the Polish government continue to log Europe’s last primeval forest. Full Contents 3 Foreword 8 20 Million Trees 16 Against Poverty, For Nature 4 ITF News from the UK 11 Entrepreneurs of the Sahel 18 Plate Up for the Planet and Africa 12 Bialowieza 20 Analog Forestry 5 Supporter Stories 15 Nkhata Bay Natural Way 23 How to Help 6 Agroecology vs. the ‘Green Revolution’ 2 Autumn 2017 Foreword As I was reading the articles The growing human population could easily be fed published in this year’s journal I was without deforestation. In fact, we could couple this struck by the diverse approaches with reforestation and the increasing adoption of communities and organisations agroforestry and analog forestry. Industrial animal are taking to protect and restore agriculture is the leading cause of deforestation forests and to grow trees both to globally, yet meat and dairy consumption is a very enhance the natural environment inefficient and often unhealthy way of feeding the and improve livelihoods. Yet human population. This is compounded by a terribly running through this diversity is inefficient food distribution system which results in a a common thread: a passion and third of all food produced being wasted; combined desire for people to work together with two-thirds of the world’s human population either to endeavour to find better ways for getting too much or too little to eat. humans to live sustainably and in harmony with the natural world. Agroecological approaches restore and sustain soil fertility and improve plant health by working with Andy braving choppy waters on ITF has been working with and supporting local nature and eliminating the use of harmful pesticides. Lake Malawi (see communities for more than 90 years to call for an end Yet these approaches are not promoted by the profit NBNW, p. 15) to the orgy of destruction which sees 15 billion trees driven agribusiness sector for the obvious reason that cut down every year. Ultimately, this human activity they can be managed by farmers themselves using their will prove entirely self-defeating. The costs are already own resources. evident in many parts of the world in the form of land degradation and desertification, biodiversity and ITF’s long standing advocacy and support for community- habitat loss, climate change and shocks, with ever led forestry and agroforestry, organic agriculture and a more devastating storms and flooding. These trends in plant-based diet are all connected and are increasingly turn drive mass human migration. being recognised as part of a necessary holistic approach to healing and restoring a mutually beneficial relationship Despite encouraging recent resolutions made by the with our natural world. There is a blossoming of both governments of the world to halt deforestation by civil society and ethically driven private sector businesses 2020, very little is actually being done to transform that are taking the lead and showing that this positive the economic system that we seem to be locked into; alternative is actually quite an easy – as well as necessary and which is responsible for driving the exploitation of - choice to make. natural resources to feed its insatiable appetite for ever growing consumption. The range of articles in this edition of Trees will I hope provide a source of both inspiration and stimulation for It always strikes me as incongruous that the private healthy debate. institutions that are creating this problem to serve their own interests - and yet bear none of the costs - are also Andy Egan those who are invited to take charge of solving it. Chief Executive, International Tree Foundation International Tree Foundation Like us on Facebook Mayfield House International Tree Foundation FOUNDER VICE PRESIDENTS CHAIR CHIEF 256 Banbury Road Follow us on Twitter Dr Richard St Barbe Prof Julian Evans Timothy Hornsby EXECUTIVE Oxford OX2 7DE @ITF_Worldwide Baker OBE Edward Green MBE DEPUTY CHAIR Andy Egan Telephone: PATRON Susan Hampshire Prof Roger Leakey EDITOR 01865 318836 Trees is published by International His Royal Highness The Earl of Lindsay TRUSTEES Naomi Hope Email: Tree Foundation (ITF), a registered the Prince of Wales William E Matthews Maria Grecna DESIGN info@international charity (no. 1106269). The opinions PRESIDENT OBE Andrew Hirons Rather Fine Design treefoundation.org expressed in this publication do not Prof Sir Ghillean Michael Hoare PRINT www.international necessarily reflect ITF policy and ITF Prance Jamie Holloway TVP treefoundation.org does not hold itself responsible for Mardi McBrien Registered Charity any of those opinions. Miriam Reru number 1106269 Trees is printed on sustainably Kate Schreckenburg sourced paper. www.internationaltreefoundation.org 3 ITF News ITF News Tree Power reaches over 150 children ITF’s Tree Power programme for schools proved a real success this year, with over 150 children taking part. This programme encourages young people to value and care for trees, through outdoor education and global learning. In Hampshire, 90 Year 5 students visited the woods behind their school for the first time, where they made friends with a tree! Over the course of the year, teachers led classes from the Tree Power teaching resource. Students at Liphook school collaboratively Fruit-full Communities comes wrote a poem about trees, discussed and voted on the third in National Lottery Awards main causes of deforestation and created tree spirits in the forest. This year, our Fruit-full Communities project reached the finals of the National Lottery Awards, which seek The year has left both students and teachers inspired – out Britain’s favourite Lottery funded projects. so much so that the school plan to develop the theme of trees in their curriculum next year, and include sessions Fruit-full Communities works with vulnerable young on ‘Palm Oil Detectives’ from the Tree Power resource. people in YMCA housing, supporting them to create their own orchards and learn valuable skills in To find out more about Tree Power or to get your horticulture, arboriculture and team work. school involved, visit our website. Reaching third place in the environment category was The fight for Kafuga continues a great achievement! Nearly two years since launching the Save Kafuga Sue Pitt, ITF’s Fruit-full Communities Project Officer Forest campaign, the fight continues. This small forest was delighted. “I have met some wonderful young in Uganda was threatened by encroachers, and risked people through this project – they are very aware being turned into a tea plantation. of the need to take action on the environment and welcome the opportunity to do something really Much has been achieved thanks to generous positive for themselves, their local communities and donations. ITF partner PROBICOU has drafted a forest the planet”, says Sue. “It has also been great to see management plan and engaged with key stakeholders them connecting with young people on some of our – from the surrounding communities to the district projects in Kenya and Uganda and realising that they council and national Ugandan ministries. are part of a global movement for change.” PROBICOU has also supported farmers in planting Fruit-full Communities is a project led by Learning passion fruit and mango trees on their land, and has through Landscapes, with ITF, The Orchard Project and set up savings and loans groups. Planting within the participating YMCAs across the UK. forest has been impossible so far, as an ongoing court case against encroachers limits access to the forest. But To find out more about Fruit-full Communities, there are positive signs of an emerging consensus to visit our website. save Kafuga Forest. 4 Autumn 2017 Supporter Stories Supporter Stories This year, ITF has been lucky to receive support from a wide variety of fundraisers. We want to give an extra special thank you to a few of the people who have gone above and beyond to support our work! Moving and giving as a community Last January, ITF were kindly selected by the parish council of Our Lady and St Edmund Church, Abingdon to be one of the recipients for its annual Lent fundraiser. Collections by Abingdon Church raised £3,750, while a further £800 was collected at a dance- a-thon held at their local school! The Church had an existing connection to the Bamenda highlands in Cameroon, where ITF works with partner Community Assistance in Development.