Kenya Reforestation

Carbon Footprint is proud to support local communities in the Great Rift Valley, Kenya, through our new tree planting programme with ESCONET. By planting trees you can help:

• Offset CO2 emissions
• Reduce poverty
• Provide wildlife habitats
• Create a brighter future for project team members including orphans and people living with HIV / AIDS

Plant a Tree

Plant for the Planet

Carbon Footprint Ltd have received endorsement from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for our reforestation efforts in The Great Rift Valley. All trees pledged and planted by Carbon Footprint / ESCONET are being included in the Plant for the Planet: Billion Tree Campaign, which aims to plant over 1 billion trees in 2007 across the globe to help avert damaging and economically debilitating climate change.

"We have but a short time to avert damaging and economically debilitating climate change. Forests are natural and economically important 'carbon sinks'. Globally, forest cover is at least one-third less than what it once was. It is time to reverse the trends, it is time to act."

Achim Steiner, Executive Director, UN Environment Programme

Tree Buddying

Our Kenya Reforestation programme incorporates "Tree Buddying". This means for each tree you pledge we also offset one tCO2 through a Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) project.

This ensures your carbon offsetting

• is fully verified
• meets international standards
• meets BSI's PAS 2060 specification on carbon neutrality
• meets the Carbon Footprint Standard and
• continues to take additional CO2 out of the atmosphere during the life of the tree

in addition to delivering all the other great benefits of the Kenya Reforestation programme.

What is ESCONET?
Escarpment Environment Conservation Network

ESCONET aims to effectively mobilise and build the Great Rift Valley community’s capacity to rehabilitate, conserve and protect the natural ecosystems and promote the sustainable maintenance of a clean, healthy environment.

The Challenge

The Kikuyu escarpment forest with its great mixture of both large and small wildlife animals, birds and butterflies, has been the beautiful gateway to the Great Rift Valley until degradation trend struck. This environment is the source of water and thus livelihood to the neighbouring communities.

In just a few years, wanton and deliberate destruction of the escarpment environment through charcoal burning, logging for timber and fuel wood, ring-debarking of medicinal trees and overgrazing has resulted to virtual depletion of forest vegetation cover. This has in return resulted to drying of springs/rivers/streams, soil erosion, emigration of wildlife/birds, scorching sun, human-wildlife conflict and the scarring of once a beautiful scenic landscape that generated some income through tourism.

The worst result from this environmental destruction was the ethnic clashes witnessed recently between the pastoral Maasai and the farming Kikuyu over use of the dwindling water resources at the base of the escarpment. This resulted in unnecessary deaths, injuries, loss and destruction of property and displacement of many families.

The communities have due to the negative climatic changes become even more dependent on the forest for their livelihoods. The women and girls move longer distances in search of fuel wood and water, exposing them to danger of attacks and sexual assaults. The Maasai have to bring their cattle to graze in the forest. With the loss of flora and fauna, the tourism income is dwindled, bringing the curio business down with it.

ESCONET has already started the rehabilitation project with members contributing their time, energy, implements and finances to plant of 30,000 indigenous trees on 30 hectares of the worst degraded areas.

Additional Benefits through your tree pledge in addition to Offsetting Carbon emissions

• Poverty reduction through employment creation

• Water catchment areas will be conserved providing water/food security.

• Birds, butterflies and other wildlife habitats will be conserved and others created

• Bees attracted by the trees in flowering seasons will benefit the community through sale of honey hence reduce poverty

• Sale of fruit will help the community earn extra income

• Nutritional Benefit from some of the fruit trees planted like the Avocado trees which are of great nutritional value

• Ecotourism will be promoted with better forests giving alternative occupation to those previously engaging in destructive forest activities

• The pastoral communities will have pastures for their animals during drought times

• Some of our teams have orphans and Persons Living With HIV/Aids (PLWHA) and we contribute to them directly or through the Red Cross, Limuru Branch

• The needy will benefit as we make contribution to the Kenya Red Cross Society, Limuru Branch whose youth group is our member. The money will also be promotion of education from the income

• The trees also assist in the prevention and control of soil erosion

• Beautification of our locality and the roads

Latest News...

Our Kenyan tree planting project in the Escarpment Forest continues to grow and thrive!

All thanks to the hard work of the Mburu’s team. The project, a sole survivor amongst forest fire devastation, leads the way in replanting Kenya’s plantations and now plays a vital role in supporting the local wildlife.
Project coordinator Mburu Waiganjo reports on their planting season to date:

“Preparation for the planting season started quite early with the ground preparation some two months ahead of the planting. The intent was to plant early and enjoy the full benefits of the long rainy season. While all the five forests in what are called ‘water towers’ were experiencing raging forest fires, we were lucky that the Escarpment forest which is at the tip of the Aberdare forest was spared the catastrophe. There was therefore no interference with our preparations”

The recent planting was managed over two phases and although the rains were late and sparse the team still hit their targets and managed to plant the planned fifteen hectares with 15,000 trees. They also succeeded in planting the largest species collection at one planting event, an all time record of 21 species, helping to promote biodiversity! This season has also seen the increasing participation of neighboring communities, especially women who are being educated on the need to reduce fuel use through the implementation of fuel efficient jikos (wood kilns) and alternative fuels such as biogas.

See the latest photos picturing the latest spot weeding exercise carried out which forms part of the trees ongoing management.

Kenya Forestation Grows from strength to strength

Impressive Progress continues in our Great Rift Valley programme in spite of the political turmoil that has been faced last year. The current weather conditions such as drought faced by so many have not affected the fortunately protected area. Carbon Footprint receives regular updates from project coordinator Mburu Waiganjo who has informed us;

"Luckily, despite other forests experiencing fire disasters occasioned by the dry weather, we have not experienced any forest fire and have been busy preparing for the forthcoming planting season."

The resilience of this project continues to be shown, see the latest stunning photos from the region showing the impressive growth from your contributions. The programme continues to deliver vital humanitarian benefits as well as reducing carbon emissions, and needs your support now more than ever.