The Challenge
Rain Drops Community Foundation was started in the Western Province of Zambia in 2019. The idea for the organisation was born from the observation that the world is facing a number of pressing and interconnected challenges around deforestation, which require holistic but localised solutions.
Climate change
As with many parts of the world, Zambia is facing increasing periods of extreme weather, drought, and unpredictable rains. Although the climate is a complex global system, we must play our part in reducing emissions and sequestering carbon
Deforestation
Zambia’s woodlands are suffering from timber extraction, expanding agriculture and charcoal manufacture. While commercial forestry can be sustainably implemented, there is currently insufficient focus on reforestation, meaning that our natural habitats are being depleted
Soil degredation
The removal of trees and their accompanying ecosystems is stripping the soil of its nutrients, leaving our land sandy and barren. Farmers rely heavily on the use of fertilisers to provide nutrients for agriculture, but this is unsustainable and has adverse effects on ecosystems and food nutrition
Loss of biodiversity
Trees play a key role in sustaining ecosystems, and their removal can quickly lead to the critical loss of plant and animal life that depends on them
Food security
Farming in this region heavily focusses on staple crops such as maize and cassava, meaning that we are becoming more and more susceptible to the risk of crop failures. We must diversify our local food crops to build resilience
Green economy
As our population continues to grow, we must find sustainable ways for people to earn a livelihood. We urgently need a green economy that works in harmony with the environment instead of exploiting it all
The Solution
Rain Drops has been focusing on 4 key areas since 2019, to address these challenges
Reforestation
We must act quickly to replant trees - this will help to sequester carbon, increase rainfall, regenerate soil health, and preserve precious ecosystems. Rain Drops grows trees from seeds at our nursery in Silundu, and distributes these to the local community.
​
We have carefully selected 3 families of tree to help maximise the impact of our actions:​
Acacia
Hardy and drought resistant; the acacia is a 'nitrogen fixer', meaning it takes nitrogen from the air and puts it into the ground. It will therefore mostly be grown for arable farmers to incorporate into their systems to reduce their reliance on harmful chemical fertilisers
Mongongo
Native, fast growing, nut-bearing and very easy to propagate;; the mongongo tree is drought and fire-resistant, coppices easily and will grow from a cutting. This, combined with its rapid growth makes it the ideal tree to quickly reforest barren areas
Fruit
Including mango, papaya, banana, orange, avocado and lemon. These will provide sustenance, shade and an income for people, as well as feeding many other insects, birds and mammals - increasing ecological diversity
Biochar
In addition to planting trees, we must protect our current mature woodlands, which are often targeted for charcoal production. Rain Drops is sharing knowledge for the local production of charcoal briquettes, manufactured from organic waste and byproducts, such as rice husks. These provide an alternative to traditional wood charcoal and will also provide income for the people producing them
Community engagement
We must all work together to meet the scale and urgency of the challenge we are facing. Rain Drops holds community engagement sessions to inform participants throughout the region about the challenges we are facing, and the steps we must take to mitigate them. During these sessions, we distribute seedlings so that individuals are empowered to play a role in reforesting as much land as possible
Education
We are working with schools across the region to integrate climate change and agroforestry into the curriculum. We host sessions where children learn why and how to plant trees, and during which they receive seedlings that they can take home to their families. Children are the change-makers in our communities, and we must recognise the key role that they play in influencing the choices of their families. We have already had a number of successful events in our local district and are scaling these activities rapidly
Our Team
Rain Drops Community Foundation was launched in 2019, and was registered with the Zambian Ministry of Community Development in 2022 (Certificate RNGO 101/1883/2022). Our board is comprised of 5 members of our community, who provide their expertise and guidance
Chairman
Godfrey Mulenga Mushinta
Project coordination and management
Secretary
Namwaka Waluka
Agricultural engineer and organic agroforestry expert
Treasurer
Nalukui Waluka
Community worker and youth counsellor
Board Member
Chabala Chanda
Health and nutrition specialist
Board Member
Mweemba Milimo
Marketing and communications specialist
