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Seeds of Change

Young Kenyan entrepreneurs are tackling deforestation through innovation

By UNDP Climate

April 21^st, 2022

“Let me ask a bold question: What can we do to rise above the status quo?” Eyebrows raised, Ruth Kimani looks into the camera, her voice forceful and energetic. Tonight, the 26-year-old delivers her first speech at Goelway, a Nairobi-based organization that publishes educational talks online. Her passion and familiarity with inspirational historic speeches is palpable.

“We are all complaining about the rate of unemployment, about politics and our leaders – yet, rather than placing demands on your country, it is important to ask: What can YOU do for the country? What can we do for our continent? We must come up with solutions by asking different questions!”

Ruth Kimani at the Nairobi Arboretum. © UNDP Kenya

Kimani came up with both questions and solutions. Apart from being engaged in reforestation projects and working as a writer and host for the Climate Change series of the Nairobi Ideas Podcast, she manages Rumann Craft, a fashion brand entirely based on recycling textile waste. As an entrepreneur, Kimani designs and creates colorful dresses, shirts and bags, spending a part of her sales on tree nursery development and restoration activities. "Telling people that you’re running a zero-waste fashion brand usually doesn’t resonate with them as most are unaware of the effects of waste on the environment. I dream of a future where people are conscious of how their individual lifestyle affects the planet and where we seriously start shifting from a linear to a circular economy, especially by encouraging recycling and reforestation."

In Kenya’s Nakuru National Park, Ruth Kimani recently partnered with a local women's group to grow seedlings which will be planted around the lake area upon maturation during the rainy season. "The idea to plant trees in Lake Nakuru National Park was well received by the wardens and the administration. We set out to develop the tree nursery but were faced by several challenges such as lack of water and unavailability of group members due to their relocation. Partnering with local women and buying their seedlings is the right solution for us and provides them with additional income. As a group, our ambition is to be able to tap into the carbon market in the future."

Indigenous tree species at the Nairobi Arboretum. © UNDP Kenya

A member of Cheptengis Women Group in Elgeyo Marakwet County attending to seedlings at their tree nursery. © UNDP Kenya

Members of Cheptengis Women Group in Elgeyo Marakwet County preparing a tree nursery. © UNDP Kenya

A fragile ecosystem increasingly under pressure from deforestation, pollution and rapid urbanization, the area around Lake Nakuru also harbors some of the world’s most majestic wildlife: lions, leopards, white and black rhinos, hippos, zebras, and hundreds of bird species – including flamingos that famously blush the water pink when they congregate around the lake by the thousands.

Engaging Youth in REDD+

In 2020, Ruth Kimani was selected as one of Kenya’s Environmental Youth Champions by the REDD+ Readiness Project funded through the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) and led by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. Working closely with the Climate and Forests Programme, UNDP Kenya implemented the project, supporting the country in developing a strategy to sustainably manage and conserve forests, as well as promoting long-term, transformative economic development with the need to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Participation from different stakeholders, particularly women and youth, is key to continue achieving these goals. According to the latest census, 75 percent of Kenya’s population is aged below 35 years, with more than 60 percent of youth in the active labor force.

A young woman taking part in the annual tree planting exercise in Kaptagat, Uasin Gishu County. © UNDP Kenya

Walid Badawi, Resident Representative for UNDP in Kenya, underlines the crucial role of the young generation in implementing the country’s climate action agenda: “Youth can effectively contribute to the national efforts in climate adaptation and mitigation through organizing and supporting innovations that would realize Kenya’s NDC updated targets of increased forest cover, reduced emissions from the transport sector, as well as improved adoption and use of climate smart technologies.”

Walid Badawi, Resident Representative for UNDP in Kenya (middle) with the REDD+ Team during a Tree Planting Event in Elgeyo Marakwet. © UNDP Kenya

Ruth Kimani particularly enjoyed the opportunity to exchange and collaborate with other young entrepreneurs, which also led her to co-organize the upcoming Kenya Youth in Forestry conference: “Through the REDD+ program, many young people now feel empowered to engage in initiatives that are mitigating climate change as well as creating economic opportunities in this sector. “We are determined to restore our forests and tackle climate change one step at a time, especially through education and innovation.”

A staff of Wildlife Works in Kasiagau Corridor, Taita Taveta Grafting Seedlings. © UNDP Kenya

Tree planting exercise during the 5th edition of the Annual Tree Planting for Kaptagat in Uasin Gishu County, July 2021. © UNDP Kenya

A woman engaged in tree planting during the 5th edition of the Annual Tree Planting Exercise for Kaptagat in Uasin Gishu County. © UNDP Kenya

A member of Cheptengis Women Group in Elgeyo Marakwet County watering their bamboos seedlings. © UNDP Kenya

Restoration efforts in Enoosupukia Forest in Narok County. © UNDP Kenya

A resident watering trees at NYEWASCO Kiganjo Sewere Station in Nyeri. © UNDP Kenya

Tree cover target enshrined in Constitution

As one of the few countries in the world that enshrined its tree cover target in the National Constitution, Kenya intends to increase its forest canopy to a minimum of 10 percent of the national area by 2030. Fully implementing this policy directive is key: According to the latest IPCC Report released in April 2022, greenhouse gas emissions will have to start declining by 2025, and be reduced by 43 percent by 2030, to limit global warming to 1.5C. For the first time the Report clearly underscores the importance of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through measures such as planting forests and managing them sustainably.

Kenya’s forest resources are of immense importance as they contribute to economic development, rural livelihoods, as well as to sustained ecosystem services. However, agricultural conversion, demand for fuelwood, charcoal, and wood products as well as infrastructure development and rapid urbanization also mean the country loses about 12,000 hectares of forests each year.

Under the REDD+ Readiness project which concluded in December 2021, Kenya has achieved significant milestones towards the implementation of its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) in the climate and forests sector, including the formulation of a National REDD+ Strategy, a Country Approach to Safeguards and the design of a Safeguards Information System (SIS).

Thanks to these major achievements, Kenya is now well equipped to plan and achieve meaningful large-scale investments in reforestation. The “Tree Growing and Sustainable Forestry Finance and Management Programme” provides the basis for this development: Financed with USD 450 million and developed by the Government of Kenya, with support from UNDP, UNEP, FAO and UNCDF, it seeks to accelerate the achievement of the 10 percent national tree cover target enshrined in the Constitution.

An Aerial View of Thick Kessup Forest in Elgeyo Marakwet County. The County currecntly has a forest cover of 38% the highest among the 47 counties.

Forests save lives in the face of climate change

Wendy Omanga, who is also one of the Environmental Youth Champions selected by UNDP, knows firsthand that forests are not only key to preserve ecosystems and livelihoods – but also to save lives in the face of climate change. “I come from a flood-prone area in Kisumu County. My community has been losing lives and property due to regular floodings of the nearby Nyando river.”

These experiences prompted the 28-year-old woman to look for a solution to mitigate the flooding in her native Katolo village. “When I was at the University of Nairobi, I started researching on erosion prevention and discovered that planting bamboo along Nyando river can effectively halt silting along the riverbeds.”

Wendy Omanga's native village is situated in a flood-prone area in Kisumu County. © Moonlight Initiative

At the University of Nairobi, 28-year-old Wendy Omanga conducted research on erosion prevention. © UNDP Kenya

Wendy Omanga is now Secretary of the Bamboo Association of Kenya and the founder of Moonlight Initiative, a youth-led sustainability and circular economy consultancy based in Nairobi that specializes in commercial forestry with a focus on bamboo. “Bamboo is a very sustainable and fast-growing grass, it requires no fertilizer and self-regenerates from its own roots, so it doesn't need to be replanted. Additionally, over 10.000 value-added products can be created from bamboo.” Omanga’s initiative regularly conducts workshops to support farmers in producing a variety of bamboo products, such as briquettes, which – as a viable alternative to wood fuel – also reduce the pressure on the need to harvest forest resources.

Wendy Omanga planting bamboo along Nyando river. © Moonlight Initiative

Bamboo furniture. © CIFOR/ Fiston Wasanga

A viable alternative to wood fuel, bamboo briquettes also reduce the pressure on forest resources. © Moonlight Initiative

A young man at Korogocho Waterfront Park watering grass. Wendy Omanga through Moonlight Initiative have been training youths at the park on bamboo propagation. © UNDP Kenya

Wendy Omanga at Korogocho Waterfront Park. © UNDP Kenya

Wendy Omanga with a bamboo craftsman in Eldoret. © Moonlight Initiative

Wendy Omanga at a bamboo workshop. © Moonlight Initiative

Bamboo toothpicks. © Moonlight Initiative

“I believe in the impossible”

What drives Wendy Omanga, Ruth Kimani and their fellow Environmental Youth Champions is a bold vision, paired with a strong willingness to overcome any challenge. Omanga considers the most difficult part of her professional journey being a young person in environmental conservation, a space, where youth and especially women in Kenya are underrepresented. “I have one advice to my fellow African youths: Your background has nothing to do with your future, for it is temporary. The only limit is your mindset.”

"Your background has nothing to do with your future, for it is temporary - the only limit is your mindset", says Wendy Omanga. © UNDP Kenya

Planting bamboo along river Nyando in Kisumu county. © Moonlight Initiative

Wendy Omanga visiting bamboo nursery enterprise in Busia county.

Wendy Omanga showcasing bamboo briquettes and toothpicks together with a local farmer.

Wendy Omanga is convinced that the hardest setbacks and losses in her personal life are the ones which shaped her most. “Being exposed to different levels of poverty that people live in, in these parts of Nairobi, has been an eye opener to me. It propelled me to achieve my dreams without breaking a sweat, and I am grateful for that. I believe in the impossible.”

Wendy Omanga talking to farmers living along River Nyando in her native Kisumu County.

Ruth Kimani draws inspiration and strength from writing poems, which to her, has in essence close linkages to her environmental work. “Poems are a way to express myself. It is for me a way to describe the uniqueness of the environment and to urge people to conserve its beauty – because this is all we've got!”

(…) She is breathtakingly beautiful

As she sashays around rocks and valleys,

She is sassy and fierce,

As she takes what belongs to her

She truly is the essence of life

She is mama, nature!

Excerpt of “Mama! Nature” / “The Precious Core” Anthology – by Ruth Kimani

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