Improving dairy production through agroforestry and innovation
Innovation platforms in Uganda are empowering smallholders to adopt agroforestry to increase dairy production in both quantity and quality and improve livelihoods.
Lydia Spilsbury
Lydia Spilsbury is a communications intern for the Eastern and Southern Africa regional office and is based at the headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya. She provides communication support at both programme and country levels, producing communication materials, covering events and writing blogs and success stories. She has been with ICRAF since January 2019 and holds a Master's degree in Environment and Development from the University of Edinburgh
Drylands Development Programme: changed lives in the Sahel
DryDev helped develop farmer-managed natural regeneration in agricultural fields, leading to reforestation with multiple local and exotic species that now contribute to strengthening natural forests and providing woodfuel and food, which can be prepared on the improved cookstoves deployed by DryDev, which reduce fuelwood consumption by two-thirds.
Pause, reflect, learn, adapt
Land restoration targets and commitments have been set at global, regional, national and local levels. The UN General Assembly in New York declared on 1 March 2019 that 2021–2030 is to be the decade of land restoration.
The role of biodiversity in agroforestry and other types of smallholder farming
The global supply and consumption of food has increased over the last 50 years. However, due to our focus on increased productivity, our access to diverse and healthy foods has radically reduced. Many people remain hungry and increasing numbers have micronutrient deficiencies.
Mass movement and the ‘femininization’ of agriculture
In seven countries —Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, and Senegal — women represent approximately 43% of the agricultural labour force but only 8% of agricultural landowners.
Value unchained: putting money into the hands that grow our food
The economic benefits of agroforestry By Gabrielle Lipton This article is part of a Landscape Newsseries on agroforestry, published in partnership with World Agroforestry (ICRAF) in conjunction with the 4th World Congress on Agroforestry. Tunisia was once a...
Agroforestry: Development underdog headed for center stage in global sustainability efforts
When trees and crops are successfully farmed together, agroforestry does provide a wealth of environmental, social and economic benefits.
A roadmap to guide regreening in Mali
Government, researchers and development agencies are creating a roadmap for restoration in Mali to ensure a better understanding of the challenges, coordination and funding. Mali is one of eight African countries where Regreening Africa is being implemented, targeting 500,000...
Kenyan value chains are crucial for regreening efforts
Researchers show development of value chains is important for restoring degraded land in Kenya. Development of value chains is a key driver for successful implementation of regreening efforts and market access, say researchers from World Agroforestry and...
Technologies for land restoration showcased
With Africa lagging behind in efforts to restore 100 million hectares of degraded land, widespread use of innovative technologies is critical for success. Land degradation leads to declines in soil fertility and the loss of productivity and ecosystem...
Mushrooms for prosperity in Chin State
A mushroom research and training programme in Myanmar is aiming to lift farmers out of poverty, improve their diets and slow outward migration. Researchers from the Centre for Mountain Futures, a joint lab with World Agroforestry’s East and...
Learning from past initiatives for expanding the scale of land restoration in Africa
Former ways have been reviewed and new approaches put forward at a major conference on land restoration in Mali. Land-restoration challenges have been presented in the past, great solutions proposed, and targets set at local, regional, national and...
Restoring drylands and empowering farmers: lessons from the Drylands Development Programme
Successful land restoration needs human capacity, innovative technologies and mass participation. The countries of the Sahel Region of West Africa are vulnerable to the impact of large-scale environmental and land degradation, poor soil infertility, climate change, population...
Four Surprising Ways Mode and Gender Can Transform Your Survey Data
By Christine Lamanna (World Agroforestry), Kusum Hachhethu (WFP), Sabrina Chesterman (World Agroforestry), Suneetha Kadiyala (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine), and Todd Rosenstock (World Agroforestry). Mobile data collection technologies are increasingly being used to collect data remotely. However, there is little information about how the mode of data...