Headman Thindwa and Tree Planting to Protect The Environment
Headman Thindwa is 79 years old and lives with his wife Eliza who is 50 years old, and his children and grandchildren, who are 16, 14, 7 and 5. Mr. Thindwa owns land where he has been farming for a long time, and he and his family rely mainly on farming as their primary source of income. He grows maize, does winter cropping of tomatoes and other vegetables, as well as maintaining fruit trees such as avocado. This produce helps to feed his family, and surplus serves as additional income which is used to support them with health care and education.
Mr. Thindwa is currently struggling to produce enough from his farm and to plant more fruit trees, due to his physical health and old age. He is also limited by his farm input availability, meaning that he struggles to access essential resources for farming such as fertilisers and seeds.
Headman Thindwa found out about Temwa in 2017, when they came to Njiri school to train on water and soil conservation measures. He was amazed with the information surrounding water and soil conservation, so he began working with Temwa on our Carbon Balance Afforestation programme to plant trees and improve his farm.
Since working with Temwa, Mr. Thindwa has been able to plant 10,000 trees (1,500 this year alone) including pine, fruit, and agroforestry trees, meaning he now experiences significantly less water run-off on his land. He now also manages one acre of natural forest, where he has hung 3 beehives for protection.
In preparation for the 2024-2025 tree planting season, he plans to raise 2000 trees - a mix of red mahogany and pine - to cover his 2-acres of farmland. He has also planted 12 bamboo trees as an alternative source of energy and an alternative to firewood, in order to protect the natural forest. He also would like support from Temwa to buy and raise pigs, so he can benefit from manure which would improve crop production by tackling the problems he still faces concerning farm inputs.
Planting trees is one thing. Protecting them is another. Local governance structures play a central role in promoting sustainable forest management practices in the local communities like Headmans, making sure that the trees planted stay in the ground, bringing benefits to the Earth and to the communities for years to come. Temwa Carbon Balance supports enforcement of local forest bylaws that now cover all of Temwa’s catchment area and protect the trees that we plant for you.
Find out more about Temwa Carbon Balance is our latest report here.