As the World Environmental Day themed “Ecosystem Restoration” was marked this week, a group of young women conservationists dubbed the Forest Carbon Champions are leading efforts to protect the environment in their communities across Kenya.
Since the beginning of the year, these champions have brought together over 10,550 community members and planted more than 150,000 trees across the country.
Their work has inspired more people to join conservation efforts, with an eye on the country’s goal of restoring 10.6 million hectares of damaged land and planting 15 billion trees by 2032.
One champion, Theresa Aoko, leads the Kenya Forest Working Group. She has not only helped restore damaged lands but also created jobs for young people in the process.
“As young people working in forestry, we plan to plant 12,000 trees, including native and fruit trees, in 10 schools in Siaya County to get youth involved in reforestation,” said Aoko.
The Forest Carbon Champions received support from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Kenya Forest Service through the Improve Measurement for Payments to Reduce Emissions and Strengthen Sinks (IMPRESS) project – 2021-2023.
This project helped measure deforestation, monitor restoration efforts, and expand tracking to include mangrove forests. As early volunteers, the champions learned a lot about forestry, wetlands, and natural resources.
“We used what we learned from Sharing the experience on Forest and Land Monitoring for Climate Action – SEPAL – a digital platform and tools for more effective forest and land monitoring, to monitor endangered trees in Ramogi Hills. This helped guide our restoration plans using local knowledge. We aim to do the same in Cherengani Hills, Western Kenya,” said Olgah Hellen, founder of iConserve Organization in Kisumu.
Building on IMPRESS’s success, FAO started the Accelerating Innovative Monitoring for Forests (AIM4Forests) programme in 2023, with funding from the UK.
This program aims to improve Kenya’s National Forest Monitoring System (NFMS) using modern technology like space data and remote sensing. AIM4Forests will address technical gaps, strengthen institutions, and increase the involvement of women, youth, and indigenous peoples in forest monitoring.
“The main goal of the Forest Carbon Champion Program 2024 is to mentor and empower the champions to make a bigger impact on Kenya’s forests,” said Eva Ntara, an environmental expert.
Through teamwork and linking global innovation in forest monitoring to local actions, AIM4Forests is set to make a significant difference, protecting our natural resources for the future.
The dedicated young women of the Forest Carbon Champions are leading this important change.
By Fleiss Akoko
