Bore, Kenya
Reforestation: the process of planting trees in areas where forests have been cut down or destroyed.
Permanence: 40+ years
Project: This unique project started life in 2007 and has since has grown into one of the largest community forestry initiatives in Kenya. Its purpose is to help the people of Boré in Coastal Province find sustainable ways to conserve their tropical forest which is in a very vulnerable situation. 3000 participating members are organised into a co-operative that work together to plant the trees and implement other associated development projects. A 15 member management committee, led by Project Manager - Alex Katana, coordinates all aspects of local project development and ensures that all sectors of the community are fully engaged and that decision making is democratic.
The learning, gained from14 years experience in this rural subsistence community, is that tree planting is more likely to be successful if it is conducted as part of an overall community based sustainable development strategy so in recent years the scope of the scheme has widened beyond trees to include education, women's rights, forest preservation and the development of a range of alternative livelihoods.
The wider project has an annual target plant of 1 million trees of comprising 19 different species. All of which reduce deforestation, improve bio-diversity and benefit the entire, 5000 strong community in a variety of other ways.
