Archive

1. Taniala Regenerative Camp

   2023-01-03 12:45 pm Comments Off on Taniala Regenerative Camp

   The Taniala organisation derives its name from two Malagasy words: “Tany” which means both “earth” and “soil”; and “Ala” which means “forest”.

   The Taniala Regenerative Camp promotes regenerative land use practices in Madagascar that are locally adapted, accessible and sustainable. It aims to support the forest to regenerate through sustainable agriculture techniques, and to bequeath living soil to future generations in Madagascar.

   The first Regenerative Camp was set up in January 2022 in Lambokely, a village where migrants live after fleeing famine and drought. The local community depends on agriculture, including cultivation of corn, cassava and groundnuts. ‘Slash-and-burn’ cultivation of corn over three years is currently the preferred agricultural technique, after which time, other plots of forest are cleared. As a result of these unsustainable practices, only 56% of forest cover remains today.
   Taniala aims to set up more Regenerative Camps to promote more sustainable practices in other sites.

   Next stages of the project include:

   • Involving local community members in the development of the agroforestry system model, drawing on knowledge of local species and embedding local people’s needs.
   • Training local communities as “forest farmers” so they can share techniques with peers (training of 50 farmers within the next 5 years).
   • Building the basic infrastructures necessary for Regenerative Camps.
   • Testing or improving best practices and/or technical itineraries.
   • Designing strategies for capacity-building and promotion of techniques.
   • In the next 5 years, Regenerative Camps will be set up in several villages in the Menabe region.

2. Enactus

   2019-01-31 8:15 pm Comments Off on Enactus

   ex aqua is part of Enactus, an international non-profit organization providing a platform for students to create community development projects with a social entrepreneurship approach. The project focuses on the Toliara region in southwest Madagascar where people suffer heavily from malnutrition.

   More than 75% of the population lives below the poverty threshold of $1.9 per day. Additionally, 65% of the coral reefs in the region have died over the past 50 years, and decades of overfishing have decimated the fish stock. As a result, Madagascan fishermen are in need of an additional source of food and income.

   Conventional marine bathing sponges are removed from the reef directly, but ex aqua has a sustainable approach to avoid further exploitation of the reef. Ripe sponges are halved and one part is left to regrow. ex aqua empowers fishermen to sustainably grow and harvest sponges and highly nutritious algae in the ocean.

   ex aqua’s partner on site is Reef Doctor, a UK-based non-profit organisation that has been conducting conservation as well as social development projects in south-west Madagascar for 15 years. Reef Doctor’s experience provides an immense advantage for ex aqua in terms of regional knowledge, a very familiar contact with the locals, and the trust of the local community.