BY December Ndhlovu
Ten Trees Project
In Mpumalanga, we are working with the Ten Trees project, an initiative started by Project Biome.
Project Biome refers to itself as a connecting tissue of the organizations that work in the regenerative space. Project Biome holds a Pan African vision for rewilding rivers, regenerative agriculture, green technology, and living distributed economies to create regenerative futures.
The global challenge we face as a collective is to transform from an extractive, destructive species that believes it is separate from Nature, into a humanity that recognizes our interconnectedness with one another and the universe, and holds reverence for our ingenuity and responsibility as conscious beings.
This project aims to plant 10 trees per household for about 150 households in the Acornhoek area in RDP Village - or Orpen Gate village as it is called now, implemented by Zingela Ulwazi. This is a one-year pilot project, and the main purpose is to plant trees that will provide nourishing fruits to mitigate the food insecurity in these households, to optimise the health and well-being of the people.
The broader purpose is to to eventually re-wild the RDP Village / Orpen Gate Village area which is situated at the headwaters of the Timbavati River. This will also impat the Klaserie River, improving the water’s downstream flow. This two rivers are severely stressed.
Stakeholder engagements and partnership building
In preparation for the rollout of the project we had a series of engagement with stakeholders:
The local Induna Mr Khoza was formally informed about the project prior to the start of stakeholder meetings. The idea of planting ten trees at no expense at about 150 households has been applauded everywhere where we engaged about the initiative.
The main stakeholder meeting happened on the 14th of June 2023, and it was attended by the majority of stakeholders.
MAIN STAKEHOLDERS’ MEETING
ICUMA Manager Mr Mbetse
Other stakeholder meetings included Inkomati Usuthu Catchment Management Agency (ICUMA), Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF)’s, Bushbuckridge Local Municipality - Water Services’, Economic Development Planning and Environment (EDPE) and Local Economic Development (LED). (pictured ).
We look forward to engaging further with these stakeholder institutions, to sign Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) committing to the Ten Trees project and the shared goals of regeneration, water loss management and sustainable development.
Mr Makhavhu Deputy Director Water Services
Ms Timba
EDPE Manager
Mr Nyathi
EDPE Officer
“The 2014 – 2020 drought that ravaged Bushbuckridge, was the scariest thing to know because the water levels, at some point, was below 30%. ”