Permaculture Can SAVE millions Elephants and other Habtants.

ELEPHANTS IN DANGER, YOUR CHOICES MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

In every part of history, elephants have been a vital key in human culture, religion and economies. The colossal size, structure, and strength of the largest living land mammal has fascinated people of different cultures and norms for hundreds of years. Elephants are a great symbol and sign of many tribes in the world and very special and rare animals. Uganda is not only home to the Elephants but to its smaller brother – the Forest Elephants. Most likely you will not see the differences unless you pay close attention – they have 5 toes on their front feet and four the back ones.  They have a covering of hair and are grey in color. They have smaller tusks and they are straighter and point downwards so that they can navigate around the tropical rainforest jungles of West, Central Africa and in Uganda – They enter through a wildlife corridor from the Democratic Republic into Ishasha – this corridor leads them as far as Kabale Forest and in Asia, in countries Like Thailand, China and in other regions on the continent

Forest Elephant Tusks are of the highest quality and they favored by Ivory Poachers because the ivory is harder and yet retains its elastic qualities – unfortunately poaching is rampant in the Democratic Republic of Congo and on the increase in Uganda and Elephants are killed for their ivory and that includes Forest Elephants.

These kind of Elephants communicate with one another over long distances through calls that most often are too low to be heard by humans.  As far as living in harmony with the forest – these elusive animals of the forest can cause much more destructive manage than their Savannah cousins – taking down trees, digging up the ground, destroying the underbrush for their trails.

Forest Elephants can breed any time of the year – the gestation period is 22 months in length and normally give birth to a single Forest Elephant calf. As far as predators are concerned – the main ones are humans, both poachers and those who encroach into the parks destroying the Forest Elephants habitat.

Forest Elephants –in Uganda can be found Kabale Forest, Rwenzori Mountain Foothills, Mgahinga Gorilla Park, Semliki Park, Mount Elgon, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, and Ishasha Sector of Queen Elizabeth Park.  The Forest Elephants of Uganda – another reason to visit the Pearl of Africa and other tropical regions of Africa

Diet, Staples: Grasses, leaves, bamboo, bark, roots. Elephants are also known to eat crops like banana and sugarcane which are grown by farmers. Adult elephants eat 300-400 lbs of food per day.

Population, at the turn of the 20th century, there were a few million African elephants and about 100,000 Asian elephants. Today, there are an estimated 450,000 - 700,000 African elephants and between 35,000 - 40,000 wild Asian elephants.

Range, elephants are found in savannah zones in 37 countries south of the Sahara Desert. Forest elephants inhabit the dense rainforests of west and central Africa – Uganda. The Asian elephant is found in India, Sri Lanka, China and much of Southeast Asia.

Behavior, Elephants form deep family bonds and live in tight matriarchal family groups of related females called a herd. The herd is led by the oldest and often largest female in the herd, called a matriarch. Herds consist of 8-100 individuals depending on terrain and family size. When a calf is born, it is raised and protected by the whole matriarchal herd. Males leave the family unit between the ages of 12-15 and may lead solitary lives or live temporarily with other males.

Elephants are extremely intelligent animals and have memories that span many years. It is this memory that serves matriarchs well during dry seasons when they need to guide their herds, sometimes for tens of miles, to watering holes that they remember from the past. They also display signs of grief, joy, anger and play.

Challenges

Illegal wildlife Trade, many elephants are being killed for Ivory. The reckless trophy hunting of imperiled wildlife in Africa has to stop. Demand that all international air carriers refuse to ship imperiled big game trophies.

Habitat loss is one of the key threats facing elephants. climate change projections indicate that key portions of elephants’ habitat will become significantly hotter and drier, resulting in poorer foraging conditions and threatening calf survival. Increasing conflict with human populations taking over more and more elephant habitat and poaching for ivory are additional threats that are placing the elephant’s future at risk.

Poaching, African elephant lies dying – yet another victim of a poacher's rifle. Her ivory tusks will be hacked off her still-warm body to fuel an illegal international ivory trade worth millions of dollars. Between 2010 and 2012, poachers slaughtered an estimated 100,000 elephants for their ivory. That's roughly one elephant butchered every 15 minutes.

 SOLUTIONS

The reckless trophy hunting of imperiled wildlife in Africa has to stop. Demand that all international air carriers refuse to ship imperiled big game trophies, effective immediately!

ESTABLISH private permaculture elephant food forest double standard Eco systems, Elephant friendly Jungles for food, breeding and safety in all regions, through planting a million of trees, conservation of biodiversity, preserve water bodies, in addition innovating ivory substitutes.

Fight and report to protect elephants and other threatened and endangered wildlife, Adopt an Elephant, A symbolic adoption helps save real animals in the wild, Take Action on law and elephant protection policy, Visit our Wildlife Action Center to send a message to government leaders, Speak Up for Wildlife, Learn how you can be a powerful advocate for wildlife.

Keep the pressure on the Government to follow through on plans to end the domestic trade in ivory;

Mobilize against “Save Elephants Campaigns” efforts to weaken ivory import, export and sale restrictions in Uganda and in other regions, Conservation leadership at international wildlife fora such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

 “There’s no time to lose. let us Stand today so that our children can experience the wonder of elephants in their world.” – Mugarura Charles -

Permaculture creating impact on poisoned soils

Restoration of poisoned soil In permaculture to increase food production ! if each farmer treats soils in harmonized  sustainable system, production can increase 15% per annum by Charles Mugarura 

A degraded soil typically loses its ability to supply food and habitation to living organisms, in its surrounding. When this happens, effort is made to restore the soil back to its natural state. Characteristics of a degraded soil include: high salinity, decline in fertility, decline in organic matter (leading to decline in soil structure), soil erodibility, increase in alkalinity and acidity.

Soil degradation can be caused by man: for example, agricultural activities can disturb the soil structure and its drainage capacity; chemical use can increase soil salinity or alkalinity. It can also be of a natural cause like salinization (when soils originate from salty parent materials) or erosion.

Some ways of restoring damaged soil include:

Use of organic farming techniques: Organic farming involves the application of natural means in farming, to reduce harm to the environment. Some organic farming techniques that help restore the soil include use of green manure (uprooted or sown crop parts incorporated or left on topsoil), cover crops, crop rotation and organic compost.

• Green manure and cover crops: Green manures and cover crops serve as mulch to the soil preventing the soil from wind/water erosion and moisture loss. They also increase the soil organic matter content as they decompose in the soil. Green manure and cover crops that are legumes (plants which produce seeds in pods) have nitrogen fixing ability. The nitrogen fixing bacteria in their root nodules help capture nitrogen from the atmosphere. Green manure and cover crops suppress weed growth. It is a cheap and natural (no herbicide use) method of controlling weeds.

Organic compost: 

Organic compost is a generally cheaper method of fertilizing the soils compared to inorganic fertilizers. Compost is a mixture of decomposed plant parts and animal waste. The key benefit of composting is that it increases soil organic matter content. Organic matter improves the soil fertility, the soil structure and its water holding capacity. It also sequesters carbon in the soil. The use of compost reduces use of chemical fertilizers which if applied inappropriately can contaminate neighbouring streams or ground water.

• Crop rotation: 

This is a farming practice which involves growing different types of crops in one location sequentially. This practice reduces soil erosion, increases the soil fertility and subsequently crop yield.

Soil remediation: Soil remediation involves the removal of harmful contaminants such as, heavy metals, sewage sludge, coal tar, carcinogenic hydrocarbons, liquors and petroleum from soils. Soil remediation can be achieved using biological techniques. This method is called bioremediation. Some examples of bioremediation techniques include:

• Phytoremediation: The use of plants to remove contaminants from soils or to degrade contaminants to a lesser toxic form. Some plants have the ability to extract contaminants from soils. This process is called phytoextraction. The willow (Salix viminalis) is a shrub credited for its ability to extract cadmium from soils1. Phytoextraction is one technique in phytoremediation. Some other techniques are phytostabilization, phytotransformation and phytostimulation.

• Bioaugmentation: This is the introduction of genetically modified micro organisms into contaminated soils with the aim of degrading contaminants. The efficiency of this technique depends on a number of factors, some of which are the physico-chemical properties of the soil and the ability of the introduced micro organisms to compete successfully with the indigenous soil microflora2.

• Land-based treatments: This includes techniques like land farming and composting. In land farming, contaminated soils are taken to land farming sites and continuously overturned and tilled to allow aeration. In composting, micro organisms present in organic material are used to biodegrade soil contaminants.

When soils are contaminated they constitute an environmental hazard. Soil remediation is always an expensive large scale project; requiring funding or approval by the government or local authority involved. A good example of a soil remediation project was the restoration of soils contaminated with stockpiles of obsolete pesticides in two African countries (Mali and Mauritania)3. These soils were restored using composting and land-farming. This project was run by collaboration between the FAO* Pesticide Management Programme, the Wageningen University and Research Centre and the National Institutions of the countries involved.

Desalinization: Soil salinization occurs when high levels of soluble salts accumulate in the root zone. Saline soils frustrate crop growth and reduce crop yield. Soil salinization is encouraged by:

• Formation from parent materials with high salt content

• Low rainfall in arid regions where there is insufficient water to leach salts

• Poor soil drainage system

• Excessive exposure of soil to salty irrigation water or chemicals

Some methods used to restore saline soils are:

• Installing drainage systems to wash salts down the soil profile (this method is expensive and complicated).

• Leaching out saline soils by applying water to contaminated soils to wash salts beyond the root zone.

• Use of salt tolerant plants (halophytes) as bioremediants. Halophytes accumulate salts in their shoots and other aerial plant parts. Examples include Allenrolfea occidentalis (iodine bush)4, Salicornia bigelovii (dwarf saltwort), Panicum virgatum (switch grass), Sesuvium portulacastrum (sea purslane)5.

• Application of gypsum (calcium sulphate dehydrate) to sodic soils. Sodic soils have high content of sodium chloride. Gypsum mixed into the layers of sodic soils replaces sodium with calcium, reducing the sodium level.

REFERENCES AND USEFUL LINKS

1. Klang-Westin E, Eriksson J (2003) Potential of Salix as phytoextractor for Cd on moderately contaminated soils. Plant and Soil 249: 127-137.
2. Mrozik A, Piotrowska-Seget Z (2010) Bioaugmentation as a strategy for cleaning up of soils contaminated with aromatic compounds. Microbiological Research 165:363-375.
3. Harmsen et al. (2009) An African approach for risk reduction of soil contaminated by obsolete pesticides. Retrieved from: http://www.fao.org/agriculture/crops/obsolete-pesticides/what-now/soil-remediation.
4. Zerai DB (2007) Halophytes for Bioremediation of Salt Affected Lands. PhD thesis, University of Arizona.
5. Rabhi et al. (2009) Evaluation of the capacity of three halophytes to desalinize their rhizosphere as grown on saline soils under nonleaching conditions. African Journal of Ecology 47:463-468.
6. Roland Bunch (2012) Restoring the soil. A guide for using green manure/cover crops to improve the food security of smallholder farmers. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/CA-Publications/Restoring_the_Soil.pdf.
7. Bioremediation Technologies University of Hawaii

permaculture Bussiness power by mugarura charles

Broadfield  Enterprises Uganda - Youth Parmaculture Group In Uganda "Permaculture Eco-system is Our Foundation"

permaculture is the most sustainable and rewarding social entrepreneurship venture idea, that can change many lives . 

 Permaculture is the sustainable system to repair agriculture or to implement permaculture Sustainable designed patterns, recycle and usage of all other natural environmental resources to create a sustainable production and harmonized settlement. BEU is built on the foundation of permaculture implementation at a standard of turning the exact problems into solution “the problem is the solution” permaculture is the way to go for sustainability in usage of resources to satisfy man’s needs and the economy because it creates direct and permanent employment opportunity.

Seasons have changed, drought, floods and others adverse effects of negligence of natural resources that maintain the balance and stability of nature have become more visible and the time is long overdue for sensitization to reverse this is long overdue. Many young leaders assume that the idea of climate change is a distant aspect of life that is for old people. It is therefore imperative that a platform is created to share information about the same and demonstrate how urgent the issue is and what they can do in their individual capacities and in groups to make the world better.

The changing climate and the increasing scarcity of resources ,has left many communities financially un stable , increased un employment ,scarcity of food , changing of seasons , drought ,poor soils and other related problems due to ignorance of man to give the right response on all these challenges ,  by actions, observing , experiencing and understanding. Permaculture disciplines are components of permaculture eco-system that provide permaculture Knowledge and technical knowledge on how to respond to the current global environment challenges in a mutual benefit of man and natural resource usage in a  harmonized manner. These disciplines enable one to be in position adopt permaculture principals and knowledge to establish permanent –sustainable Agriculture systems, resource usage to their full potential without harming the environment especially the fundamental components of soil and climate fundamental. You cut costs of investment, Harvest money, organic food, good climate in an efficient harmonized manner and acquire sustainable permanent skills.

Permaculture, is built on principles of which all emphasis eco system functioning cycle of resource usage  in terms of harvesting from the nature  and the whole 10 principles are  embedded on the techniques of designing and creativity of the implementor to understand the functionality of the resource , what to harvest , when and how in the harmonized manner.

My new permaculture polished Version - social innovation of integrations, is the current best approach of introducing permaculture to all groups of age regardless the age, Race, religion and financial capacity. The permaculture Multi – implementation approach differs, in relation to the available resources, and topography and the available best alternative resources. Permaculture has direct impact on the first 3A and 13 (Climate Change) others are aligned on the sideline and achieved indirectly however it is possible to prioritize   them towards implementation of the design and set goals.

Permaculture involves stages on implementation, it involves the site Analysis Designing, the permaculture sustainable final Design and implantation. it has another important element of Zoning , it has zones from zero , one , two , three , four and five . All these zones complete the factors that favor  the successful implementation of the reliable sustainable permaculture Eco- system. Permaculture organizes the standard and proper usage of land scape and all other resources in restoration and regeneration matter, which reduces scarcity and creates sustainability.

our permaculture T-shirts they speak to you and they call upon you for sustainable usage of resources .

Describe how your Permaculture  addresses a social need, and how it benefits your target community

Almost 30% of Ugandans households are considered to be food insecure and chronic under nutrition in children is a critical issue. 30% of children under five years old are stunted. On average agricultural households have 1.34 hectares and 61% cultivate less than a hectare. The almost total dependence on rain-fed agriculture coupled with inefficient farming systems makes harvests way below their potential especially in drought prone areas. Drought in one agricultural season in Northern Uganda in 2012 led to a decline in food production of (94%) and income (81%). There is need for urgent change in the farming systems to secure food security and livelihoods of households.

The main cause of food insecurity among smallholder farmers is low agricultural productivity attributed to a number of factors: Use of extractive farming methods that focus on production outputs without replenishing soil nutrients, reliance on rainfed agriculture making farmers highly susceptible to drought, and breakdown in knowledge on low input based farming systems that promote harmony with the environment while fulfilling food and income needs.

My Polished permaculture Eco system social Innovation seeks to inspire a movement to change the smallholder farming system in East Africa to shift from traditional interventions of introducing ‘superior inputs’ to adapting a sustainable culture that looks at the holistic picture of how they live and relate to the natural eco system. This will involve building regional networks of smallholder farmers for learning and knowledge exchange on the sustainable culture. Extension agents will be certified in permaculture ecosystems by Blue host institution, Australia.  A knowledge hub will be developed for collection, dissemination of information on application of permaculture principles. Loan products will be developed with Micro Finance Institutions to finance integration of permaculture in existing farming systems and a certification system will be develop to create a premium market for smallholder farmers applying the smart farming principles.

The main prescription for the food security challenge has been introduction and provision of financing for ‘superior inputs’. Agencies such as; One Acre Fund, Technoserve, are using this model. The mode has shown great success in increasing productivity in the shortrun but has compounded the ‘extractive mind set of the traditional farming system’ that assumes that soils will remain productive as long as fertilizers are applied. Evidence shows that synthetic fertilizers alter properties of the soil in the long run causing soil acidification and giving rise to nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas causing climate change that will harm future food production

By 2020 a network of 5,000 farmers in East Africa will have practical experience on use of permaculture principles for designing smart farming systems that use available eco system resources to optimize productivity. Farmers Households will be food secure, having at least 3 meals a day, and will be consuming at least 6 different varieties of food to enhance nutrition. The Income from agro-based products will have doubled.

Permaculture , will measure its impact by tracking 4 indicators; the proportion of smallholder farmers that are Certified, Ratio of extension agents to smallholder farmers, No of smallholder farmers whose households are food secure; having 3 meals a day, No of households that will have doubled their income by 2019.

Permaculture will have a network of extension agents certified in permaculture eco system principles reaching out to at least 2,000 smallholder farmers in 2 East Africa Countries. A certification system will have been developed for farmers applying smart farming systems to create a premium market and promote the culture of sustainability.

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PERMACULTURE IN UGANDA WITH MUGARURA CHARLES

How you came across permaculture?

 Am Charles  Mugarura ,I grew as an orphan in Sabina home under children of Uganda and Daughters of charity by then, it was 2008 when Dan Palmer and Amada from Australia , visited my school and they made a presentation on permaculture and global challenges due to the quick connection to him I was able to join him as a helper first at the age of 16 , to implement Permaculture Across Borders Project – Sabina permaculture Food and water security program in the very home where I was raised since 1999 after the death of my father, many children in the home never liked permaculture because gardening at some point was recognized has a punishment especially in schools, my participation, interest, passion and the relationship with Dan and Amada gave me chance to be given a scholarship ,With my two close friends  Nyero  by the Board Vice Chairman Jan Smart, as Gift after being   touched by our enthusiasm, passion, deep connection with people and work towards this project. In 2012 December we sat for our PDC under Prof. Rosemary Morrow, Dan Palmer and Amanda Cuyler in Uganda – Sabina and we were the youngest student in the whole course with the best experience. From there I started doing external social permaculture as I volunteer to meet farmers until I was invited to design Permaculture project in  Kenya, in Uganda designing Bio Gas waste Management  and In Rwanda on a campaign of Tree Forest designing and home smart Garden, I did non-money oriented seasonal contracts on gentleman’s agreement with patterners, co-currently doing my high school-s.5 and s.6 and I would attend to them on my holidays, it got me some money that contributed to my personal welfare in school, during this process I made friends because I was always not after the money, results were a priority.

In 2012 I started formulating a structure and working in my business proposal focusing going commercial in terms of offering permaculture services and organic products which gave birth to Broadfield Enterprises Uganda ltd – permaculture Group private company which I registered in 29^th January 2016 with GREAT Support from my Closest friends Dan Lavoie, Denis Bo……, Nyero Christopher and Julian Ainembabazi, who currently have legal shares. Am currently running the establishment of permaculture Demonstration Unit in Mityana on a temporarily period patternship as we look forward to settle on our permanent land with support of my beloved family(Bowmans), which will increase our commitment to development and Permaculture  Business share capital, we also strongly pattern with social organization(NGO) for livelihood empowerment to eliminate poverty ,climate change and health.

I have the experience to creatively implement commercial income returns permaculture venture that at the same time solve community challenges.

Why permaculture is Important to go?

Am deep in love with permaculture. Permaculture seeks to inspire a movement to change the smallholder farming system in East Africa to shift from traditional interventions of introducing ‘superior inputs’ to adapting a sustainable culture that looks at the holistic picture of how they live and relate to the natural eco system. Permaculture main prescription for the food security, the highest risks of climate change, sustainable livelihood challenge has been introduction and provision of financing for ‘superior inputs’. Agencies such as; One Acre Fund, Technoserve, are using this model. The mode has shown great success in increasing productivity in the short run but has compounded the ‘extractive mind set of the traditional farming system’ that assumes that soils will remain productive as long as fertilizers are applied. Evidence shows that synthetic fertilizers

Permaculture Summarized concept Note.

 Permaculture is the sustainable system to repair agriculture or to implement permaculture Sustainable designed patterns, recycle and usage of all other natural environmental resources to create a sustainable production and harmonized settlement. BEU is built on the foundation of permaculture implementation at a standard of turning the exact problems into solution “the problem is the solution” permaculture is the way to go for sustainability in usage of resources to satisfy man’s needs and the economy because it creates direct and permanent employment opportunity.

Seasons have changed, drought, floods and others adverse effects of negligence of natural resources that maintain the balance and stability of nature have become more visible and the time is long overdue for sensitization to reverse this is long overdue. Many young leaders assume that the idea of climate change is a distant aspect of life that is for old people. It is therefore imperative that a platform is created to share information about the same and demonstrate how urgent the issue is and what they can do in their individual capacities and in groups to make the world better.

The changing climate and the increasing scarcity of resources ,has left many communities financially un stable , increased un employment ,scarcity of food , changing of seasons , drought ,poor soils and other related problems due to ignorance of man to give the right response on all these challenges ,  by actions, observing , experiencing and understanding. Permaculture disciplines are components of permaculture eco-system that provide permaculture Knowledge and technical knowledge on how to respond to the current global environment challenges in a mutual benefit of man and natural resource usage in a  harmonized manner. These disciplines enable one to be in position adopt permaculture principals and knowledge to establish permanent –sustainable Agriculture systems, resource usage to their full potential without harming the environment especially the fundamental components of soil and climate fundamental. You cut costs of investment, Harvest money, organic food, good climate in an efficient harmonized manner and acquire sustainable permanent skills.

approach to permaculture implementation is very fundamental especially when we target objectives of sustainability, the young people need to be at the front in engaging .