Healing the Desert with Trees in Darfur

With the appalling fighting ongoing in West and South Darfur, we are relieved  to report that our villages have not been touched in North Darfur, but every single family is suffering from the effects of the attrocities. Starvation and deprivation were already serious worries even before these terrible attacks.   Now normal life is almost impossible.

We are told, however, that is now possible to deliver aid - seeds, medicines, sugar, oil and other basics. It has been very difficult as the banks across the whole of Sudan have been closed for months but thankfully they are beginning to open.

We can start planning again.   Kids for Kids cannot walk away as so many other organisations have done. 

You may remember that we had just planted a Moringa plantation last year?

Planting trees  increases  soil moisture in the area, which reduces temperatures by creating a microclimate leading to a more fertile environment for crops to grow. Planting trees in Darfur not only provides shade but they stabilise the soil and hold back the ever-encroaching desert.   Kids for Kids has been planting fourteen different varieties of drought resistant trees since 2007.   Our community forests have a massive impact on a village and planting trees by families straw huts and around the village provides a green canopy which transforms the environment.  

The Moringa tree is a fast growing tree which provides shade plus a livelihood for the people who care for them.   The leaves are rich in vitamin C, even exceeding the levels in kiwi fruit.   In a region where crops are scarce this is an invaluable asset,.  But the Moringa has another asset!

The seeds of the Moringa tree purify water.

Kids for Kids is asking for help to look after our Moringa Nursery and plant more trees. Our hope is that we can grow a tree farm and introduce a pilot project to teach people how to harvest and use the seeds to cleanse water.   This will be a home grown readily available resource, unlike all other water purifying methods which needs filters replaced etc.  When crushed, the Moringa seeds act as a natural binding agent that clumps together salts, sand, 90 to 99 per cent of present bacteria, and other impurities in unfiltered water. This makes them sink to the bottom so that they are simple to strain out.

How well will it work? Research shows that the effectiveness of this low-tech purification method is comparable to using expensive chemicals like aluminum sulfate, which can be toxic to people and the planet. The amount of moringa seed powder necessary depends on the beginning water quality, but a single ground seed can treat up to four litres.

With your help we have worked hard to plant trees in every village that we adopt at Kids for Kids. It is such a simple yet effective way of supporting the communities in Darfur but also to combat the greater threats that can be caused by Climate Change. Trees impact not only the lives of the villagers, but the environment they live in and the animals they take care of.  Now we are caring for our Moringa Plantation as well. Please can you help?

 By supporting our Trees project you will help to ensure our Moringa Plantation is a success.  We will plant more trees and we will train our villagers to purify water?

Families will have clean water in Darfur at last - can you imagine how many lives you will help us change? Thank you!