APOPO HeroTREEs - a Climate-Smart Solution

Welcome to your impact report for HeroTREEs, where your money goes directly towards planting trees and transforming the community farming practices in Tanzania.

Farmer Tree Planting

In the first quarter of 2025, your support helped our HeroTREEs Farmers plant a total of 1,050 trees across villages and farms in the Uluguru Mountains. Species planted in the first quarter include Cinnamon, Macadamia, Jackfruit, Avocado, Lemon, Grlicidia, Mangos, Cloves, Coffee, Java Plum,  Pine, Cedar and native tree species.

A comprehensive inspection of nurseries was carried out across four villages by our partner, Sustainable Agriculture Tanzania (SAT). These nurseries are pivotal in sustaining tree seedling availability for new and replacement planting efforts. During recent inspections, it was determined that there were 6,259 trees across all nurseries, waiting to be planted, thanks to your support and the commitment of the farmers involved!

Farms were inspected, and a total of 18,172 trees across 30 species were verified, showing what an incredible impact your support of our HeroTREEs program has already had.

Reforestation

Another major accomplishment was the successful preparation of 50,000 seedlings for a 60-hectare reforestation project in partnership with the Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) Forestry Department, a major step forward in APOPO’s conservation strategy. This quarter, all seedlings were planted in collaboration with student-led ‘My Birthday Tree Organization’, with 50 SUA students trained in agroforestry principles and tree planting. So far 25 hectares have been restored, 50,000 seedlings planted, and 50 students empowered through hands-on training.

Transforming Farming Practices

Thanks to the HeroTREEs’ mission to promote and advance syntropic farming, farmers in the Uluguru Mountains who are participating are committed to the HeroTREEs’ regenerative approach, which restores ecosystems while enhancing productivity.

APOPO is deeply committed to climate-resilient farming, and we are currently collaborating with the Mgeta Livelihood Development Foundation (MLDF) to introduce syntropic agroforestry in this area. As you may know, the Uluguru Mountains are considered to be of significant ecological importance and face serious environmental degradation due to deforestation and unsustainable farming practices, leading to severe soil erosion.

Mgeta, nestled in these mountains, is one of Tanzania’s most vital watersheds, supplying water to millions of people downstream. The area’s steep terrain and intensive agriculture have resulted in diminishing soil fertility, increased dependence on chemical inputs, and a decline in water regulation. Thanks to your support, the HeroTREEs program will continue to improve and safeguard this ecosystem which is essential for both local communities and national water security.

We look forward to updating you again next time!

Links:

• HeroTREEs website