A volunteer association promotes agroforestry, sustainable farming techniques, and forest restoration through the empowerment of youth and women who are traditionally excluded from land ownership and the benefits of production.

Nature-based Intervention:

To date, the Chadian Volunteers’ Association for the Protection of the Environment has planted 20,000 trees and distributed 70,000 seedlings to surrounding rural communities. The association teaches mainly women and youth the basics of soil fertility, plant production, and natural resource management. Sustainable agriculture methods are promoted including the use of intercropping, locally available organic compost, natural insecticides, and hedgerows and living fences to protect crops from wind damage, erosion, and water evaporation. The association also managed to help women access farmland, something they have historically been excluded from in this region. Through improved agroforestry and soil management, these women turned degraded lands into productive farmland, replanted thousands of trees, and began producing okra, cucumbers, peppers, and other crops for sale.

Overview of context and outcomes:

The Association Tchadienne des Volontaires pour la Protection de l’Environnement, or Chadian Volunteers’ Association for the Protection of the Environment, trains women and youth in ecosystem restoration and agroforestry. The initiative focuses primarily on countering the impacts of drought, land degradation, and desertification that all threaten food security in the area. One of the association’s central activities is the planting and management of trees.