Meet Joseph Kimanzi, a farmer my two travel companions Jan and Jonatan met when they were capturing the problems of soil erosion. Joseph came upon them, asked what they were doing, and when he heard what they were up to, he scoffed, shrugged his shoulders and said: Come with me, I’ll show you erosion! 

So they tagged along to his farm, which 4-5 years ago was effectively cut in half by the monsoon, using a drone to take pictures from above, clearly showing what Joseph was talking about. I showed those pictures to a friend, and she replied: Can’t he just fill in the ditch? So I showed her this picture which had us both sighing.

This five-meter deep ravine cutting his farm in half is definitely not something one easily “fixes”.

Erosion.
A serious problem.
In Kenya as well as in many places around the earth.
It’s even a problem in Sweden, especially along the coastlines of Skåne where I live, even though that cannot compare with what I saw in Kenya.

So once again, I am filled with gratitude at living in a country where monsoon rainfalls and soil erosion isn’t a part of life, in the way it is for Joseph and his countrymen and -women. But also for having the opportunity to at least using my savings to try to mitigate and minimize something as serious and detrimental as this. Planting trees is one of the most effective ways to combat soil erosion, which is one reason why I do just that, on a monthly basis. I would love it if you would do the same!

Advent Calendar for 2019: sharing pictures and stories/reflections from my trip to Kenya in June. I went to visit “my trees” and get a hands-on experience of the social entrepreneurship of the Kenyan forestry company that I buy trees through.

Full disclosure: I am proud to say I am both a customer and an ambassador for the company. If you are curious to find out more, let me know and I’ll gladly get in touch with you! Here’s my sponsored link: https://betterglobe.com/27216