East Africa

A Breathtaking, Drought-Prone Region Under Pressure

What's at Stake

We work across East Africa, where global warming has already begun to dramatically alter the lives of rural farming communities. Severe droughts and changing rainfall patterns are wreaking havoc on crop yields, threatening farmers' livelihoods, regional food security, and remaining biodiversity hotspots.

The Forests of East Africa

East Africa is not just a region of vast savannas—it also contains several tropical forests, including the eastern portion of the Congo rainforest. The region’s critical deforestation crisis is driven by population growth, unscrupulous timber extraction, and agricultural conversion—resulting in the loss of 9.3 percent of its forest cover from 2001 – 2009 alone.

Our Impact

We are working in vulnerable landscapes in East Africa to restore the balance between coffee and tea farming communities and the forests around them. Research shows that supporting the economic health of these communities is crucial to forest conservation.

Higher earnings with sustainable methods

50% more per KG

earned by workers on certified tea farms in Kenya*

In Kenya, workers on Rainforest Alliance Certified tea farms earned 50 percent more per kg plucked tea than workers on non-certified farms, according to a recent study of 250 farmers in Kenya. Read the report

*Source: 2013. Poverty impact of social and environmental voluntary standards systems in Kenyan tea. Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, London.

Shade coffee certification helps forests thrive

19.3% increase

in probability of forest conservation that is attributable to certification

Researchers used remote sensing data from 2005 and 2010 to compare deforestation rates on 240 coffee plots. The results showed that Rainforest Alliance certification increased the probability of forest conservation on coffee farms by 19.3 percent. Read the report

Our Work

We work with tea and coffee farmers across East Africa to advance sustainable agricultural practices across vulnerable landscapes and watersheds. Through training and certification, we help farmers protect the last standing tracts of forest from agricultural conversion and safeguard the health of streams and rivers.

tea picker in Malawi - header
Article

Using Solar Power to Share Farmer Training Videos in Malawi

When filmmakers Sydelle Willow Smith and Rowan Pybus shot a documentary about a Zambian activist in 2012, they soon realized the activist’s own community had no way to view the film, since in much of southern Africa, movie theaters are few and far between, and tend to feature Hollywood blockbusters. That’s why in 2013 the South African-based husband-and-wife team created Sunshine Cinema, an organization that builds solar-powered mobile cinemas, and trains youth activists to use these “sun...... Continue Reading
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Project Profile

Project Profile: Mount Kenya Sustainable Landscape and Livelihoods Program

According to a United Nations report, approximately 12 million people in Kenya live on degraded land and food productivity has fallen behind the rate of population growth. This has resulted in farmland extending up the mountain and encroaching into protected forests.

Article

How Companies Can Share Responsibility in Paying Farm Workers a Living Wage

We’re committed to addressing living wage through our 2020 Certification Program, the ALIGN tool, and innovative projects like Better Pay in Practice. If your company is interested in directly contributing to achieving living wages in your supply chain, we are here to help.

Article

Using Solar Power to Share Farmer Training Videos in Malawi

When filmmakers Sydelle Willow Smith and Rowan Pybus shot a documentary about a Zambian activist in 2012, they soon realized the activist’s own community had no way to view the film, since in much of southern Africa, movie theaters are few and far between, and tend to feature Hollywood blockbusters.

That’s why in 2013 the South African-based husband-and-wife team created Sunshine Cinema, an organization that builds solar-powered mobile cinemas, and trains youth activists to use these “sun...