Page 135 - Climate Compliance

The initial phase of this project has been to identify already existing and active
community groups in 5 villages or more in North Leeward. Then preliminary
meetings have been held in order to seek the group’s engagement in the project 135
with emphasis on actively participating and thereby taking ownership in the
long run. This is crucial for the project to succeed and might even empower
more people to take proactive measures to protect their surroundings. Through

this process a survey was made and distributed to many people in the selected
communities and from this data, areas more prone to soil erosion have been
identified. Furthermore the survey also established a baseline of people’s
perception of trees and identifying their needs in regards to the species selected
for the project.

Fruit trees are among the most favourable of the species since people highly value
the produce they can get from them; fruit trees can even be turned profitable
when sold at the local farmers market. It is also important to mention that in
the initial phase it was discovered that Vetiver grass is an excellent agent for

controlling erosion, also other species have been selected with some of the same
traits such as deep or extensive root systems.

The project does not only seek to plant trees and prevent soil erosion, but also to
raise awareness about the causes and preventable measures people can take on
their own to secure surroundings. Right now there is an ongoing effort to create