Model Shamba

Part of my remit within ACIS is to find new ways to do traditional tasks that will be less harmful to the environment, but no more complicated.

As an example, finding alternative, readily available fuels to cook on. This will reduce the need to cut wood, damaging trees, thereby helping to prevent soil erosion.

We are presently looking at water purification, methane collection, solar cooking and finding crops that will grow in Kenya that repel mosquitoes.

We are not claiming that all the ideas are ours. What we want to do is to introduce them to rural Kenya together with an education programme, explaining how everyone would benefit from using this technology.

To this end, at our last meeting in Nairobi, it was decided that the best way to raise funds for this work would be to create a model shamba, on the lines of a show home on a new housing estate. When everything is up and running, we will invite the Kenyan press and TV to take a look.

But for this, we need land.

It occurred to me that we have a plot in Kisii, the plot that has been set aside to build the orphanage, but as this will take more funds than we are likely to raise in the near future, we might as well put the land to good use. And the kids could get involved. I am sure that the older ones would find it fascinating - I hope.