This Is CDR: Nakivale - Uganda's Refugee-Led Biochar Enterprise

Join us for this very special installment of This Is CDR, featuring the Nakivale Biochar Project (NBP). This OpenAir supported enterprise is owned and operated by farmer residents of Africa’s oldest refugee settlement, Nakivale, located in southern Uganda). Nearly 3 years on from its initial conception, the project is now staffed, trained, audited and fully operational, producing upwards of 50 tons of biochar per month, which is applied on local small-holder farms within the settlement.

As subsistence farmers, Nakivale’s communities live on the very frontline of the climate crisis, contending each year with the threat of drought and increased soil degradation. The introduction of biochar, sourced from local invasive wood waste, stands to make the local soil more resilient in the face of these challenges, increasing food security and making revenue more certain. The NBP team has also begun implementing a water filtering system using biochar that aims to reduce rates of waterborne illness, a common affliction that negatively impacts health and livelihood.

In this session, guests will gain direct insights into the Nakivale Biochar Project’s history, goals, people and operating model. This will be followed by a detailed overview of Nakivale’s novel MRV, carbon credit and sales model, designed and implemented by Bionerg, a Welsh biochar tech and carbon credit platform and key project partner.

At the conclusion of the presentation, a live purchase of Nakivale carbon credits will be demonstrated in real time, providing a step-by-step guide that guests are enthusiastically encouraged to follow for their own purchases.