Seedballs Kenya is a wonderful initiative by Teddy Kinyanjui of Cookswell Jikos and Elsen Karstad of Chardust Ltd, to eradicate deforestation through seedballs.

The indigenous trees & grass seeds are encased in a protective, nutritious biochar ball which protects the seed from being eaten by mice, birds or insects before it germinates. The shell is semi-porous, giving it a fighting chance even in arid conditions.

In Kenya, during colonial times trees were felled en-masse to fuel a train across East Africa. Today the forests are cleared for pasture, crops and charcoal as Kenya’s population grows upward and outward. Charcoal production, through the slow cooking of wood, has caused extensive deforestation across the vulnerable dryland ecosystems which span over 80% of Kenya.

Nyakweri Forest for example, once an elephant maternity, has lost more than 50 percent of its forest cover in the past two decades, reducing key habitats for wild animals, according to Marc Goss, the director of the Mara Elephant Project.

Though forests cover just seven percent of Kenya’s landmass, they also act as water reserves and a powerful bulwark against climate change and desertification.