News and Updates
Kalahari Project Grows Towards Sustainability
Gobabis, Namibia: GDF is very pleased to announce that the continued management of the Kalahari Garden Project has now been turned over to local NGO Komeho Namibia, a partner in the project since its inception in 2007. Komeho assumes full responsibility for the continued management of the project for a further three years. GDF will continue to liaise with Komeho and offer technical advice and support, but our day-to-day involvement has now come to an end. The long-term goal of the project has been to reduce on-site assistance, and empower the beneficiaries to manage the project alone, ultimately making the gardens self-sustainable. Komeho’s involvement reflects this, and their management plan aims to reduce on-site assistance gradually over the next two years.
Permaculture in the Kalahari
Gobabis, Namibia: Kalahari Garden Project, launched in July 2007, helps San Bushmen maintain kitchen gardens in the arid Aminuis Corridor of Omaheke region, Namibia. As hunting is illegal and wild foods are diminished due to overgrazing, these gardens help alleviate hunger and food insecurity. In October 2009, project staff went to Zimbabwe, sponsored by GDF and GardenAfrica, for a two-week course in Permaculture Design at Fambidzanai Permaculture Centre. They developed an understanding of the ethics, principles, design and implementation of permaculture and traditional African farming techniques. New skills and ideas on home gardening and ecological sustainability are now being shared with San communities in the Omaheke and Kavango regions.
2009 Distinguished Ethnobotanist Lecture
Bringing the food back home: indigenous foodways, nutrition and biodiversity in western Canada
October 20, 2009
17:00 - 18:30
GDF is happy to announce Dr. Nancy J Turner presented the 2009 Distinguished Ethnobotanist Lecture at the Royal Botanical Gardens Kew. Nancy Turner is an internationally distinguished scholar and ethnobiologist. She has worked for more than 25 years with the First Nation communities of British Columbia on their knowledge and use of plant resources.
This lecture was sponsored by GDF, the Centre for Biocultural Diversity at the University of Kent and the Centre for Economic Botany at Kew.
Plants, Livelihoods, and Community Conservation in the Kalahari
In March 2009, representatives of indigenous peoples’ communities in southern Africa, particularly Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa, participated in a workshop entitled “Plants, Livelihoods and Community Conservation in the Kalahari”. GDF and the Indigenous Peoples of Africa Coordinating Committee (IPACC) collaborated with the Kuru Family of Organisations (KFO) to conduct the workshop. It was co-funded by UNDP SGP and The Christensen Fund. The workshop addressed two primary gaps in community based natural resource management (CBNRM) in southern Africa: 1) the international and national instruments that exist to protect and enforce indigenous rights to natural resources, and 2) the important role of plant resources in the lives of indigenous and local communities.
GDF and IPACC co-produced a video during the workshop, called Fresh from the Ground - Traditional Plant Knowledge in the Cyber Age. Click here to watch the 2-part video on the BDLN website. A full report from the 5-day workshop can be seen at: PLCC Report.
July 2009 - Kalahari Garden Project
2-year mark for the KGP
The Kalahari Garden Project began two years ago in July 2007. It was designed to be facilitated by GDF, Komeho Namibia and WIMSA for this period of time. After reviewing our progress we have decided to extend the current project management until September 31st 2009. Following this date, Komeho Namibia will take over the management and supervision of the project for a further three years. Since March, GDF has been in a period of management transition to phase out GDF’s physical presence on‐site, while Komeho Namibia assumes greater responsibility for project supervision. This is part of the overall aim of reducing constant on‐site assistance, empowering the beneficiaries to manage the project alone and ultimately making the gardens self‐sustainable.
Read the latest KGP updates in the July 2009 newsletter.
