Carbon Contributions
Inga Alley Cropping
Agroforestry to advance food security and rural livelihoods
The Solution
An estimated 250 to 300 million families slash-and-burn land in the world’s tropical forests to combat weed takeover and clear fertile areas in which to grow crops. Of these, approximately 100 million will be slashing and burning in rainforests. Slash-and-burn sends CO2 into the atmosphere and only lasts one to two seasons before the land is stripped of nutrients. No viable alternative has been presented until now.
To begin Inga Alley Cropping, farmers plant crops between rows of nitrogen-fixing Inga trees. The Inga trees maintain soil fertility from season to season, shade crops from sun, out-compete invasive weeds, and even supply firewood for families. The entire method, which quickly integrates the whole family in their own cash-crop economy, can be executed on permanent plots close to their dwelling. Most importantly, Inga Alley Cropping provides a much-needed sustainable alternative to slash-and-burn.
Solver Team
Organization Type:
Nonprofit
Headquarters:
Lostwithiel, UK
Stage:
Growth
Working in:
Congo, Honduras, Madagascar
Employees:
16
Website:
http://www.ingafoundation.org/alley-cropping/
-
Mike Hands Founder & Director, Inga Foundation
Advancing Rural Food Security
Solver Inga Alley Cropping received the $10,000 Organic World Congress Organic Farming Innovation Award from Sustainable Harvest International in 2017 to use agroforestry to advance food security and rural livelihoods.
Advancing Rural Food Security
Solver Inga Alley Cropping, which uses agroforestry to advance food security and rural livelihoods, received $10,000 in prize funding from Member Mohammed bin Rashid Initiative for Global Prosperity in 2019 for being selected as a finalist in the Rural Transformation and Zero Hunger Challenge powered by MIT Solve.
to Top