Our Recent Trip to Zambia and A Time for Harvest

Traditionally, Fall is a time of harvest and reaping the rewards of what we've sewn, be it eating fresh produce from home gardens or taking the time to realize that our work is generating rewards.

Joop Rubens, Development Director, recently returned from a photography trip to Firelight's graduated grantee partner Luapula Foundation in Zambia. Luapula Foundation's success in training community members in conservation farming has lead to many great rewards. Take a look below at how they sew, and learn about what they have reaped as a result of their investment in conservation farming.

From 2001 - 2008, Firelight supported Luapula Foundation to make lasting change for children and families struggling to cover their basic needs. Launching their conservation farming program in 2001, Luapula created a sustainable and healthy path forward to food and income security in their community.

Conservation farming is the least expensive method of producing food crops, with a higher yield than other farming methods.

Conservation farming improves food security.

Conservation farming is an environmentally friendly way to reduce hunger.

The method uses composted vegetation as a basal fertilizer.

It also uses manure tea (animal droppings fermented in water) as top-dressing fertilizer.

90% of the conservation farmers trained by Luapula are female.

98% of women trained by Luapula achieved food security within the first year of beginning the program.

Luapula launched their conservation farming program in 2001 to improve the quality of food families were eating and to encourage them to question the impact of chemicals on their land and their health while also providing a path for change.