Drought, irregular rainfall, deforestation, and the legacy of unsustainable human activities have left vast areas across the arid and semiarid regions of sub-Saharan Africa degraded, causing major challenges for the human population. According to environmentalists, one solution to this problem might be forest gardens. These “gardens” use regenerative agroforestry to revive patches of degraded agricultural land. In 2024, the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) selected a project led by Trees for the Future (TREES), a U.S.-based NGO, as one of seven world restoration flagships for its “forest garden approach” used in five countries in sub-Saharan Africa. These flagships promote restoration projects around the world that show potential to tackle challenges at scale and provide financial support. “Forest gardens promote healthy soil and diverse crops, leading to increased income and access to healthier food,” Enoch Makobi, country director for TREES in Uganda, told Mongabay. “Farmers are fighting climate change and can overcome poverty and hunger.” While NGO leaders say they’re optimistic about the outcomes of the project so far and their plans for expansion, some other conservationists have expressed skepticism, pointing to a lack of scientific evidence on impacts and the difficulty international NGOs face in tackling local problems and needs. A forest garden is a modern term for an ancient agroforestry model that mixes shrubs, herbs, vines, fruit and nut trees, and perennial vegetables, with the aim of supplying communities with food, medicine and animal feed. According to scientists, forest gardens can have significant…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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