We share a few words of interview with Rwenzori Founders’ Project Leaders, Emmanuel Basaza and Isaac Okwir. The Rwenzori Founders have worked tirelessly since 2008, to create a stunning little sanctuary with several distinct habitats that continue to attract wildlife to their 85 acres. Bird species have now reached 203, the latest arrival being the African Wood Owl. The Founders train and employ local people and their environmental projects benefit the whole community. The Foundry survives as an arts organisation circulating sculpture sales back into the enterprise with additional support from the Ruwenzori Sculpture Foundation. They hope soon to become more independent. The planters employed were all local people selected by their community mayor and chairwoman with expert guidance from head re-wilder, Isaac. Both Emmanuel and Isaac are strong believers in what, and why, they do what they do. Their example is a model of success for all and what makes them stand out are their efforts with their community.

Emmanuel: We ask ourselves, what can we do? So, in a smallest way possible, we are planting trees. Why? We are trying to create awareness, because we find many people are affected by the cutting down of trees in these mountains. I’ve seen footage of 20 years ago of the mountain, so green, so lush, so nice. Today they give us footage of bare rock. ... We are growing trees to protect future generations, and we want everybody else to try and grow them.
We have a situation as well where, if they don’t cut down trees, they have no firewood. So, what do we do? We are doing it by demonstration. We have trees that are giving up their branches, we keep on collecting those branches, and with time, we have trees that die naturally, we cut them down as well, ... and prepare them for the team. And every once in a while, we invite the community to come and actually take these trees; take all the firewood. ... And we’re trying to see, can we get the poacher to see the value behind looking after the trees and the animals? Because if they do see the value, they become a changed person, they cause change happily. So, we talk regularly with the Ugandan Wildlife Authority and that has been positive. Right now, we are chasing for a permit to allow us to look after animals legally, and to do research as well, because it helps us move forward in future.

Isaac: When we first started, we had a little bit of resistance but that is not a problem in our community now. They are no longer coming to hunt in our land. We agree there are a few individuals who still needs more talking to and that is why we got Uganda Wildlife Authority to visit, so the community can hear first-hand what the consequences are for poaching. We do have a few people coming in from distant villages to poach in our land. But then we get the community informing us in advance, that they have seen poachers getting into our land and joining us in the chase against the poachers. Our neighbouring communities, are trying to copy what we do in the re-wilding. That is because we have had dialogs with them for a long time. So, we are at peace with our community. We believe that our villagers are now going to be our mouthpiece to the neighbouring villages that we have. They will now be the ones to talk to the poachers and make them understand, present to them all the alternatives to livelihood. We know that for the re-wilding to work out, we need to involve as many people as possible. That means the reaching out to other communities, not only the neighbouring villages, but also far away communities.
So, we have reached out to the community that had a landslide. We know the problem came as a result of poor farming methods, cutting down of trees for either firewood or for charcoal, for whatever reason. And of course, we need people in such locations to plant trees not only for the economic benefits, but plant trees that will protect and hold the grounds in place, so that, in the event that we have rains, we don't get a landslide.
So, we have involved our communities in planting thousands of trees together with the communities. And through sensitisation they have allowed us to plant trees in their own land with them, so that they are part of a process of restoring the resource rich mountains and in that way restoring the rains in this region. The community, testified that the rains we are receiving now are less predictable, than the ones they had before. They sense there is a sudden change in the weather. So now they feel the urgency, the need to plant trees as quick as possible. People say the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. But… at Rwenzori Founders we say, the best time to plant a tree is today.

Please contribute to our tree planting, via our orange button, which will benefit this community and enable the Rwenzori Rainmakers film to be edited and then screened in Uganda and beyond, for wider impact.
Thank you.