Soil4Climate & Kenya’s IMAD Establish Partnership

Healing Land to Restore Soil, Preserve Culture, Reverse Warming

THETFORD, Vermont — August 6, 2016 — Soil4Climate is pleased to announce a partnership with Ildalalekutuk Maasai Action for Development (IMAD), a Kenyan grassroots organization. Through this partnership, the two groups agree to collaborate on research and outreach to empower the Maasai people in Kajiado Central district of Kenya to manage their land to improve soil health and capture atmospheric carbon.

IMAD is also establishing a chapter of Soil4Climate, Soil4Climate-Kenya, to connect members of the local community who wish to learn together about soil as a climate solution and to participate in this ambitious ecological restoration effort.

Dalmas Tiampati, founder and director of IMAD, stated, “The Maasai are a proud herding people whose way of life is threatened by desertification and climate change. We are pleased to work with Soil4Climate to spread awareness of how the Maasai people can preserve our culture while being leaders in the global effort to restore savanna grasslands and reverse global warming.”

Seth Itzkan, co-founder of Soil4Climate, said, “This cooperative relationship with IMAD presents a wonderful and exciting opportunity to further our mission of advocating for soil carbon sequestration. As indigenous livestock herders managing their animals in ways that enhance food security and help to reverse global warming, the Maasai people can be recognized as climate heroes.”

IMAD was created to lead community-based efforts to identify viable long-term solutions to chronic problems of water scarcity, food insecurity, climate change, soil degradation, severe drought, and massive loss of livestock in order to foster sustainable livelihoods. Its vision is to promote a self-reliant, socially-just, environmentally-conscious, and prosperous Maasai society.

Soil4Climate advocates for regenerative cropping and grazing practices to heal land, improve soil fertility, prevent flooding, return flow to dried-up rivers, restore wildlife habitat, and revitalize rural economies while sequestering excess atmospheric carbon. Membership in the Soil4Climate Facebook group includes ~2700 scientists, farmers, policymakers, journalists, and concerned global citizens. Dalmas Tiampati serves on the Soil4Climate Advisory Board.

Media contact:

Karl Thidemann
Soil4Climate
karl.thidemann@gmail.com
Soil4Climate.org
facebook.com/groups/soil4climate

Dalmas Tiampati
Ildalalekutuk Maasai Action for Development
dtiampati@gmail.com
facebook.com/ildalalekutukmaasaiactionfordevelopment