I live in Kampala, but travel to northern Uganda and southwestern Uganda regularly. Are you near Kisumu? or Siaya? I'm working with the Church of Uganda (Anglican) in a number of areas, but am trying, when I can, to promote permaculture as the best solution for sustainability of family homesteads. If you're not familiar with "Farming God's Way" or "Foundations for Farming," I think it may be the best introduction for East Africans into permaculture concepts. Once they've adopted practices of composting, mulching, companion planting, and some appropriate technology, then they're ready to hear about other permaculture concepts. So, ask around if people have heard anything about "Farming God's Way" and see if you can bring in a Kenyan to do that teaching. The push to "modernize" agriculture through fertilizers, pesticides (spraying), and "improved" seeds is destroying the good, traditional practices of many African homesteads. Permaculture, in some ways, is really just a few tweaks on some traditional African practices. I've tried to approach the topic by appealing to their tradition and building on it. Still...it's a hard sell, and the number of family members who are willing to work hard on the land is reducing. Yet, the population to be fed is increasing. It's a big challenge. As for me personally, I live in the city, so I'm trying to do some urban permaculture things in my very small home. I have someone who helps me, especially when I'm traveling. I'm hoping that soon he'll be able to make a few trips with me and share some of the things he's learned. If only I could get him to implement a few permaculture practices in his own village gardens. He rightly observes, however, that it is hard to implement change when he is not there.
