WHAT WE DO
The Soft Foot Alliance works on practical actions that regenerate soil, restore balance and brings abundance to all life.
A healthy environment is the foundation for meeting all our needs and designing actions that bring us closer to the Soft Foot Alliance’s vision. That these projects support community members to develop skills and create a number of regional social enterprises.
These new business opportunities move community members beyond subsistence farming and acknowledges that, while it is most welcome, tourism can only provide jobs for a small percentage of local people; much more diverse business and employment opportunities are needed, ones that are designed in a regenerative way.
Soft Foot Alliance’s current projects include:
- Holistic Land and Livestock Management: Research has shown that if a lion can’t see through a barrier it won’t jump in. Similarly, for cattle, if they can’t see the lion outside the boma (even if they smell it and hear it) they won’t break out in panic, which in turn attracts predators. In over 3 years of use not a single stock animal has been killed in a zero visibility mobile-boma by either a lion or a hyena.
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Bees-At-Home: Elephants are crop-raiders. Bee-hives fences are strung up around the perimeter of fields and as an elephant tries to enter the field they move the rope that in-turn wakes up the bees. In Kenya, where this strategy has been used for some time, 80% of elephants have been stopped from entering fields due to bee-hive fences.
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Rocket Stoves: Manufacturing highly efficient rocket stoves, from local materials, serves several purposes including protecting rural families from cooking smoke related diseases, reduced the need for collecting large amounts of wood, which can be time consuming and brings people in to contact with local wildlife. In addition, taking less wood from the local environment is enable our native tress to regenerate.
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Permaculture: As human impact on the planet becomes more evident to all, the diminishing resources, changing climate, and loss of species and biodiversity can become overwhelming. At the Soft Foot Alliance, we believe there is hope through using a holistic, solutions inspired approach. Permaculture design is about creating regenerative human habitats, turning away from destructive behaviour to habits that enrich our lives and environment at the same time.
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Natural Building: Building and developing in ways that care for the earth is a big part of our work. We are learning and teaching ways of building that are designed using natural materials.
Our vision for the future is one of abundance for all, we hope that you will enjoy sharing in our journey as we keep you posted on both the highs and the lows along the way.