Frontier Friends of Environment works around the country to drive meaningful action for our planet across these issues: Climate Action; Science and Education; Peoples and communities; Conservation and restoration; Land use management.
Climate Change:
The global climate crisis is increasingly touching every corner of the world. As educators, we know that Black, Brown, Indigenous, and under-resourced students and their communities are disproportionately affected by the many negative consequences of climate change. Combatting climate change requires collective action from all of us, and that includes public education. Unfortunately, the education sector is often left out of these critical conversations. Integrating climate literacy to school curricula is a crucial next and right step in solving the climate crisis and in working toward climate justice.
Human activity is causing our planet to warm at an alarming rate. International bodies of scientists have warned that we have just over a decade to halve our emissions to avoid the most devastating impacts of climate change on our food supply, national security, global health, extreme weather, and more.
There is simply no time to waste, we need urgent and ambitious action at every level, from heads of state submitting increased national commitments to the Paris Agreement on climate change and cities walking the talk, to private sector leaders addressing climate change at every step of the supply chain, finance heads committing to divest from fossil fuels and green their investments and individual citizens using their unique influence to drive change and make an impact.
Everyone has the ability to do something to address our climate challenge, but we can all still do more.
Education
Three years ago, the first Frontier Friends of Environment started an environmental revolution. Now, we are igniting an education revolution to save the planet. This formal campaign, launched 2019, is combining grassroots support and on the ground efforts by communities, students, educators, and nonprofits with national level commitments from Ministries of Agriculture. Through our Climate and Environmental Literacy Campaign, we will ensure that students across the country benefit from high-quality education to develop into informed and engaged environmental stewards.
Environmental education empowers students around the country to solve the climate crisis and develop the skills, optimism and resolve to lead the environmental movement of tomorrow.
To have in place a conducive and safe natural resources environment for development including sustainable agricultural, livestock and fisheries production for the benefit of Tanzanians, farmers can lift themselves and their families out of poverty for good. Smallholder farmers face numerous challenges to escape poverty; however, they are not helpless. Tanzania has one of the fastest growing economies in the East Africa – GDP growth has higher across the last four years. We wish to see smallholders integrated into the wider, expanding economy.
Our Values
In everything we do, it’s all about the farmer. They are the reason we exist and why we get out of bed in the morning. Without them… well, there is no without them.
Transparency and Honesty. We will always be open and honest about our work. We will share successes and failures alike, be honest about what worked, and admit mistakes when things didn’t. A lesson not shared is a lesson that has to be learnt the hard way twice.
Humility. We work hard and are proud of what we do but we know that it is the farmers who are the true agents of change in their lives. We help them, but it is they who deserve the credit for lifting their families out of poverty.
Constant Improvement. We know we’re not perfect and that we don’t know everything. But we strive to constantly improve and actively continue to learn.
Commitment and Hard Work. We meet farmers on their own turf. If you can drive the last mile, it’s not the last mile. Get out there and get some Tanzanian mud on your boots!
Equality. All farmers are equal. We work with all willing farmers regardless of gender, religion, education, tribe or proximity to the main road.
Action is Character. Pretty words are nice but actions speak the loudest of all. We say what we mean and do what we say.
SUSTAINABILITY
We are committed to building a stronger, more prosperous Tanzania. We know that any short-term gains will be lost in the face of climate change and environmental degradation. With the right policies and education, farmers can be lifted out of poverty and the environment can be protected; it does not have to be development vs the environment.
We work every day to achieve this goal.
- We work with farmers to affirm the importance of zero land-use change by teaching farmers about High Conservation Values.
- We collaborate with villages to show the benefits of keeping agroforestry intact such as minimized erosion and cleaner water.
- We petition the regional government to set policies and regulations that protect designated agroforestry areas. We encourage the construction of sustainable infrastructure, environmentally aware business development, and preservation of trees throughout the country.
- We lobby the Tanzanian government to create and enforce policies for large-scale investors that protect the environment, and smallholders from exploitation.
We strive to create a future in the country where productive farms with prosperous farmer’s respect, protect, and care for native trees, where large investors are held to international standards of environmental management, where governments priorities the long-term health of their country over the short-term exploitation of its resources.
Roles of FFoE include:
- To improve the condition of affected ecosystems, combat desertification/land degradation, promote sustainable land management and contribute to land degradation neutrality
- To improve the living conditions of affected populations
- To advice on gender participation in tree planting
- To promote development of public-private partnership in agroforestry
- To enable members to share knowledge and experience in forest conservation and ecosystem protection
- Building and strengthen networking and peer learning of smallholder tree growers in Tanzania
- To collaborate with private and public institutions in tree planting and climate change adaptation and mitigation
- Provide platform and create enabling environment for smallholders’ participation in the forestry sector
Recently, there has been ever increasing demand to extend agroforestry technologies to other parts of the country, especially in the central and western part of Tanzania. People from these areas have been seeking advice from FoE on different matters pertaining to nursery establishment and management. FoE’s goal is to spur a common Tanzania smallholder’s tree farmer’s voice in order to address tree planting and related value chains issues with the aim of enhancing inclusivity, competitiveness and resilience.
