All posts by mn

Almost hidden, you´ll find in the Southeastern corner of Rwanda another natural jewel, the Nyungwe Forest, a vast untouched tropical rainforest with a high, dense canopy. Nyungwe became a National Park in 2012, spreading over 870 km2, its almost 3.000 m high mountains, part of the Albertine Rift system, are the watershed of the two biggest rivers in Africa, the Congo and the Nile. The heart of Nyungwe Forest is like a scene from a fairy tale. Tall old mahoganies, ebonies and giant tree ferns tower above you, whilst orchids and other epiphytes cling to every branch. Brightly coloured birds flit around, butterflies are everywhere, and walking quietly you may […]

Some month have now gone since the first stoves have been dissemiated in the region of Kabatwa. Before the visit, we were very excited , how the stoves have proofen its worth in praxis. After a longer offroad trip we reached the sector office of Kabatwa and went – together with our local partners – to the hut of Ancille Mukasine. She gave us a warm welcome and guides us inside to her new improved cook stove with the number 01481. They are just cooking. Ancille proudly tells us, how the stove has significantly ameliorated the life of her family. The smoking gases have fallen substantially: She has no irritated […]

 Gatsibo is a largely rural district in Rwanda where people typically use wood fuel on inefficient three-stone fire to boil their drinking, cleaning and washing water. This process results in the release of greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of wood. This can be avoided if a technology is applied which does not require fuel (like wood or fossil) and supplies the clean water desired by households.  The rehabilitation of boreholes helps to prevent carbon emissions through the provision of clean water by removing the need to boil the water to purify it. While tackling climate change caused by the combustion of unsustainably harvested biomass, the project also reduces pressure […]

Replacing an traditional 3-rock cook stove with an improved one is more challenging as it seems upon first look. What makes a perfect stove? Mainly three factors: Efficiency, durability and it must be easy to operate. A special design of the new stove leads the flames directly to the cooking pot – the insulation makes sure that the heat is stored for a long time. David Dufero´s family (picture above, beside his cooking hut) from Kabatwa Sector close to the Volcanoes Nationalpark only needs 1/3 of the firewood now. It is also very important, that the stove works for many years. The dissemination of thousands of stoves only makes sense […]

“We have significantly less smoke in our kitchen!”, tells Florence Nyiramisiyoni from Burera excited. Together with her 3 kids the 25 year old live at the edge of the Virunga massif in a village called Rwankongi. A small mud-walled hut is their home. “I´m very happy to have the new stove here and use it every day for all meals I´m preparing. We now cook since one month and all our expectations have been exceeded. Surprising was the convenient handling and the robustness of the stove.“ Florence´s family (left) is one of the first, that received an efficient cook stove in the context of the Virunga Mountain Gorilla Project for […]

Edwin Sabuhoro, a former National Park employee, founded Rwanda Eco-Tours in 2005, a jointly-operated organization. His motivation: To provide a sustainable liveli-hood that goes beyond preserving nature for the surrounding villages too. For all too often, poverty forces poachers and hunters into the forest. Everything collected in the forest can be exchanged in the village for food.For the project of the „Iby’Iwacu Cultural Village“ Sabuhoro gained several hundred former poachers and hunters as employees. In this traditional village, traditional dance performances with regional music take place. This creates work and income. Tourists stop off on their way gorilla trekking and contribute to the preservation of the environment and of culture. […]

To enable continuous project support locally in Rwanda, an office has been rented out from our project partners IGCP in Musanze. Musanze is located in a district with the same name in the Northern Province, just a few kilometers from the National Park. Our office does not lie on the border with the National Park, but it is within walking distance of the rainforest. This is the main starting point for gorilla trekking. Faustin Ngirabakunzi is one of employees in Musanze: „It is a real pleasure for me to work for this unique project. My former responsibilities for IGCP meant I was often on the road in the National Park area, […]