MSc students finish fieldwork in Kitui, Kenya

We are two students, Julia van Haaster and Marijke van Benschop, doing fieldwork research in Kenya for our master thesis as part of the Environment & Resource Management master’s at the VU Amsterdam. In the past month we collaborated with Africa Wood Grow, a Dutch-Kenyan NGO providing afforestation in the region of Kitui, Kenya. Here, we talked to many affiliated farmers about their experiences with creating agroforestry plots on their lands together with AWG.
Julia researches the improvements in livelihood resilience these agroforestry projects could foster by interviewing farmers. Marijke investigates the potential hydrological effects of planting trees such as improved water retention, absorption and infiltration. She does so by interviewing farmers and conducting hydrological data on parameters like the infiltration rate, moisture rate and pH rate of different plots.

The fieldwork was not only a very educative experience but also provided a unique view into the life of rural farmers who welcomed us with open arms.