Founder's story
Kampire Claudine, 25 — Kisoro, SW Uganda
"My work engages me with over 2000 smallholder coffee farmers, the majority of whom are women and youths. This project supports coffee growing families in implementing better nutritional values for their families."
As head of coffee quality control with Gorilla Highlands Coffee Association (GHC), Claudine has been working since 2015 to improve conditions for coffee growers in the Kigezi region — supporting small family-owned farms growing the best organic coffee, protecting the habitat of the endangered Highland Mountain Gorillas, and complementing farmers' incomes with new cash crops, coffee tourism and Highland Gorilla tourism products.
The Kawacare Nutrition Project (KUP) teaches mixed crop growing in the Highlands of Uganda: when farmers grow coffee they also add crops and foods for their own consumption, selling and bartering locally. The programme's "first fruits" — seedlings and livestock like young goats and chickens — are passed on to neighbouring farmers, and the best farmers become local KUP instructors, spreading the benefits by peer learning to tens of thousands of small farmers in the region.
Conservation
Protecting the Highland Gorilla rainforests
Our farmers live adjacent to two National Parks — Bwindi and Mgahinga — that surround Kisoro in Kigezi, home to the remaining 1,000 Mountain Gorillas. Hunger drives foraging for wild vegetables, fruits and game meat in the forests, contributing to poaching and destroying the gorillas' habitat. Better nutrition at home means healthy families and a protected forest.
Smallholder coffee farmers concentrate on coffee as a cash crop because they lack the knowledge, seeds and starting livestock to diversify. KUP supplies information, site visits, training, seeds and seedlings — because the future availability of coffee depends on farmer families earning a decent, dignified livelihood.
Project coordinator
Claudine Kampire — CAN Uganda Youth Ambassador
Claudine oversees the administration and production of GHC and is the power behind our "Claudine Cares" Quality program. Passionate about quality, Claudine owns the quality space and won't let a bad bean sneak in.
Support this project
Fund seeds, seedlings, training and starting livestock for women farmers on the frontline of the climate crisis.