An Overview Of Our Solution
Herb Nepal is an innovative, ground-breaking award-winning herbal organic farm and training centre based in Bhaktapur, Nepal. Herb Nepal has developed a farmer-designed 'Strengthening Communities' (SC) program that offers a solution to the world’s most pressing environmental and climatic threats by leveraging the power, capacity and resource of farmers.
THE IDEA: To grow, process and produce organic and sustainable herbal products together with small-scale farmers to strengthen local environments and increase incomes.
The actions implemented to date are:
*Prototyping of SC program
*Farmer-led program design process
*Organic sustainable and herbal processing trainings
*Herbal cultivation and processing
*Herbal production
*Sales and marketing of herbal products
*Brand development and design
Who is this solution impacting?
Community Type
Rural
Additional Information
- Population Impacted:
- Continent: Asia
General Information
Organization type
Other
Ecosystem (select all that apply)
Forests
Population impacted
Target 7500 (1500 farmers, 6000 family members)
Challenge
Size of agricultural area
Target 750 hectares (based on average land ownership of 10 ropani) *Central Bureau of Statistics, 2011
Production quantity
Target 5,835,000 kilos *Average yield per ropani is 389kg (Source: 2012 UNEP, 2011 USAID)
People employed
15 current
Solution
Describe your solution
THE SOLUTION:
To harness the power, capacity and knowledge of small-scale farmers in Nepal to grow and process organic sustainable herbal crops that will be used to produce herbal products; resulting in stronger and more diverse ecosystems and secure and higher incomes for farmers.
HOW IT WORKS:
Herb Nepal (HN), an award winning organic farm and training centre is continuing to create networks of Nepalese farmers consisting of SC Champions and SC Farmers in two districts, Bhaktapur and Kavre. Champions train local farmers in organic sustainable land-use and herbal processing methods, with farmers later certified as SC Farmers. Together, the farmers use personal land to cultivate organic high-value herbs which are bought-back by HN, at fair prices, removing the middle man. Technical support enables the transition from unsustainable farming to organic sustainable farming that integrates indigenous, local and modern farming techniques. Herb Nepal uses the herbal crops in the production of herbal product including soaps, massage oils, room diffusers, dried herbs etc. The revenues from the products, as well as other farm activities are reinvested back into the SC pilot maximizing our impact and reaching more farmers.
The SC pilot incentivizes and motivates farmers by increasing their incomes, while using their capacity as change-makers and environmental protectors to ensure sustainable harvests and food security, while also strengthening biodiversity.
Implementation
Describe your implementation
IMPLEMENTATION ACTIVITIES:
Farmer program
1.1 Consultations using Human Centred Design (HCD) to understand farmer realities, gain farmer inputs into program design
1.2 Organic sustainable land-use, herb processing training combines indigenous farming methods delivered to SC Champions
1.3 Community mobilisers and Champions connect with farmer groups and NGO’s to reach poor and marginalised farmers. Selection criteria in place.
1.4 Farmer training provided by SC Champions
1.5 Initiation of herbal cultivation
1.6 HN buys-back quality checked herbs on contract basis, at fair price.
Market, brand and product
2.1 Market research was carried out in Kathmandu in a range of business (hotels, spas, restaurants, retailers) and individual consumers
2.2 Implementation of sales and marketing strategy
2.3 Produce, package herb products to enter market
HOW SOLUTION WAS ADOPTED
HN recognizes that imposed ‘solutions’ with limited community buy-in are unsustainable. This underpins our approach to put poor rural farmers from Nepal, centrally in the farmer-led design process. As a 2016 OpenIDEO Amplify award winner, HN has continued to embed HCD approach into all areas of work. This has ensured our solution is fit for purpose.
ENABLIING CONDITIONS:
The HN team focused on two key elements vital to the success of the entire program i.e. enabling conditions, during a 3 month prototyping phase. These were (i) how to incentivise Champion Farmers (ii) who/ what people would buy (market research). This prototyping period allowed minor tweaks and amendments to be made to the SC pilot. Overall the prototype confirmed that this entire program is desirable, feasible and viable.
KEY SUCCESS FACTORS:
(i). Farmer uptake of the SC program;
(ii). Market interest and revenues from products produced by HN (to evidence program sustainability);
(iii). Successful collaborations with Local VDC (village development council) and local NGO’s.
External connections
Partner and stakeholders involved in the program development and implementation:
- CFUG (Community Forest User Group) based in Ashapuri, Bhaktapur;
- Sath Sathi Mundi (NGO based in Timal, Kavre;
- Local VDC (village development council);
- Local farmers (with special focus on women, youth, poor and marginalised).
The reason for the success of the SC program it is the degree to which it is rooted locally. This is an essential component of the program and makes it is an adaptable model for a range of contexts. Partnerships are essential to being able to respectfully, and meaningfully engage with the community on their terms.
The promotion of a range of sustainable farming techniques, allows the SC pilot to support the Government of Nepal's Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation objective to achieve sustainable management of forest resources rather than encouraging illegal foraging and depletion on natural resources. The SC pilot has been designed to work alongside, in a collaborative capacity current existing efforts and priorities. The SC pilot is focused on including youth, women and girls and historically excluded castes. It actively supports the broader agenda of gender and social inclusion.
Results
What is the environmental or ecological challenge you are targeting with your solution?
Nepal is facing urgent environmental threats as the climate is changing faster than the global average (Chaulagain 2006, Manandhar 2010). Growing seasons, cropping patterns and traditional crops are impacted by monsoon and rising temperatures (Malla 2008). Nepal’s Adaptation Programme states that “more than 1.9 million people [in Nepal] are highly climate vulnerable…10 million are increasingly at risk” (GoN 2010).
These challenges are exasperated by current practices such as dangerous chemical use (28.4 Kg of chemicals per hectare, Rural Poverty Portal, 2012)., over–grazing, deforestation, encouragement of chemical use by the market and soil erosion. The root causes of these issues are (i). Limited access to organic and sustainable farming technologies that integrates indigenous, local and modern knowledge; (ii). Lack of access to fair, inclusive and sustainable markets.
Herb Nepal’s ‘Strengthening Communities’ (SC) pilot addresses these root causes to target this challenge.
Describe the context in which you are operating
Nepal is a farming country with 80% of the population relying on subsistence farming and 70% of those households having less than 1 hectare of land; with insufficient land space to cultivate amounts needed to meet their subsistence requirements (Rural Poverty Portal, 2015). The World Bank, 2012 suggests there are 6.2 million rural poor in Nepal. This desperate situation is compounded by high rates of youth out-migration, fewer young people working in agriculture, uncertain markets and prices and low insecure incomes of farmers. Despite Nepal being dependent on farming for food sources and maintaining a 37% share of the national GDP (Pyakuryal, Bishwambher, Mandala Bookpoint, 2015), there are limited opportunities in the agriculture sector. The SCP pilot program is operating in two specific districts (Bhaktapur and Kavre). These districts were left devastated by the 2015 earthquake and the subsequent gas/petrol blockade. This was particularly catastrophic for these districts as communities predominantly consist of the highly marginalised, economically poor ethnic group, Tamang. Research undertaken in September 2016 of Ashapuri, Bhaktapur, “Enhancing the resilience of a peri-urban community in Nepal through mobile technology’, L. O’Doherty (Msc, Student) identified that climate change and lack of market access are a major risk to agricultural productivity, precisely what the SC pilot addresses.
How did you impact natural resource use and greenhouse gas emissions?
Methodologies:
(i). Local farmer-led, demonstration and practice based sustainable land-use trainings (including poly-cropping, agroforestry, soil improvement and erosion control, no chemical or heavy machinery use):
*Increased use of sustainable land-use methods such as double-digging, mulching, integrated pest management, use of natural tonics, fertilisers and pesticides, green manure;
*Promotion of cultivation rather than foraging and depletion of natural resources;
*Reduced the usage of chemical pesticides and fertilisers;
*Increased the amount of organic and sustainable food being cultivated and consumed;
*Strengthened local environments against risk of landslides;
*Less soil erosion and depletion of soil;
*Increased knowledge of the value of herbs in improving biodiversity.
(ii). Collaborative working with Community Forest User Group, (CFUG) Bhaktapur:
*Promotion of organic and sustainable farming as alternative to conventional farming;
*Supported CFUG in increasing sustainable forest management activities
Language(s)
Tamang, Nepali,
Water
At the farm, a number of activities have taken place regarding the local water supply including: (i). Bio-sand filters at Ashapuri farm provide clean water access for all community members; (ii). Increased knowledge and usage of rain water harvesting
Food Security/Nutrition
Training: Increased knowledge of organic farming and SRI (system of rice improvement); Increased knowledge of how these methods can be used in food production;
Economic/Sustainable Development
Recruitment: 15 jobs created in local community; 3 National Social Entrepreneur interns recruited (all Nepali women under 30) involved in the OpenIDEO program; 4 young staff members (under 30) continue to work at Herb Nepal rather than out-migrate. Market access Increased knowledge of market prices Increased incomes for farmers Provision of an alternative market to farmers i.e herbs
Climate
• The use of micro-climates provides better growing conditions for different plants. For example plants that are frost sensitive, will be placed close to natural heat absorbing materials such as stones and wall • Minimal pollutants, wastage and contaminants used • Use of the sustainable, natural building method, rammed earth reduces our carbon footorint by 50% compared to conventional materials • Use of bio-gas reduces reliance on climate destructive alternatives.
Sustainability
The Herb Nepal business model seeks to provide a financially independent model, with a range of income generating activities. The revenues from the sale of the herbal products, is just one of these income streams. Other income streams include natural sustainable farm stays built using a rammed earth technique, consultancy services (e.g trainings, farm concept designs, further roll out of SC Program) and fee-paying volunteer, intern and student (VIS) placements. The income generated is partially reinvested back into the SC program to ensure it is self-sustaining.
Donor funding has kick-started the program although it is intended that the future of the program is secured using market-based revenues from our various activities.
Return on investment
The total cost for the full SC program, without farmstays, VIS placements and consultancy services is $69,000. This includes the prototyping period, procurement of herbal processing equipment, farmer trainings and costs, brand development and design all while simultaneously protecting and strengthening local environments and ecosystems. The program enables Herb Nepal to have social, environment impact with profits reinvested back into the SC program. It represents excellent value money with 1500 target beneficiaries 6000 total beneficiaries (based on an average family of 5 in Nepal) reached within the three year pilot period 2017-2020. Forecasted income will exceed initial investment with the break-even point intended for 2018.
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Replication and Scale
How could we successfully replicate this solution elsewhere?
Replication of the SC program has not been done before however, Herb Nepal is always willing to provide information and advice to enable replication. As an adaptable and flexible program, replication should be possible although contextualization of the core elements is vital. There are some fundamental points to consider:
Mapping of and engagement with local partners;
Assessment of specific country, community need (using HCD approach) is required;
Involvement of the intended beneficiaries throughout the program design process;
Training manuals, training materials need to be developed according to local context;
Sourcing and recruiting of appropriate local Community Mobiliser and local Champion farmers;
Local space to use for training;
Local collection centre for herbs.
The total amount of funding is $69,000.