Nearly 65% of Africa’s farmland is degraded, by climate change, unsustainable farming practices and deforestation. This drives water scarcity and expands deserts. The livelihoods of the 60% of Africans are at risk who depend on the land for food.

Yet across the continent, "restoration champions" are leading a powerful movement—restoring soil, boosting biodiversity, and addressing climate challenges. With growing support, this movement is being ignited on a scale the world has never seen before.

Restore Local, part of The Audacious Project’s 2023 cohort, builds on the AFR100 initiative to invest in locally led restoration, transforming Africa’s landscapes over the next four years.

 

Restoration Champions

Restoration champions are the heartbeat of Restore Local's mission to revive Africa’s landscapes and uplift its communities. These dedicated local leaders work tirelessly to restore degraded forests, farms, and drylands, creating real impact on the land and lives they touch. With the support of TerraFund for AFR100 and global allies, they have the resources, training, and support to expand their vital work. Restoration champions don’t just plant trees; they grow opportunity, resilience, and hope across Africa. Together, they embody the vision of a greener future, where each restored landscape is a testament to their unwavering commitment.

 

 

The 4 Part Blueprint Supporting Restoration Champions

Restoring Africa’s landscapes requires a comprehensive approach that addresses every aspect of the restoration journey. The Blueprint outlines four essential areas of focus: developing capacity, deploying finance, securing policy, and monitoring progress. Each chapter is designed to support local champions and ensure restoration projects are sustainable, impactful, and scalable. By focusing on these key areas, the Blueprint provides a clear path toward lasting environmental and community change.

 

1. Develop Capacity

Restoration champions struggle to access technical assistance and training to bolster their existing knowledge on community mobilization, agriculture, forestry and business. To ensure they are ready to receive funding and deliver impact, Restore Local provides targeted training and builds the capacity of restoration champions through programs such as the Land Accelerator.

2. Deploy Finance

Three out of four restoration enterprises struggle to access finance from national or local financial institutions, due to high interest rates or repayment timelines that are out of sync with what they need. Through TerraFund for AFR100 and blended finance mechanisms, Restore Local directly funds champions who restore vitality to the land.

3. Secure Policy

When designed the right way, local and national policies can incentivize and reward restoration champions for their work. Restore Local supports national and sub-national government institutions in creating national plans as they commit to restoration. It connects policymakers with each other and with technical experts through programs such as the Landscape Policy Accelerator and the Landscape Monitoring Accelerator.

4. Monitor, Report, Verify, Learn

To prove their impact, restoration champions need to track the progress of their work. But existing tools are not designed with their needs in mind. Through a standard framework that combines cutting-edge geospatial data with on-the ground verification, Restore Local enables restoration champions to understand the impact of their work and share it with their community, peers and investors. This data is housed on the TerraMatch platform.

 

3 Key Landscapes

We will restore Africa’s vital landscapes by investing in restoration champions – local organizations who have exhibited an outsized positive impact in their communities. We have identified three initial anchor landscapes for this work based on their overall readiness for restoration activity, the potential for significant benefit, and the presence of key implementing partners. Restore Local will collaborate with key stakeholders and focus on delivering the blueprint in three anchor landscapes: 

  1. The Lake Kivu & Rusizi River Basin in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, expanding to the Albertine Rift.
  2. The Greater Rift Valley of Kenya, expanding across the East African Rift Valley.
  3. The Ghana Cocoa Belt, expanding across the West African Guinean Forests.

 

 

Tools for Restoration

Driving change requires the right tools. From an online learning platform to a content creation toolkit, Restore Local offers practical resources to empower restoration champions. These tools are designed to make restoration efforts more effective, scalable, and impactful—whether it’s gaining new skills or sharing stories with the world.

 

Restore Local Learning Platform

Expanding skills and knowledge with Restore Local’s online learning platform, designed to empower restoration champions and communities. From practical tools to expert insights, discover resources that help turn ideas into action. Start learning today and be part of the movement driving change.

 

Visualise local voices, with Canva

We’ve collaborated with Canva to create a customizable tool that empower restoration champions to create and share their stories with a global audience.

 

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