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The People Behind the Mission: Paul Kihara

Written by Silvia Mburugu
Paul Mwaniki Kihara first started planting trees in 2008 in his spare time. Driven by his love of nature, he would distribute seeds and seedlings to his community.

Today, Paul is the Kenya Plant it Forward Coordinator at TREES. He helps graduated Forest Garden farmers pass their skills on to other farmers in the region.

“I have seen transformation in farmers’ lives,” Paul says of his work. “Some could not afford school fees for their children or good clothing, but through TREES projects they can now meet their needs without much struggle.”

“Paul grows dozens of tree and food species in his Forest Garden.”

Paul’s own Forest Garden serves as a model for farmers in the region. He grows fruit, nut, and fodder trees; his kitchen garden produces fruits and vegetables; he has a tree nursery where he raises a variety of tree species; he raises poultry and livestock; and he even has his own seed bank.

“My Forest Garden has set a benchmark for other farmers who are not within the project’s geographical location,” he says, “especially [for those] learning how to grow fodder trees for livestock.”

In his seed bank, Paul has species like leucaena, macadamia, trichandra, sesbania, calliandra and more.

He often hosts farmer, school, and church groups at his home to teach them about Forest Gardening and provide them with seeds of their own. So far this year, Paul has given out 5,200 seedlings and 20 kilograms of seeds. 

Thank you, Paul, for bringing your passion and enthusiasm for agroforestry and sustainable farming to the Trees for the Future team! Meet more team members.

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