Keeling Curve

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Project Summary / Description:

The decomposition process in landfills is a major contributor of global methane emissions, one of the most harmful CO2e gasses - each tonne of waste results in 400kg of methane and carbon dioxide emissions, and as per studies by UN Habitat in 2021, African cities dispose of 99 million tonnes of organic matter per year. The rapid population growth on the continent is further accelerating this problem. 

At Regen Organics, we have developed a novel, zero-waste solution to tackle the millions of tonnes of organic matter disposed of in landfills every year by fast-growing cities in Sub-Saharan Africa. Formed in 2011 by three MIT graduate students, the company has been a pioneer in circular economy approaches to waste management, successfully creating a carbon-negative process using Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL) that impacts lives and livelihoods across both the waste management and agricultural value-chains.

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How Project Affects Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions:

Replaces/avoids GHGs (e.g., projects that replace sources of GHGs, such as the burning of fossil fuels for electricity, heat, transport, or other energy uses), Removes/stores GHGs (e.g., projects that capture, sequester, or otherwise enhance the "sinks" that accumulate and store GHGs)

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Impact on Underrepresented Groups:

Our project impacts and empowers multiple underrepresented demographics in the climate space - our waste processing work incorporates both mitigation by offsetting CO2e and agricultural sector adaptation for groups on the frontline of the climate crisis:

Smallholder farmers (SHFs) - In Kenya and other Sub-Saharan countries, SHFs provide between 60% - 80% of local food consumption from staple crops. Kenya and the Horn of Africa is experiencing its worst drought in over 40 years, with over 3.1 million Kenyans in need of food assistance as of February 2023, and SHF yields down by up to 50%. Our sustainably produced, locally available, and affordable agricultural inputs support over 10,000 men and women SHFs with regenerative agriculture inputs and extension services. 

Women - This is a demographic severely impacted by the climate crisis in Kenya, and we make active efforts to include women farming cooperatives and agricultural input resellers in our product distribution. Since 2021, we have impacted over 2000 women farmers with our products and incorporated over 500 women-owned resellers in our distribution network.

Youth - Our waste collection and processing value-chain has created green jobs that target young men and women living in the communities we serve. We currently have over 323 staff at or below the age of 35, working across our collection, production, and distribution operations.

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