Climate Curve

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Project Summary / Description:

AgriKonnekt delivers greenhouse gas impact through agricultural carbon sequestration by enabling smallholder farmers to adopt regenerative practices including agroforestry, reduced tillage, cover cropping, crop rotation, and organic matter incorporation. These practices increase soil organic carbon and biomass carbon in planted trees, removing atmospheric carbon dioxide and storing it long-term in soils and vegetation. Our pilot data from 1,500 farmers in Kenya demonstrates that participating smallholder farmers sequester an average of 12 tons of carbon dioxide annually per farmer through these regenerative agricultural practices.

How Project Affects Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions:

['Removes/stores GHGs (e.g., projects that capture, sequester, or otherwise enhance the "sinks" that accumulate and store GHGs)']

Impact on Underrepresented Groups:

AgriKonnekt empowers three underrepresented groups in climate action. First, rural smallholder farmers, who collectively manage 80% of Africa's agricultural land yet receive less than 2% of global climate finance, become primary beneficiaries capturing 90% of carbon credit value ($18 to $20 per tonne) versus typical 25% to 40% under broker-dominated models. Second, women farmers comprising 47% of our pilot participants gain independent income streams through direct M-Pesa payments to personal phones, enhancing financial autonomy in contexts where traditional agricultural income flows through male household heads. Third, youth farmers aged 18 to 35 representing 38% of enrollment access climate-resilient livelihoods addressing rural youth unemployment averaging 67% across East Africa according to International Labour Organization.
Our team has 50% female leadership including Hildah Gichuru, Zuhra Nagib, and Marylyn Mugure in critical roles. All six founding members are under 35 years old, bringing lived experience in farming communities where families hold illiquid assets in land yet practice subsistence agriculture. We witnessed firsthand how farmers generate environmental value but capture none because verification costs prevent commercialization. This authentic connection drives our mission beyond abstract business opportunity, ensuring we maintain farmer-centric focus as we scale rather than optimizing for investor returns at farmer expense.