Baobab

The Baobab tree  is one of my favorites and the one on my opening page is in Tarangire National Park. The hole in it is caused by elephants during drought times, sucking at the spongy trunk to get moisture.

Tanzania people say that God was playing a trick with the Mbuyu (Baobab) because most of the time it has no leaves and the bare branches making it look like its roots, so the tree appears to be planted upside down!

The big fruits have a white powder surrounding the seeds, sometimes used as a confectionery for children.

It is the main ingredient of cream of tartar.

The National Park is close to the Maasai village of Mswakini where I worked with the primary school there carrying out an environmental project as well as a water project. We also managed to raise some money for building a classroom to replace the one blown down. How come it was blown down?

Half the cement supplied was stolen (not by the school) so with 50% cement strength in the mortar and lintel, it made the walls too weak to withstand even light winds.

I will write about a water project another time and perhaps the school project.

Satisfactory

Well now, I have just checked my first blog, and I suppose it is OK for me. I'm not too sure about the readership of blogs, and indeed who is interested, but we will see.

Later, I will write down some of my experiences, but for now the matter of climate change is a hot topic.

Because I am known for my 'environmental interest/knowledge' people have often ask me about climate change and if it is indeed 'man made'.

I'm no scientist - more of a logical bloke really. It is obvious that climate change is happening - after 9 years looking at Mt Kilimanjaro, I can say that anecdotally the snow is disappearing! Some say it will be gone within 5 years but nature is remarkably resilient! And behind Mt Meru is a place called Ngarenanyuki - they used to be able to carry out dairy farming there, but now the short rains have failed at least 4 years in a row, so they can't even grow a crop of maize as in the past.

So certainly there is climate change! That is the nature of things - evolution if you like. Has man influenced it? Well yes of course, but maybe not how you generally think. I haven't a clue if greenhouse gasses really make a difference or if burning coal is really as bad as using your car to run down to the dairy to buy bread.

New Zealand has been trying to cut down on emissions but in a small country like ours, twenty years of savings is negated by one volcanic eruption.

And then, what emissions are generated by the armed conflicts of this world? I have no answer.
  

Few have latched onto the idea that especially over the last century inestimable areas of indigenous forest has been lost. That has changed the climate. Forests are cool places and create cool air - so this causes the Earth to warm up. Then there is rainfall. Water on Earth is finite - if you like God made a certain amount of water on this Earth, it cannot be increased or decreased but its distribution changes. Water (rain) finds its way into the soil and becomes locked up there. The roots of trees search out ground water and slowly pump it through the trunk and out of the leaves to form clouds. Hello! The clouds become rain thus completing the cycle - remove the trees and what happens? Less rainfall!

I strongly believe the best way of helping this planet survive is to create forests and encourage the conservation of indigenous forests. Rich governments should be prepared to encourage poor government to protect their forests maybe through targeted aid.

Easy said, perhaps hard to bring about but now is a good time to start! Trees gobble up CO2 and release Oxygen as we all know - we need those factories.

I was about to finish here, but there is another statement related to this.

Here in New Zealand it is difficult to buy hardwood timber - oh yes it is possible to manage  some of our Beech fores on a sustainable basis, and we do grow Eucalyptus trees (but seldom mill them) so where does our hardwood come from? Tropical rainforest, usually from Indonesia. Why does this happen? Even if the trees are are felled legally, by importing this timber we are supporting indigenous deforestation! Maybe treated Radiata Pine has chemicals in it, and maybe it doesn't look as good, but at least it is sustainably grown! And in this little country of ours at least it is Kiwi-made which is another issue that I have no desire it get into!

And more!
Most of us in real terms cannot do much on an individual basis about climate change. But we can do something about the world's depleted resources. This little thing we call conservation. Here is an example.

I tried hard to find a picture with no logo because I don't want to single anyone out. Look at all the resources that go into producing and selling these things! Sales are growing resources continue to decline - anyone else see this?

Problem: workers livelihood.

Intro

 Tanzania is part of East Africa but most people back home assume it is somehow South Africa

this is probably because New Zealand has so many ties with South Africa.

Blogging is new to me, but I have an agenda that I will reveal (nothing sinister) at a later date.
I have been a Forester and created a large pine forest from an area of gorse and scrub. I have been a Nurseryman growing both indigenous and exotic trees and shrubs.
I have worked in Tanzania East Africa, working with primary schools and village people, teaching them how to improve their environment by planting trees. We built a couple of schools, established seven small tree nurseries, established some water projects and built rainwater harvesting schemes in several key places.

There are a few stories to tell, and that is why Footsteps NZ-TZ is appropriate - there are serious things, funny things and tear-jerking things to tell and I will do this as time permits.

As you can see, I am an environmentalist, but not the activist type. I will hug a tree but I will also cut it down if I feel it appropriate to do so. I like animals, and insects too, and have done my bit in humanities as well.

I like to to take an interest in things.