Guardians of Earth and Plethora Social Initiative:
A Journey Toward Regenerative Living
In a world marked by displacement due to war, conflict, and natural disasters, Uganda often becomes a haven for those seeking refuge. However, the path to a stable and self-sufficient life is filled with challenges. Many refugees are caught in a delicate balance, heavily dependent on international assistance, and often left at the mercy of neglect from the international community and host governments.
In the face of these challenges, two remarkable organizations, Guardians of Earth and Plethora Social Initiative, have joined hands to offer a transformative solution. Guardians of Earth is a platform that harnesses personal technology, gamification, and community engagement to deepen humanity’s connection with the natural world. Plethora Social Initiative, a refugee-led organization, is dedicated to unlocking the inner potential and capacities of refugees and their host communities, fostering regenerative living and sustainable projects.
A significant aspect of this collaboration is the establishment of a Nature Realm in the area surrounding Nakivale Refugee Settlement, located in Uganda’s Isingiro district and birthplace of the Plethora Social Initiative, Here, the focus is on biodiversity conservation, a crucial initiative in a region where it’s much needed.
With the combined efforts of these two organizations, Nakivale Refugee Settlement is set to receive essential resources, including smartphones, digital cameras, a laptop, and stable internet connections. These tools empower a core group of youths within the settlement to identify and record the rich biodiversity that surrounds them.
The ultimate goal is to secure external sponsorship for this endeavor through the sale of Biodiversity Credits. This innovative approach aims to create a “biodiversity economy,” where investors can take stakes in the biodiversity health of the land, also known as “Nature Realms.” Custodians who enhance the value of these stakes through conservation efforts are rewarded, ultimately contributing to the reversal of the biodiversity crisis.
This initiative marks a significant step toward a more regenerative and harmonious future, both for the refugees in Nakivale Settlement and for the planet we all call home.
Link to the Realm https://www.guardiansofearth.io/realms/9046/109
Link to Plethora Social Initiative https://www.plethorainitiative.org/
MORE ABOUT NAKIVALE REFUGEE SETTLEMENT (UGANDA)
Nakivale, Uganda is the oldest refugee settlement in Africa and benefits from what is often lauded as the most progressive refugee policies in the world. However the settlement is rapidly running out of enough arable land to support both refugees and host community, environmental degradation is causing shortages of water and firewood and poor infrastructure limits connectivity and wider access to markets. (UN-Habitat)
Nakivale refugee settlement was established in 1958 and officially recognized as a refugee settlement in 1960 through the Uganda Gazette General Notice No. 19.Nakivale refugee settlement is the 8th largest refugee camp in the world.
Nakivale refugee settlement, is approximately 200 km away from Kampala, Uganda’s capital. This enormous area is geographically divided into three administrative zones – Base camp, Juru and Rubondo. These three zones, in turn, contain a total of 74 individual villages.
It currently hosts 119,587 refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Somalia, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Eritrea. Although many refugees in the area have been living there for several years, recent conflicts in nearby countries are increasing the number of arrivals per day. The majority of refugees in the settlement are Congolese although the population is largely heterogeneous with many cultures and groups from different nationalities. (Wikipedia)
