To strengthen Uganda’s Kibale Forest boundary zone so wildlife and people can thrive. CRFF empowers family farmers on the forest buffer zone to transition from conventional seasonal monocropping of maize and rice to regenerative approaches, creating a wild transition between the forest and farming communities where productive forests replace seasonal monocrops. In the process, farmers regenerate their land, produce more diverse and nutritional foods, and generate more meaningful incomes while bringing back vital biodiversity, locking away carbon, and reducing human-wildlife conflict with elephants and chimpanzees. The foundation aims to bring 1,000 acres under regenerative land management by 2030, train 50 syntropic agroforestry experts through the Forest Farmers Initiative fellowship, grow to 100 farming families in three years and 1,000 families within six to eight years through knowledge decentralization and community hubs.
We see a Kibale Forest boundary zone where productive forests replace bare monocrop farmland, where farmers earn meaningful incomes from forest-friendly products under the Kibale Goodness brand, and where wildlife can move freely between forest patches through a landscape designed for coexistence. In ten years, we envision 1,000 farming families practicing regenerative agroforestry across the wider Kibale area, supported by 50 trained syntropic agroforestry experts who graduated from the Forest Farmers Initiative fellowship. We see community hubs at progressive farms serving as decentralized learning centers, a conservation research and education program teaching 2,000 young people annually about the value of nature, and a processing facility at Rwengobe adding value to coffee, macadamia, honey, and other forest products. As Rusho says, we look forward to the day when agroecology becomes the norm, when no one has to tell farmers about the dangers of agricultural chemicals, when farming with nature rather than against it is simply how things are done.
Forest restoration through natural regeneration of 21 acres of degraded buffer zone land and protection of 9 acres of existing natural forest. Syntropic agroforestry demonstrating four-layer forest farming systems (emergent, high, medium, low) with biomass trees for soil regeneration. Over 10,000 seedlings planted including 2,500 macadamia, 5,500 coffee, and 2,000+ indigenous trees. Carbon measurement and biodiversity monitoring in the buffer zone. Invasive species removal including Lantana camara and replacement of eucalyptus and pine woodlots with diverse native species. Wetland conservation at the Rwengobe site.
Transition of family farmers from seasonal monocropping to permanent agroforestry systems that reduce human-wildlife conflict and increase food security. Training and support for 10 pioneer farmers on 27 acres of family land with a vision to reach 100 families in three years and 1,000 in six to eight years. Development of the Forest Farmers Initiative fellowship training 50 syntropic agroforestry experts. Building the Kibale Goodness brand for premium forest-friendly products. Eco-tourism development with pioneer farmers creating a community trail along the forest boundary. Conservation education for 2,000 young people annually. Monthly stipend support during the transitional period from seasonal crops to perennial agroforestry.
Engagement began organically through visiting neighboring farmers, conducting baseline surveys, and identifying 10 pioneer families willing to experiment with agroforestry. The process was entirely voluntary with no formal applications. Pioneer farmers receive seedlings, training, knowledge sharing, and a transitional monthly stipend for two years to compensate for the gap between seasonal crop income and perennial agroforestry maturity. A community of practice has been established with KAFRED, Mountains of the Moon University students, and the broader conservation community. Syntropic agroforestry trainings at Rwengobe bring together pioneers, farm workers, and university students. Pioneer farmers are self-organizing to create a community eco-tourism trail connecting their agroforestry plots along the forest boundary.
CRFF operates as an independent NGO founded by members of the Turaco Treetops lodge ownership. Funding comes from donations, corporate partnerships (Wagagai, DEG Impulse, XSML Capital), tourism revenue linkages through Turaco Treetops, Matoke Tours, and Kazinga Tours. The Kibale Goodness brand is being developed as a farmer collective marketing channel for premium forest-friendly products including coffee, macadamia, honey, vanilla, spices, and herbs. The processing facility under construction at Rwengobe will enable aggregation, processing, and value addition. Coffee collaboration with Coffee Minds Hub provides market access.
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Ecosystem Unity:
Victoria Basin Forest-Savanna, a mosaic ecoregion within the Victoria Basin & Albertine Rift Forests bioregion (AT12), here characterized by the dramatic interface between Kibale tropical moist forest and the surrounding agricultural plateau, influenced by the Rwenzori Mountains microclimate and connected through river systems to the broader Albertine Rift lake network.
Tropical moist climate with equatorial modification due to altitude. The site sits at 1,210-1,242 meters above sea level within the Kibale Forest zone, which receives orographic rainfall influenced by the Rwenzori Mountains. The climate supports tropical moist broadleaf forest and transitions to forest-savanna mosaic in the surrounding agricultural landscape.
Bimodal rainfall pattern with long rains from March to May and short rains from September to November. The Rwenzori Mountains create enhanced rainfall in the western portions of the region. Dry seasons from December to February and June to August.
Temperatures moderated by altitude, ranging from approximately 15C (59F) at night to 27-30C (81-86F) during the day. The equator passes through the base of the nearby Rwenzori Mountains, creating a unique combination of equatorial and montane microclimates.
The site is part of the Katonga River catchment, which drains into Lake Albert. The Mpanga River and Dula River also drain portions of this basin. The Rwengobe plot includes a wetland at the bottom of the valley covering approximately 10,440 sq meters, part of the broader water system connecting the plateau to the Albertine Rift.
Groundwater accessed through the western Ugandan plateau aquifer system. The wetland at the base of the Rwengobe plot provides natural water storage and filtration. Springs along the Kibale Forest boundary contribute to local water availability.
Kibale National Park harbors 13 primate species including the largest population of chimpanzees in Uganda (estimated 1,500), plus forest elephants, servals, bush pigs, and over 375 bird species. The CRFF home plot hosts returning wildlife including servals and elephants as restoration progresses. Cultivated species in the syntropic system include coffee (Robusta), macadamia, vanilla, Hass avocado, cassava, matoke banana, ndizi banana, gonja banana, bogoja banana, papaya, tree tomato, and moringa. Emergent indigenous trees include Mahogany, Prunus africana, Markhamia lutea, Ficus nathalensis, Funtumia africana, and Sapium ellipticum. The orchard includes Malabar chestnut, loquat, guava, mulberry, star fruit, and almond.
Hilly terrain characteristic of the western Ugandan plateau, dissected by river valleys and seasonal streams. The Rwengobe plot includes a wetland at the valley bottom, steep hillsides requiring erosion protection, and a highway frontage. The Kibale Forest boundary creates a dramatic edge between dense tropical forest and the surrounding agricultural landscape. The Rwenzori mountain range dominates the western horizon.
This land lies within the ancestral territory of the Batooro people and the broader Toro Kingdom of western Uganda. The Kibale Forest has been a protected area since the colonial era but its buffer zone remains under intense agricultural pressure. The communities farming on the forest boundary have experienced generations of human-wildlife conflict, particularly with elephants destroying seasonal crops in a single night.
The Kibale Forest buffer zone landscape reflects decades of tension between conservation and agriculture. The forest boundary represents one of the sharpest ecological transitions in East Africa, from dense tropical forest to open farmland. Turaco Treetops lodge, established as an ecotourism venture, has become an anchor institution linking conservation with community livelihoods. The pioneer farmers are developing a community eco-tourism trail connecting their agroforestry plots along the forest boundary.
Kibale Forest has experienced progressive encroachment and deforestation of its buffer zone as surrounding populations have grown. Farmers on the boundary have traditionally practiced seasonal monocropping of maize, rice, and beans, which is highly susceptible to elephant raiding and soil degradation. The Chris Roberts Forest Foundation was established in 2021 during the pandemic as a response to visible deforestation near Turaco Treetops lodge. Land acquisition began in February 2022 with the first 16 acres. An additional 11 acres were acquired in June 2023. The Rwengobe permaculture center was acquired in March 2024 and has progressed from Lantana camara-covered wasteland to three functioning syntropic demo plots with training infrastructure under construction.
The Kibale Forest buffer zone is part of one of the most important ecological corridors in the Albertine Rift, connecting Kibale National Park with Budongo Forest to the north and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest to the south. CRFF's work creating productive forests on the buffer zone directly strengthens this corridor by replacing bare monocrop farmland with tree-based systems that wildlife can move through. The pioneer farmers' community trail further enhances connectivity along the forest boundary. The Jane Goodall Institute Uganda MoU supports collaborative corridor management.
Fort Portal Tourism City lies approximately 30 km to the northwest (population approximately 55,000). Bigodi village is the nearest settlement. Kamwenge town is the district headquarters approximately 40 km southeast. Kampala, the national capital, is approximately 300 km east. The Fort Portal-Mbarara highway passes directly along the Rwengobe plot.
