By Joel Ngobi, 2025 GLF Forest Restoration Steward
The first time I visited Kalangala, I was struck by its peaceful nature. Green hills meet Lake Victoria’s waves, and small villages dot the landscape with friendly greetings and laughter.
Kalangala is a town located on Bugala Island, one of the 84 Ssese Islands on the Ugandan side of Lake Victoria. Only 43 of these islands are inhabited. The rest are mostly covered in plants, and some are used for fishing and conservation.
Known for its beautiful views, fishing and unique wildlife, Kalangala has long been a place where families made a living by fishing, collecting firewood and growing things like cassava, bananas and local vegetables.
Elders still remember the forests around the town being filled with wild fruits and medicinal trees.
But this balance with nature started to break down 20 years ago, when large-scale palm oil production arrived, turning life in Kalangala upside down.
In the early 2000s, Kalangala was chosen as the site of Uganda’s first commercial palm oil project, with backing from government partnerships and international money.
Not long after, large areas of forest were cleared to make room for oil palm plantations. Families were told – sometimes pushed – to replace their varied gardens and fields with oil palms.
Palm oil is now central to Kalangala’s economy, but it has also come with problematic land agreements.
Numerous farmers, particularly older ones, entered into decades-long contracts with agribusinesses – sometimes without fully grasping what they were agreeing to.
At first, the offers sounded reasonable. They promised jobs, income and better services. But soon, the problems became apparent.
For one, these deals prohibited farmers from growing other crops, creating oil palm monocultures.
The plantations have also damaged the soil and harmed biodiversity.
Rivers and water sources have dried up or become polluted by the use of farm chemicals.
Animals, including birds and small mammals, have disappeared.
Some families who had leased out their land for decades now find their soils heavily degraded and unproductive.
Most painfully, local food systems have fallen apart.
Now, much of the food in Kalangala is brought in by boat.
“When I was a child, we never bought food,” says Mzee Salongo, a retired fisherman and farmer. “We had everything from our yards: matooke, yams, mangoes, mushrooms. But now, young people don’t even know those trees existed.”
My name is Joel Ngobi. I came to Kalangala seeking employment and knowing I wanted to help conserve land in my home country of Uganda.
My passion led me to start the School Food Forest Initiative, where we work with young farmers and school groups to implement agroforestry in Kalangala.
Agroforestry is an antidote to land degradation. By mixing oil palm trees with other trees, crops and even livestock, we can bolster the microorganisms in the soil to support a variety of life above and below the ground.
This in turn makes the soil more productive, boosting yields and benefiting the island’s ecosystems.
The microorganisms in the soil help move nutrients, prevent erosion and help crops grow faster. The tree roots also pull up nutrients from deep in the ground, which help the surrounding crops.
The combination of trees and plants creates layers that provide shelter, shade and food for animals displaced by the plantations. By replanting local trees, we’re helping bring back pollinating insects and other local wildlife.
Agroforestry not only benefits nature but also provides farmers with diversified income streams, such as selling wood, fruit, honey and herbs.
Whereas monocultures have undermined food security and made farmers dependent on a single source of income, agroforestry provides strength and resilience.
We started small in 2019 with a few youth leaders, two schools and a borrowed piece of land in Namutumba District in eastern Uganda. We planted bananas with fast-growing local trees like Maesopsis. We grew cassava under Calliandra bushes and encouraged beekeeping around Grevillea trees.
Slowly, we saw change in tree growth, plant health and in people’s attitudes. We expanded into Kalangala at the beginning of 2025.
The degradation of Kalangala’s soils isn’t just an environmental issue. It also means the island’s culture is being lost: many local trees once used for medicine, ceremonies or food are now rare or even forgotten.
The forest, once a source of knowledge, has been lost to ‘progress.’
Through agroforestry, we’re bringing back these old stories. In our workshops, we ask older community members to teach young people the names and uses of traditional trees.
It’s crucial to get school children involved in planting and storytelling so that they know why the mutuba (Ficus natalensis) tree matters, or how nnandi (Spathodea) leaves can be used to treat fevers.
“We used to plant a tree when a child was born,” says Nalongo Janet. “That tree would grow as the child grew. It meant the child would never go hungry.”
In local schools, we repurpose unused school property into gardens where students can learn, grow food and help the environment. These gardens mix local fruit trees, vegetables and medicinal plants to boost nutrition and environmental awareness.
When I moved to Kalangala, I quickly noticed the extensive damage from oil palm plantations, so we introduced agroforestry to community farms as well. We advise and help farmers implement intercropping by planting varied trees and crops on their farms to fix damaged land, support wildlife and provide a stable income.
Agroforestry is about more than just planting trees; it’s who we are. It’s restoring hope, respect and the ability to feed ourselves again.
Many locals are wary of change. Unlike palm oil, adopting agroforestry doesn’t offer quick and easy money. It takes time to improve the soil and turn a profit.
Most young people don’t own land, and many of those who do lack the means to try new farming methods like agroforestry. Those without land often work on family land or communal plots, which limits their ability to decide how this land is used.
The climate crisis adds to the issue of low land productivity, with erratic weather patterns affecting planting seasons and harvests.
With support from environmental groups, local leaders and volunteers, we’ve helped set up five school agroforestry gardens across Kalangala and trained over 120 young people and 30 farmers in sustainable methods like contour farming and mulching with organic materials.
These simple but powerful techniques are helping communities increase yields while also caring for the land. Now, some churches and fishing groups are joining in, planting native trees along damaged shorelines.
We also use stories to advocate for embracing change and adopting sustainable methods. Through video clips, radio and youth theater, we show the value of trees for the environment, health, food and faith.
When people hear success stories from their neighbors, they start to believe change is possible.
I often wonder what Kalangala will be like in 10 years.
I hope it looks like farms interplanting palm trees, bananas and local trees. School gardens feeding students and teaching them how to be strong. Youth groups selling herbal teas, honey and tree seedlings. Women’s groups managing small forests as food sources and special places.
This isn’t just a dream. We’re already turning this into reality, one tree and one story at a time.
Kalangala’s story is similar to that of many communities across Africa and the world. It’s a story of being caught between the promises of agribusiness and the problems of a changing climate.
But there’s another way: one based on variety, care and old wisdom.
Agroforestry is bringing back what industrial agriculture stole: respect, knowledge and control over our land.
Our roots are strong. With every tree we plant and garden we start, we give our young people the chance to grow a greener future.
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