2024 Planet Positive Awards > Innovation > Best Overall Decarbonization > Winner

Rwanda’s population in 2050 will be ten times greater than it was in 1950. During this period, the land has transformed from predominantly forest and savanna to subsistence farming. Sustainably nourishing this growing population requires the production of more nutritious food within a shrinking land area while addressing challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, soil degradation, and pollution.

The Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture (RICA) serves as an alternative model for agriculture training and regenerative construction in East Africa and around the world. The 1,400-hectare, 69-building campus plan balances human, ecological, and animal health. Approximately 90 percent of RICA’s 1,200 workers were local and the campus was built with predominantly natural and local materials, leading to 60 percent less embodied carbon than baseline. The net-zero campus operates off-grid with a 1.5-megawatt solar array and on-site water treatment. With optimized land use, RICA will be climate-positive by 2040, conserving local ecosystems and contributing to Rwanda’s regenerative future.

• No tags selected