ZOMBA PLATEAU, Malawi — The Zomba Forest Reserve is a tale of two faces. A large part of the northern section of the plateau is stripped to its last undergrowth by cultivation and charcoal production by communities. Meanwhile, its southern section, covering almost a tenth of the reserve and managed by communities, is a spectacle of a glorious forest. On this southern edge of the mountainous forest reserve in Malawi’s old capital city of Zomba is Peter Kamowa’s home — a one-room, mud-brick and grass-thatched house, the only one this far up the slope in the village. Its roof is partially covered by flourishing passion fruit vines, which also creep over a row of several young indigenous trees around the house. It weaves a tapestry under which Kamowa likes to rest during the day. Down below, there’s the sound of water gurgling in a stream, one of the two perennial creeks descending from the forest. “These streams are the lifeline of this community,” Kamowa says. On the rich loam soils along the streams are maize, cassava, cabbages, tomatoes, carrots, bananas, sugar cane and strawberries, which the community grows. “Here, we don’t know drought. We don’t know dry season. We grow crops throughout the year because of these streams; so I decided to settle here to help protect these rivers by protecting their source,” he tells Mongabay, pointing at an impressive indigenous forest that’s scaling up the slope to the peak of the mountain. This forest is a section of the…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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