Themba Trust
Development
through Natural Resources and Renewable Energy
Our mission
is
to alleviate poverty by improving the quality of life for individuals, groups
and communities through the judicious use of their local natural
resources.
We will achieve this by fostering the use
of suitable
technologies for:
Philosophy
After many years
of aid and billions of dollars invested, very little has
changed for the poor. Millions of people
still do not have clean water to drink, live in degrading environments and go
to bed hungry. To make poverty history
and bring about a more equitable world, our approach to development needs
rethinking. We need to replace a system
where agendas are typically set by development professionals in the north and
imposed on the disenfranchised poor in the south.
In our experience,
projects fail for human rather than technical
reasons. The poor are often unaware of
possible solutions to their problems, or lack the necessary knowledge and
expertise, or are disenfranchised from decision making process that would
enable them to change their lives. The secret for true development lies in the
realisation of human capabilities.
Rather than focusing on single issues or promoting particular
technologies, Themba aims to provide the training, expertise and the resources
required to enable local people to create their own solutions. In so doing, Themba will assist local
stakeholders in alleviating the local causes of poverty.
Themba recognises
that neither a top down nor a bottom up approach to
development works. Top down does not address the needs of the local community,
while disempowered local communities often do not know which questions to
ask. There are no
development panaceas, only long term processes of mutual commitment. We
can only achieve lasting solutions to poverty through a process of constructive
dialogue; listening, discussion and discernment as the project develops.
Furthermore,
real development depends upon quality education. We need to view education in a
different light, not as a rote learning process but rather as the development
of conceptual thinkers so that the students and facilitators of the learning
can grow independently.
We believe that
to achieve a more equitable world fundamental changes are
needed in our approach to development:
genuine partnerships, not lip service, access to basic necessities as a
right and real opportunities for income generation and fair trade. Themba means
trust in Zulu and this represents the mutual trust required by all the
stakeholders in the development process. THEMBA also stands for change. THEre
Must Be an Alternative.
What Themba Will Do -
Implementation
Themba will
work with its network of local and international partners to
help local communities to improve their livelihoods through the sustainable use
of their natural resources. We are developing
a simple framework for
implementing and evaluating these activities based around the concepts of ‘fair
trade,’ Sustainability Impact Assessment (SIA) and Environmental Impact
Assessment (EIA). All our projects are seen as interventions within the local
society and all interventions change culture. We intend to anticipate both the
positive and negative impacts of these changes on all sectors of the local
community through this sustainability framework. Persistence is key to this process and the Themba
Trust aims to stay involved with projects until they are self perpetuating - we
understand that projects must evolve over time.
All projects
will be submitted to the board for initial approval and then
undergo regular review. Themba Trust aims to empower its project facilitators
and stakeholders. Wherever possible, the
board will act as advisors on the projects, only intervening if they deem it
necessary. We will initially focus on
Even though we implement
change through technology, we do not see technology as an end in itself but
rather a means to an end. The secret is human not technical.
Dedication
The work of the Themba Trust is dedicated
to a
visionary Professor of Biology who championed the role of photosynthesis in
development. Professor David Oakley Hall
(1935 – 1999) became a world leader in the promotion of the use of biomass for
energy and food. He also led internationally respected research into the use of
photosynthesis for advanced bio-products including hydrogen. The work of Themba Trust is founded on his
vision and we dedicate its future to him.
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