Aligning regenerative communities in the Green City under the sun

Water is integral to the well being of local and national communities and we continue to depend on it for our continued sustenance.

Nairobi relies on water from dams upstream of the city. Nairobi also has rivers that flow through it. Both of these water resources are under pressure from the growing population in and around the city.

ReFi Nairobi seeks to build a regenerative culture and community to protect the upstream water resources serving Nairobi as well as the main rivers in Nairobi.

Upstream dams

The main dam serving Nairobi City is called Ndakaini dam. It is nestled in the central highlands next to the Aberdare forest. Susumwa is the secondary dam that serves Nairobi. These two dams provide the majority of the water that sustains Nairobi City.

The activities of land stewards in the dams’ catchment areas directly impact the quantity and quality of water that is collected in the dams feeding Nairobi. The majority of these land stewards are smallholder farmers, and their adoption of regenerative practices supports the sustainability of the city’s water resources. Many of these smallholders need support and resources to sustainably adopt a regenerative culture.

City Rivers

The main river that traverses Nairobi is the aptly named Nairobi River. This river snakes it way through the city creating an oasis of green in an otherwise concrete jungle. The river has been under sustained pressure from pollution by industrial, commercial and residential effluent. The river banks have also faced encroachement and degradation leaving the river highly exposed. Communities around the river have long voiced their desire to regenerate the river, with coordination and resources usually being the limiting factor.

Beneficiaries

The entire population of Nairobi City are beneficiaries of its water resources. This includes the communities which rely on the water, as well as the industries that require water for their businesses. ReFi Nairobi seeks to build a regenerative culture, community and economy that will incentivize all of these stakeholders to contribute to the regeneration of the city’s water resources. ReFi Nairobi will be building an economic model to sustain this regenerative movement. This model will onboard all stakeholders including city residents, businesses, investors,policy makers and ReFi innovators to build a self-sustaining ReFi culture.

Aims of ReFi Nairobi

-To curate a regenerative culture in Nairobi tapping into the potential of web3 to establish a sustainable ReFi community. -To increase investment and scale up nature-based solutions to protect and restore Nairobi’s water resources.

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