The Vetiver Man of Alge-Sachi – Illubabor Province of Ethiopia

I am fascinated by Ethiopia, partly because I worked there in the 1960s, and of course because of the Vetiver development that has taken place there over the past 20 years.  Yes, its 20 years since the concept of using Vetiver for soil and water conservation took root, following a one day seminar given by Jim Smyle in Addis Ababa.  A lot has happened in the intervening time thanks to the efforts of our Ethiopian friends. In particular I want to recognize the staff of SLUF - Ethiopian Sustainable Land Use Forum - see picture to left with their vetiver hats and bags - who in recent years have taken the lead in extending the Vetiver System to many new users in Ethiopia. some of their key leaders, like Debela Dinka were the first to introduce vetiver to farmers in the early 1990s

Paradise Renewed – How Vetiver System can help transform abandoned land into productive renewal.

Top left: 1995; Top Right: planting vetiver; Middle left: 2000: Vetiver hedgerows follow contour; Bottom right: 2009 Paradise!; Bottom left: Vetiver protecting irrigation channel - note how the vetiver shades aot weeds completely.

In 1995 Pete Sabbe and his wife Olda bought 15 ha of barren mismanaged agricultural land located in northern Ecuador in the western foothills of the Andes and since then have transformed it.  Part of this success is due to using the Vetiver System.  What they have achieved is applicable to most parts of the tropics and semi tropics, such as Haiti, where land has been over used, wasted and abandoned. Here is their story.

The Fifth International Conference on Vetiver (ICV-5). Vetiver and Climate Change

The first announcement for this conference has been made.  It will be held in Lucknow, India from October 29 to 31, 2011.   The last conference ICV-4 was held in Caracas, Venezuela in 2006.  A lot has happened in the intervening 5 years and the conference promises to be interesting and challenging.  Please join us in Lucknow, share your vetiver knowledge, and meet many of the key vetiver players from around the world and from India. I can guarantee that you will return home with new ideas and new ways of applying this remarkable plant to solve some of the problems facing your community.  Please email your friends and tell them about ICV-5.  Past conference information and proceedings can be found at: http://www.vetiver.org/g/conferences.htm

Dick Grimshaw