A Forest for the Future: Why Uganda’s Tree Planting Movement Must Be Community-Led

Forest conservation in Uganda faces a critical choice: do we plant for numbers or plant for impact? At Make It Green Again Uganda (MIGAU), the answer is clear. Sustainability is rooted in community leadership.

Uganda’s forests—Budongo, Mabira, Maragambo, and beyond—have seen massive deforestation driven by agriculture, charcoal production, and urban development. Restoring them requires more than planting seedlings; it requires people. MIGAU understands that the most effective environmental projects are those designed, led, and owned by communities.

That’s why every reforestation initiative begins with dialogue. Local farmers help select tree species that benefit their land and provide food, shade, and income. Women are trained to manage nurseries. Youth are educated to become forest ambassadors. Indigenous knowledge is respected and integrated.

MIGAU also supports alternative livelihoods that reduce forest pressure. Palm oil cultivation, avocado farming, fish ponds, and beetroot gardens provide income without destroying ecosystems. Clean cookstoves reduce dependence on firewood, and e-waste programs prevent toxic dumping.

The results speak for themselves: over 3.8 million trees planted, 402 community groups empowered, and hundreds of families benefiting from sustainable agriculture.

The success of community-led conservation lies in ownership. When people feel the forest belongs to them, they protect it. When they see it meeting their needs, they sustain it. When they are involved from seed to tree, they pass that legacy on.

This is the future MIGAU envisions—a Uganda where conservation begins with community.

Be part of this movement. Support community-led restoration, and help plant not just trees, but trust, knowledge, and long-term change.