Growing cacao for the good of people and the planet

Meet Louise Mabulo, a chef and farmer from the Philippines who is empowering people in her local community to meet the challenges of climate change with “The Cacao Project”.

Louise Mabulo is one of six changemakers that will take part in the Young Activists SummitExternal link in Geneva on November 18. She founded “The Cacao ProjectExternal link” after a typhoon hit her region, destroying most of the harvest. “We focus on cocoa because [there is] a market, [and it is] more resilient towards a changing climate and is well suited to our ecosystems and landscapes,” says the Filipino. 

The cacao initiative provides farmers in the Philippines with cacao plant seedlings and teaches them how to responsibly and sustainably produce it. The project aids reforestation efforts and has helped with the revival of water sources by increasing the amount of water the soil retains.  

“It’s not just about growing cocoa, but it’s also about intercropping and bringing in a more diversified form of agroforestry within our community,” says Mabulo who was named by the UN as a Young Champion of the Earth. 

The Young Activists Summit in Geneva is a platform created in 2019 to showcase the achievements of people like Mabulo, and to inspire other youth. 

Mabulo will be joined by Gitanjali Rao, an American teenager and scientist who has developed various tools to detect the lead content in water, as well as to help in the early diagnosis of opioid addiction.  

Among the other speakers will be Titouan Bernicot from French Polynesia, who is spearheading efforts to restore corals in the South Pacific, while Stacy Dina Adhiambo Owino from Kenya has developed an app to help young women confronted with imminent female genital mutilation.

Edited by Dale Bechtel

You can register for the Young Activists Summit 21 hereExternal link