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Support Re-Alliance Help Re-Alliance to showcase a new, regenerative vision for the Humanitarian and Development sectors Donate Contact us Thank you very much for your interest in supporting Re-Alliance. With your donation, we can continue our integral work of convening, supporting and showcasing innovative regenerative solutions to humanitarian challenges and development interventions. We work through four interconnected core areas: The Learning work-stream supports the creation and sharing of practical, accessible learning resources. These materials are made in partnership with our members with lived experience of the issues, and are designed to serve both community-based practitioners and humanitarian organisations. Through guides, courses and peer learning learning spaces, we help regenerative approaches become more widely understood, trusted and applied in crisis and recovery contexts. 📖 Support the Learning Fund, here . The Innovation work-stream enables practitioners and communities to trial, research and refine regenerative practices in humanitarian contexts. Working alongside our partners, we support the experimentation and reflection from implementing small or larger scale innovations, always with in integrated regenerative perspective. Through the Innovation work-stream, we showcase how locally-rooted solutions can inform wider systems and policies. 🌀 Support the Innovation Fund, here . The Storytelling work-stream supports grassroots practitioners to share their stories in participatory and meaningful ways. Through our network of community correspondents and media spaces, we help ensure that the voices, experiences and wisdom of those most affected by crisis are heard, valued and able to help influence change. 🎥 Support the Storytelling Fund, here . Alongside these core areas of work, we have a support and facilitation circle which focuses on nurturing the movement. This includes supporting peer connection, growing partnerships, and holding the facilitation of Re-Alliance. We see this as tending to the soil of Re-Alliance, which allows our programmes and partnerships to grow. It's essential work, but often underfunded. If you would like to support us in a flexible and unrestricted way, please contact us or donate through our flexible fund here. 🤝 Support the whole of Re-Alliance's work, here . Feel free to contact us if you would like to transfer directly into our bank account, or for larger donations. Re-Alliance is an international network, and is registered as a UK charity with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number: 1188936) . Donate Contact us Organisational Sponsorship Are you part of an ecologically minded for-profit organisation? We would love to discuss sponsorship and partnership opportunities with you. We offer training and webinars on Permaculture, regenerative design and other topics for staff of organisations who sponsor Re-Alliance. Sponsors will also receive invitations to our invite-only bi-monthly webinars. We are also grateful to organisations who choose to recommend Re-Alliance on a staff Payroll Giving or pay-as-you-earn donation scheme. Please contact us for more information. Other ways of supporting Re-Alliance Re-Alliance and our members gratefully welcomes other support and volunteering. Re-Alliance works with writers, researchers, film-makers, artists and many others to collate and present high quality information about regenerative design in the humanitarian and development fields. We would be happy to work with you. Re-Alliance is also able to work with Masters and PhD researchers, and many of our members are happy to accommodate with research work. Thank you again, and we look forward to partnering with you. Donate Contact us

From Permaculture in refugee settlements, to eco-building in disaster prone regions, to water harvesting in areas severely affected by worsening climate change, Re-Alliance and our members showcase how we can create stability, resilience and abundance, even in times of crisis. What could a regenerative humanitarian response look like? Increasing the impact and influence of regenerative responses to disaster, displacement and development Explore Re-Alliance free guides Re-Alliance promotes a regenerative vision, beyond sustainability, for the humanitarian and development sectors. From Permaculture gardens in refugee camps, to eco-building in disaster prone regions; eco WASH interventions, to integrated nature-based solutions for settlement designing: Re-Alliance members are showcasing how we can create stability, resilience and abundance, even in times of crisis. Watch Videos Play Video Play Video 07:13 Beejvan | Restoring and regenerating sacred food forests in India Beejvan began in 2022 to revive local understandings of tree-based farming. In this film, Founding Director Sanjana Krishnan explores the joys and the challenges of land-based work. The project has become more than a farming practice, but a healing and community-building activity. 🎥 Film by Pankaj Rishi Kumar Play Video Play Video 04:41 YAKUM | Protecting and restoring the bio-cultural abundance of the Amazon YAKUM partners with three indigenous nations in Ecuador to turn degraded land into cultural food landscapes. In this film by Remi Bumstead, Re-Alliance member YAKUM explores the importance of Indigenous wisdom in forest protection and restoration, and the abundance that healthy forests can offer in terms of culture, food, and climate resilience. Arley Paraguaje and Nick Ovenden explain why YAKUM rediscover and replant diverse cultural foods, and safely harvest food from standing forests. Find out more about YAKUM's work at https://yakum.org/ 🎥 https://remibumstead.com/ Play Video Play Video 07:21 Minak | Growing nutritious mushrooms in a refugee settlement Mariam Antoine from Minak Women-led Organisation helped co-create a programme of training women in Nakivale Refugee Settlement to grow nutritious Oyster mushrooms in reusable buckets. In this video, trainees from Minak organisation explain how mushroom cultivation is such a powerful way to grow the health and income of people living in refugee settlements. Re-Alliance worked with Minak to create a how-to booklet for growing mushrooms. Read more about the project here and download the booklet: https://www.re-alliance.org/post/cultivating-mushrooms-in-buckets Minak is bringing to life real examples of #Permaculture in #Refugee settlements. Play Video Play Video 06:08 YICE Uganda | Urine-diversion dry composting toilets Join Winnie Tushabe, co-founder of YICE Uganda, and Ecosan user Uwizeye Salima, in exploring Ecosans. In the Nakivale refugee camp in Uganda, refugees are given a small plot of land to build a dwelling and farm food on. Re-Alliance's partner organisation YICE Uganda (Youth Initiative for Community Empowerment) is working with families to create kitchen gardens but yields are limited because the soil is poor. Re-Alliance and YICE collaborated to build eight urine diverting dry toilets (or ‘Ecosan’ toilets) for families. By separating the urine and faeces, the volume of composting waste is reduced, extending the capacity of the compost chamber and giving an immediate source of fertiliser in the form of urine, which, when diluted 1:10 - 1:20 with water, is an excellent fertiliser rich in nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus. Diverting the urine away stops the compost chamber from becoming anaerobic and smelly and the addition of wood ash or saw dust, after using the toilet, acts as a dehydrating cover material. This design used recycled plastic barrels as containers for the faeces, which ensures no ground pollution. Once nearly full, the barrel is moved aside and replaced with a fresh barrel. With the hot composting achieved inside the barrels, compost can be created in under 12 months in the Ugandan climate. The compost is used to enrich the soil around fruiting trees and bushes. Find out more about this design and create your own with our free guides on www.re-alliance.org/publications . Play Video Play Video 07:35 Unidos Social Innovation Centre | Eco-social regeneration in Nakivale Refugee Settlement What could it look like if Refugee Settlements were thriving ecological and social spaces? Unidos Social Innovation Centre is a refugee-led, community-based organisation that engages with young people located in the Nakivale Refugee settlement, South West Uganda. In this video, Unidos founder Paulinho Muzaliwa explains how they support the communities to create abundant Permaculture gardens, grow biodiverse food forests, and build healthy soils. Find out more about Unidos at https://unidosprojects.org/ Donate to Unidos' work here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/water-4-thriving-african-permaculture-group 🎥 7Times Film Production Play Video Play Video 04:36 Ecopoblaciones | Ecopoblaciones Ecuador Ecopoblaciones Ecuador create eco-social regeneration programs that promote the participatory design and implementation of sustainable and resilient populations. Their work integrates ecology, social, economic and cultural aspects, using tools and processes of eco-neighborhoods, eco-social movements, permaculture, ecotourism, bio-construction, participatory leadership, emotional management, well-being, among others. Find out more about Ecopoblaciones Ecuador here: https://ecopoblaciones.github.io/ Find out more about joining Re-Alliance's thriving community of members here: https://www.re-alliance.org/members Play Video Play Video 11:32 Green Releaf | Designing for resilience in disaster and conflict prone regions in the Philippines Green Releaf Initiative prototyped two projects that aimed to respond to and prevent disasters, in contexts of climate and conflict vulnerability in the Philippines. Green Releaf worked with Permaculture as an approach to address food security, regenerative livelihood, and ecosystem restoration. They had a community-led approach, working with early adapters as grassroots permaculture leaders to train as multipliers. They aimed to highlight the traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) from the community, honouring their earth wisdom as key to the community's resilience. Featuring grassroots community leaders from areas affected by disasters and displacement where Green Releaf worked, this film begins to document the knowledge learned and practices implemented over time. Play Video Play Video 02:32 What is Re-Alliance? What is Re-Alliance? What do we hope to achieve? These questions and more are explored by some of of the founding members of the Re-Alliance network. Join our membership As part of our network, whether a grassroots practitioner or a member of an international NGO or Aid organisation, you will have access to dynamic knowledge, a vibrant and active community of experts, and a wealth of opportunities for collaboration. Our membership is open to all. The only requirements are an interest, understanding or expertise in regenerative design, experience in the humanitarian or development sectors, and a willingness to comply with our code of conduct and policies. Find out more Read Articles Nakivale Arboloo Toilets: Growing Trees from waste Illustration of an Arborloo by Tanya Haldipur Project Overview 8 arborloo toilets were built for shared household use for new arrivals in Nakivale Refugee Settlement, Uganda by refugee-led UNIDOS Social Innovation Center, in partnership with Re-Alliance. When full, these portable toilets will be moved for continued use and trees will be planted on the full pits. The project showed the potential for lower cost arboloos to be rapidly built to respond to influxes of new arriva Mary Mellett Where next for humanitarian response to climate and conflict displacement? Re-alliance Co-ordinator Juliet Millican shares her thoughts after a work trip to Ethiopia I have just returned from 2 weeks in Ethiopia, training researchers in participatory research methods and interviewing representatives from government, INGOs and NGOs working in climate and conflict displacement. The trainee researchers, many from a local university, were informed, enthusiastic and passionate, keen to work closely with local displaced communities to explore their exper Juliet Millican Community-led regeneration is a remedy for political inaction A statement on this week's UN Environment Programmes Emissions Gap Report ahead of COP30. We are in a dire place, but that doesn’t mean we should sit back and let corporate greed in the minority world ruin us all. We can take action. Community-led regenerative movements offer us a clear pathway forward. We need Nature-based Solutions grounded in land-based wisdom. Re-Alliance Sign up for our newsletters For inspiring stories from our network of practitioners around the globe, to learning about how to integrate regenerative design into humanitarian and development contexts, sign up to our newsletter below. Sign up We can support you Re-Alliance and our members have hosted several training programmes for humanitarian and development organisations and agencies. We can help you and your organisation to integrate regenerative paradigms and practices into your operation, interventions, and policy. Contact us to arrange a meeting and find out more. Contact us

Discover the partnerships and programmes which are showcasing regeneration in action alongside communities. Projects & Partnerships Re-Alliance works alongside trusted partner organisations to co-create and implement regenerative projects throughout the world. Re-Alliance's role is usually in strategic design, project co-design and management, research, as well as producing educational materials, M&E, and disseminating information. See below for more information on some of our recent and current projects and collaborations. Special thanks to our generous funding partners from the public as well as Trusts and Foundations, including but not limited to Treebeard Trust , the JAC Trust and Lush Cosmetics. Regenerative Refugee Settlement in Nakivale Uganda Co-designing and building a Regenerative Settlement with 20 households in Nakivale Refugee Settlement, Uganda + In partnership with: YICE Uganda, Arup, Re-Alliance Regenerative Camps and Settlements: Piloting Interventions Partnering with Re-Alliance members to showcase regenerative interventions in displacement contexts. + In partnership with: Re-Alliance Members Mobile Wind Power Community designed micro-wind turbines for camps and settlements. + In partnership with: School Of The Earth First Response to Trauma Psychosocial support and community building for trauma healing. + In partnership with: SACOD Vermicomposting Toilets In Bekaa, Lebanon, Farms Not Arms built three vermicompost toilets for refugee families. These innovative toilets use worms to convert human waste into compost. + In partnership with: Farms Not Arms Urban rooftop garden in Al-Buriej Refugee Camp Growing food gardens on rooftops in Gaza, showcasing urban growing in places with limited access to land. + In partnership with: Gaza Urban & Peri-Urban Agriculture Platform (GUPAP) Regenerative Urban Agriculture MOCGSE led a project focussed on supporting conflict-affected areas with regenerative urban agriculture demonstration and education. + In partnership with: Mount Oku Center for Gender and Socioeconomic Empowerment (MOCGSE) Regesoil: Community Composting Collective community composting sites in Nakivale Refugee Settlement. + In partnership with: Unidos Social Innovation Centre Ecosan Composting Toilets Urine diversion, dry composting toilets in a barrel, enriching soils for more nutrient-rich crops and healthier people. + In partnership with: YICE Uganda Reimagining urban ecosystems in Greece, with Sporos A community-led initiative transforming urban spaces in Greece into resilient, biodiverse ecosystems through regenerative design and education. + In partnership with: Sporos Regeneration Institute Building Treebogs in Kakuma Refugee Settlement FHE built several twin Treebog composting toilets in Kakuma Refugee Settlement. These are raised composting toilets which feed 'humanure' directly to perennial plant roots. + In partnership with: Farming & Health Education (FHE) Non-Digital communications for learning Analogue learning materials for regenerative food growing in refugee camps and settlements. + In partnership with: Kajulu Hills Ecovillages, Green Releaf Grey water and Rain water harvesting for food growing in Syria Piloting Grey water and Rain water harvesting and irrigation for food growing in Syria. + In partnership with: Syrian Academic Expertise, Malteser International Re-Alliance Members' Film Collaboration Participatory filmmaking to share stories of regeneration in action. + In partnership with: Re-Alliance Members Lime-Stabilised Soil Building in Cox's Bazar Disaster resistant eco-buildings made from locally sourced materials in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. + In partnership with: Bee Rowan & International Organisation for Migration (IOM)

< back Date of completion: 1 Jan 2023 Lime-Stabilised Soil Building in Cox's Bazar Disaster resistant eco-buildings made from locally sourced materials in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Re-Alliance founding member and natural building specialist Bee Rowan, collaborating with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), and a group of refugee Rohingya peoples living in Cox's Bazar, undertook a Lime-stabilised Soil building project. Lime-Stabilised Soil (LSS) is a sustainable, eco-friendly building material composed of a mixture of soil, lime, and other natural materials. LSS building is a low-carbon and cost-effective strategy, making it an effective, locally sourced solution for many displacement contexts. In Cox's Bazar, prone to disasters such as flooding and fires, LSS buildings are shown to be more resilient to fires, floods, and extreme heatwaves. To test Lime-stabilised Soil technology’s effectiveness compared to conventional building materials like cements, the Kutupalong Refugee Camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, was chosen as the test site. This area frequently faces crises of monsoon floods, cyclones, fires, and heatwaves. Existing shelters often fail to withstand these climate-related disasters, leaving the camp community highly vulnerable. The team created effective Lime-stabilised Soil mixes using local subsoil collected from 11 different camps. Using this new material, a fire resilience test was conducted to explore its potential as a fire-resistant material. The results were positive. While a traditional shelter burned down in just five minutes, the LSS-plastered shelter remained intact after 20 minutes of direct fire exposure. This experiment demonstrated the material’s effectiveness as a firebreak in a real-life scenario. Beyond fire resistance, LSS has also shown superior compressive wet strength and thermal performance, which helps shelters cope with heavy rains, flooding, and intense heatwaves. The efforts to showcase LSS technology quickly gained support, leading to wider scaling and adoption. IOM received additional funding to build over 2,000 LSS shelters across the camp. Also, large agencies including UNHCR and Caritas adopted the technology, resulting in a pilot of 51 LSS shelters. Moreover, this project has received approval from the Bangladesh government to increase the use of LSS in the camp. Lime-stabilised Soil has strong potential as a future technology for shelters in displacement contexts worldwide. Already, approximately 300 Rohingya refugees were trained in shelter construction and have begun training groups. Continued interest and commitment to Lime-stabilised Soil building will help reduce reliance on conventional, unsustainable materials, providing safer and more resilient shelters in vulnerable communities globally. For more information, visit this blog .

< back Date of completion: 1 Mar 2023 Building Treebogs in Kakuma Refugee Settlement FHE built several twin Treebog composting toilets in Kakuma Refugee Settlement. These are raised composting toilets which feed 'humanure' directly to perennial plant roots. A Treebog, designed by Permaculturist Jay Abrahams from Biologic Design, is a raised composting drop toilet which directly feeds into tree roots. It is a regenerative sanitation system that converts human waste (urine, faeces, and wiping paper) into biomass without any secondary handling. By using moisture-loving trees, shrubs, and bushes planted around the compost pile, the Treebog system uses natural resources to reduce odours and feed the composting process with necessary carbon-rich material. Re-Alliance partner Farming & Health Education implemented this project in Kakuma Refugee Settlement. They were concerned that the secondary handling of human waste can be a significant health barrier in camps and settlements for the take-up of composting toilet systems. Displaced people were worried about the ongoing management and safety measures required to build other composting toilet solutions. Whereas with Treebogs, minimal or no handling of the 'humanure' is needed, for a small family. The core goal of this project was to install a double-unit Treebogs for the community and convert everyday toilet wastes into fertile compost, and measure to see how long it takes to fill the system, and then for the humanure to naturally degrade. The project included teaching communities how to manage the Treebog system. This involved instructing on the daily use of the Treebog toilets, and what to plant around Treebogs. It's important to only plant perennial plants such as trees, and not annual plants, to avoid interacting with the soil around the Treebog. This Treebog project involved 70 participants, whose attitudes toward ecological sanitation shifted from negative (primarily because of a perception that composting toilets would be smelly or dirty) to highly positive after experiencing the Treebog system. This effective implementation created a viable, regenerative WASH system and a valuable biological resource. Ecologically, the system’s soil quality rapidly improved, becoming noticeably darker. Trees around the Treebog grew up to two times faster than those not around the Treebog, as a result of the influx of organic matter and water directly feeding their roots. Existing Treebogs serve as powerful working examples. The Re-Alliance team are eager to further test this concept to see whether it is viable for full-scale use across camps and settlements. You can find out more about Treebogs in this publication .

< Back Geoff O'Donoghue Trustee and Finance Circle Geoff has over 30 years of experience in the development sector including 15 years as International Programme Director at CAFOD, and 7 years spent managing development and emergency projects in Tanzania, Rwanda and Ethiopia. As an independent consultant Geoff has delivered organisational change, partnership development, and capacity strengthening programmes in the public, private and voluntary sectors in the UK and internationally.  Geoff is co-Chair of the Rufiji Leprosy Trust and a founder Director of Ohana Community Holdings – a CIC supporting two environmental / community sustainability  projects in Portugal. He has an MSc in Change Management (Guildford), Post-graduate Dip. in Applied Social Policy and Social Work (Edinburgh), BA Hons in English Lit (University of Ulster).

Join the Re-Alliance membership to access a vibrant network of regenerative thinkers from around the world. As part of our network, whether a grassroots practitioner or a policymaker in a big international NGO, you will have access to dynamic knowledge, a vibrant and active community of experts, and a wealth of opportunities for collaboration. Joining Re-Alliance's Membership Contact us Request to join Re-Alliance is a coalition of field practitioners, policymakers, educators, community leaders, and humanitarian and development workers. Our mission is to advance and showcase regenerative practice across the sectors of humanitarianism and development, particularly in the context of development, disaster and displacement. We work with our members to build an evidence base showcasing regenerative projects, to create mutually beneficial connections, to facilitate peer to peer knowledge sharing as well as influencing larger scale agencies and big, international NGOs (BINGOs). While our website and social media channels share information that is fully open to all, Re-Alliance members have exclusive access to a network of experienced practitioners working on the ground in a variety of capacities, as well as a variety of members-only materials. Become a member of Re-Alliance As part of our network, whether a grassroots practitioner or a policymaker in a BINGO, you will have access to dynamic knowledge, a vibrant and active community of experts and a wealth of opportunities for collaboration. Our membership is open to all, the only requirements are interest and expertise in regenerative design, experience in the humanitarian and/or development sectors, and a willingness to comply with our code of conduct and policies. Member benefits include: The ability to connect with a global network of regenerative specialists Exclusive access to learning opportunities Inclusion of your organisation’s details on our website Exclusive member communications Access to invite-only meetings and webinars The opportunity to host webinars or propose topics Eligibility for members-only funding opportunities Consultancy and collaboration opportunities Having your work featured in our growing evidence base of regenerative design Please note that we are a networking and learning organisation, not a funding organisation. We cannot accept request for funding. Request to join form View membership request form

< back Date of completion: 1 May 2024 First Response to Trauma Psychosocial support and community building for trauma healing. Re-Alliance and SACOD have been working with communities displaced by conflict in Cameroon’s Northwest and Southwest regions, exploring several trauma healing approaches and supporting 1,278 individuals (across 210 households). For people forced from their homes, trauma is more than an emotional wound—it reshapes daily life, erodes social ties, and deepens vulnerabilities. SACOD's approach to trauma healing combined traditional healing practices, vocational skills training, and community-led resilience strategies to provide a holistic response to the psychological and practical challenges of displacement. Healing from trauma does not happen in isolation—it is strengthened through connection. Recognising this, 22 first-line psychosocial responders were trained who can now offer Psychosocial First Aid (PFA), group therapy, and emotional support to their communities. The training emphasised the power of collective healing, where peer support and shared experiences can form the foundation for recovery. Through focus group discussions, storytelling, and arts therapy, displaced individuals found ways to express pain, reconnect with cultural identity, and foster hope. Music and dance from their home regions reignited a sense of belonging, while expressive writing and campfire rituals provided a symbolic way to release grief and reclaim strength. Alongside SACOD, we created this short booklet to help guide community first responders .

This practical guide covers approaches to growing food in camps and settlements with limited water. < Back Food Growing in Camps and Settlements: Collecting, Storing and using Rainfall and Grey water This practical guide covers approaches to growing food in camps and settlements with limited water. Donate to Re-Alliance Stay updated with our newsletter Download for free: English English (Black & White)

This illustrated guide explores how to establish composting at community scale, to build soil health, cycle 'waste', and grow community cohesion. < Back Community Composting This illustrated guide explores how to establish composting at community scale, to build soil health, cycle 'waste', and grow community cohesion. Donate to Re-Alliance Stay updated with our newsletter Download for free: English Español Português عربي Swahili Français

< back Date of completion: 1 Dec 2021 Grey water and Rain water harvesting for food growing in Syria Piloting Grey water and Rain water harvesting and irrigation for food growing in Syria. This capacity strengthening project included the development of vegetable gardens in IDP camps in Northern Syria with partner organisation Syrian Academic Expertise. Working in three IDP camps in A’zaz and Jarablus in Northwest Syria, this pilot project tested the viability of creating vegetable gardens to grow food, partially irrigated by harvested rain water and grey water. The project started with training events including five successful webinars for our INGO sponsors and the production of a grey water booklet by SOILS Permaculture Association Lebanon . The growing plots varied in size, from home gardens to community gardens in A’zaz, and a school garden in Jarablus. The aims included introducing regenerative strategies to improve food security, mental health and community cohesion. Working with a large INGO, Re-Alliance acted in an advisory capacity, with our subcontracted partners, Syrian Academic Expertise, providing research, training and mentoring support. The gardens were successfully established with food grown, harvested and eaten. The gardens were highly popular with camp residents, with many more requests for participation than the pilot could facilitate. Bi-weekly mentoring visits were undertaken by our partners while Re-Alliance conducted monitoring and evaluation and the production of learning materials including an NGO guide to using harvested rain and grey water .

A guide to closing the sanitation loop in refugee and IDP camps and settlements: How to safely use the products of ecological sanitation for growing crops, ecosystem restoration and ecosystem services. < Back Ecological Sanitation with Reuse in Camps and Settlements A guide to closing the sanitation loop in refugee and IDP camps and settlements: How to safely use the products of ecological sanitation for growing crops, ecosystem restoration and ecosystem services. Donate to Re-Alliance Stay updated with our newsletter Download for free: English