In collaboration with Mycorama (Greece) and Unidos (Uganda), Re-Alliance has been supporting Minak in a transformative mushroom growing project aimed at cultivating sustainable livelihoods in the Nakivale refugee settlement. This initiative, deeply rooted in permaculture principles, empowers women by teaching them to grow nutritious mushrooms in reusable containers, a practice that not only provides food security but also fosters community and economic independence.
Why Mushrooms Matter
Mushrooms are more than just a food—they are a symbol of regeneration. For those who have been displaced, or have limited land on which to grow food, mushrooms offer a way to address several pressing needs at once. They provide a reliable source of protein, vitamins, and minerals, helping to combat malnutrition. They can be grown using local waste materials, reducing the need for costly inputs, and they turn what would otherwise be discarded into something valuable that can be used or sold in the local market.
The Nakivale refugee settlement, one of the largest in Uganda, is home to thousands of displaced individuals, many of whom are women and children. By training groups of women in mushroom cultivation the project contributes towards combating malnutrition, particularly among children, introducing a reliable source of protein, vitamins, and minerals. The process is simple yet impactful: enabling communities to enhance food security, generate income, and improve local environments, thus aligning perfectly with permaculture’s ethics of earth care, people care, and fair share. It’s about creating abundance in harmony with nature, using resources wisely, and ensuring that the benefits are shared by all.
Integrating mushroom cultivation into the local ecosystem provides immediate food and income while contributing to the long-term ecological health of the area. By growing in reusable containers with organic waste materials the method minimises environmental impact while maximising social and economic benefits.
A Model for Regenerative Livelihoods
The project is part of Re-Alliance’s wider Camps and Settlements Guidelines research, through which Re-Alliance is capturing learnings from regenerative practices applied in displacement contexts and developing a range of accessible learning materials.
We invite you to learn more about the process of growing mushrooms in reusable containers and explore how you can apply these methods in your own community. The Minak process has been compiled into a short instructional booklet as part of Re-Alliance’s ongoing research and learning initiatives.
Download the illustrated booklet (with beautiful illustrations by Inga Orsi) for free from the Re-Alliance publications page. Try it out, and share your experience with us, we’d love your feedback—let’s grow resilience together.
Download the illustrated guide below, and view our other resources on our publications page.
This guide is currently being translated into a range of languages. If you would like this guide to be made available in a specific language please get in touch at contact@re-alliance.org to request this and we will see what we can do.
Comments