Tony Rinaudo

Forest Maker

Tony Rinaudo is Principal Advisor for Natural Resources Management at World Vision Australia, He has decades of experience in the development and promotion of agricultural-forestry-pastoral systems across a range of environments, including 18 years spent in the Niger managing a long-term agricultural development program. He is one of the key figures in the development of Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (or FMNR), a low-cost land restoration technique that was introduced in 1983 in the Niger area. Championed by Tony, it has spread over 18 countries in the Sahel and beyond. The impact of FMNR cannot be understated, being linked to the regrowth of 200 million trees on five million hectares of degraded farmland in Niger alone. Rather than planting new trees, this technique relies on nurturing the regrowth of local trees and shrubs from existing tree stumps, roots and seeds. Through systematic regeneration and management work, the farmers bolster the growth of trees and connect them with their agricultural systems, with mutual benefits. Part of these results come from the work of NGOs like World Vision Australia and others, but also from the farmers themselves, who have adopted and spread the technique between themselves once the conditions were in place