Podcast - Agroforestry in the Sahel

The SustainSahel project concludes with a two-part podcast series exploring what five years of rigorous research reveals about agroforestry's potential to build resilience, improve livelihoods, and transform food security across West Africa.

Across Senegal, Mali, and Burkina Faso, our research investigated whether deliberately integrating shrubs and trees into crop and livestock systems could address the Sahel's mounting challenges: erratic rainfall, soil degradation, rising temperatures, and pressure on limited land. By combining farmer knowledge with randomised controlled trials, we generated evidence on what actually works — and under what conditions.

Episode 1: Re-greening the Sahel: How shrubs and science can transform food security

introduces the farming realities our partners face and explores how agroforestry functions in one of the world's most challenging climates. Travelling to our research sites in West Africa, we meet the smallholders, researchers, and communities who shaped this transdisciplinary project through COVID-19 and regional instability.

Episode 2: From Pilot to Practice: Making agroforestry work at scale

dives into the evidence. What do five years of impact data tell us about adoption, economics, and gender? Which policy levers and scaling pathways could extend these benefits beyond research sites? Through candid reflections and surprising findings, we examine what it genuinely takes to transform agricultural practice.

Both episodes are written and narrated by Lauren Dietemann, with contributions from the project coordinator, Dr. Harun Cicek and Work Package 3 leader Dr. Christian Grovermann (all FiBL).

Link to the podcast:

www.fibl.org/en/info-centre/podcast/fibl-collaboration
Episode 1: buzzsprouts.com
Episode 2: buzzsprouts.com