Hand2Earth

Roots can repair your wealth!
With an opener like that, you might be have some questions for us.

The wealth we're talking about is the rich agri-heritage and biological diversity of our communities. It intricately tied to the land.

However, it is going down the drain, quite literally washing away in many communities across St. Vincent and the Grenadines because of soil erosion. In the area around Wharf Road and Little Bay Beach in Troumaca, that wealth is getting diminished because of severe gully erosion. The source of this problem lies in poor water management from a housing development and playing field above the affected areas.

BUT all is not lost!
The Little Bay coastal protection project is well on the way to reverse damage.

One of the three methods the Hand2Earth team is using to address this gully erosion is live staking. We're taking cuttings from indigenous shrubs and trees and planting them directly in the ground.

So, why are we using the live staking method?

🌱 To establish healthy root systems that keep the soil in place

💧 To improve water absorption into the ground

🏝️To revegetate the riparian zone—the buffer that protects the coastal habitat

🐞 To improve the biodiversity of the area which in turn supports local wildlife and pollinators

Live staking is a fast and cheap way to get new plants to root and grow quickly.

But what does any this have to do with wealth though?

Live staking gets living roots back into the ground.

💰 It grows wealth = Actively safeguards the land for local farmers to sustain their livelihoods

💸 It saves wealth = Gives residents peace of mind by protecting their homes from structural damage from landslides and slippage

In the spirit of International Day for Biological Diversity, each of us can help to improve the biodiversity within our communities. Whether we're out on the land planting more local trees, buying directly from community farmers or making sure that we're properly routing water away from our homes…

Every action makes an impact.

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Our 2025-2026 Environmental Recovery and Historic Preservation of Little Bay Beach through Erosion Mitigation and Sustainable Livelihood Creation project is funded by SVG Conservation Fund.

Allow us to formally introduce….our Little Bay Coastal Protection project. In case you didn't know, here are a few facts about what we're doing at Wharf Road and Little Bay in Troumaca, North Leeward, SVG.

📌What is it?
A Hand2Earth conservation project to reduce the degradation of soil and ocean ecosystems in the vicinity of Little Bay. This 2025–2026 project is funded by SVG Conservation Fund.


⛰️What's the problem?
Severe soil erosion along Wharf Road resulting in extreme land loss and deep gully formations. From our observations, the erosion is the result of improper water run-off management from a residential area and poorly graded playing field higher up in the watershed.

🌊Why it matters?
The severe erosion is causing heavy sedimentation build-up in the low-lying area near the coast.
That is damaging the semi-aquatic habitats found within this buffer (the riparian zone).
As a result, excess sediment, nutrients and pollutants are released into the bay, smothering marine habitats.

🪏What's H2E doing?
Using Vetiver Systems Technology to stabilize the banks and gullies. Vetiver planted along the land's contours will grow into hedgerows and eventually develop risers (terraces).

Installing 21 check dams to slow down the water flow, letting the water soak into the earth and trapping sediment behind the dams.

Living staking local plants to create living root systems to hold the soil together while improving the area's biodiversity.

🤝As is the norm with all of our projects, the community is at the heart of the work we're doing around Little Bay.

We're developing a hiking trail that connects the Vetiver Heritage Site to Little Bay. The participating North Leeward farmers are being trained as tour guides so that they can facilitate agri-heritage tours once everything is up and running!

Stay tuned. The vetiver journey continues…