Inspired Individuals

Cassien is a business graduate but his story really was formed in the crucible of the civil war that ravaged Burundi. While at university he had a disturbing dream one night of a mother and child who asked him to beg for food on their behalf. Upon graduation he volunteered with a Christian clinic that was treating civilians caught up in the fighting – one morning in walked the mother and child from his dream – and he knew that God was calling him to do just that – to beg on their behalf.

In 2005 the normally fertile northern provinces of Burundi experienced significant drought. This was his opportunity – he mobilsed local churches in the city to provide food aid – he was doing what the dream had said – he was begging on their behalf. He knew however that endless food aid was unsustainable and being the business graduate he started to ask a bigger “why” question. Why had a fertile region experienced drought and food shortage – what had gone wrong and how could it be addressed? In his research he identified massive deforestation as a primary cause of the disruption to the micro-climate of the region. The forests had been destroyed as a result of neglect and targeted clearing during the years of civil war.

It seemed to Cassien that three things needed to be done: • People needed food aid simply to survive • Millions of trees needed to be planted to reforest the entire region • People needed to be educated in the sustainable forest management Cassien established Help Channel Burundi to do just that. In the past few years he has mobilised local communities to plant well over 5-million trees in a food-for-work programme that includes a significant element of education (both in theory and in practical participation).