The summer months bring the warm sunshine and much-needed rains for our gardens and fields. However, in recent years, the way rain falls has changed. Instead of steady showers spread over several days, we now experience short and extreme downpours (50mm per hour for a few hours) more frequently. This sudden intensity causes flash floods, washes away roads, damages buildings, and erodes the land in ways we have never had to deal with before.
We are actively preparing our project sites and modelling solutions for our community. Our Maintenance Team and JSEP interns are working hard to implement practical changes to help mitigate the damage caused by flooding. Since large-scale infrastructure upgrades aren’t an option for us, we are focusing on strengthening what we already have:
- Improving stormwater drainage: making sure water is diverted away from buildings and erosion-prone areas to prevent damage.
- Strengthening roofs and structures: reinforcing roofs to prevent leaks to better handle flooding.
Our community relies on traditional construction methods and materials (mud brick and thatch roofing) that have worked well for generations. However, as extreme rainfall becomes more frequent, these structures are becoming increasingly vulnerable. Unlike urban areas with access to quick infrastructure fixes, damage here takes much longer to fix.
These extreme rains also make farming far more difficult. Some might say that unpredictable rainfall isn’t new, which is true, however, we have found that the impact is different now. When 150mm of rain falls gradually over a weekend, the land can absorb it. But when that same amount falls in just a few hours, it floods our fields, washes away topsoil, and makes planting and harvesting unpredictable. Crops are more vulnerable to rotting, and food security—already a challenge—becomes even more precarious. While we don’t yet have a clear solution for farming under these conditions, we know it is something we must figure out.
We do not have all the answers yet, but we are actively preparing and testing practical solutions and sharing what we learn with our community. The challenges we face are complex, but by making small, steady changes now, we are putting ourselves in a stronger position for whatever comes next.
Have some ideas? We’d love to hear. Contact us at info@bulungulaincubator.org