04/06/2026
🌱 Africa Permaculture Support Network (APSN) — a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization — Weekly Update 🫶
🌍 Growing Resilient Communities Together
📍 Tumwine Desan — Kyenjojo District, Uganda
🏢 Uganda Sustainable Community Initiative (USCI)
📅 Thursday, June 4, 2026
👉 Support this work here:
https://givebutter.com/tumwine
Hello dear friends and supporters 🙏💛,
This week has been one of the most difficult weeks I have experienced in recent months. Four days ago, I became seriously ill and was taken to a nearby medical clinic, where I was diagnosed with malaria and stomach ulcers. The illness left me weak and unable to attend school or fully participate in my normal activities.
Thankfully, after beginning treatment, I am starting to regain some of my strength. The severe headaches and wounds that developed on my lips are slowly improving, although I have not yet fully recovered. The stomach pain and heartburn are still present because the medication I received has mainly helped reduce the symptoms and is not yet a complete treatment for the ulcers. My immediate goal is to complete the remaining treatment so I can fully recover and return to school and community work.
As I recover, I continue to hold onto an important belief: once the body and the mind are healthy, new ideas can be created.
Because of this illness, I missed three days of school. As a Senior 5 student at Extreme High School, this has been stressful because I do not want to fall behind in my studies. The school has informed students that full tuition should be paid before June 20 to avoid being sent out of class. I am also hoping to participate in upcoming educational field study trips, including a History study trip to Nyero Historical and Cultural Heritage Site and an Entrepreneurship study trip to Jinja Traders Show Ground and the industrial center. These opportunities help connect classroom learning with real-world experience and are an important part of my education.
Despite being sick, I have still been doing my best to care for our poultry and rabbits whenever I have enough energy. Before becoming ill, my colleagues and I were actively involved in community clean-up efforts, helping families establish vegetable gardens, distributing free fruit trees, propagating bananas, preparing nursery beds, and supporting local recycling activities. Although many of our young volunteers have returned to school, I am grateful that my friend and fellow USCI member Mugezi continues helping with project activities. My younger brother Douson has also been assisting with daily responsibilities while I recover.
USCI currently cares for 15 layer chickens and 3 rabbits while continuing to support local families through sustainable agriculture, environmental education, and community resilience activities. Looking beyond my current health challenges, one of our biggest long-term goals remains securing permanent land for USCI. At present, we operate on borrowed land, which limits our ability to build lasting infrastructure and expand our programs.
If we are able to secure a permanent one-acre property, our first priorities would be establishing a permaculture food garden and nursery beds, expanding livestock projects such as poultry, rabbits, and goats, and constructing a simple community learning hall where people can receive training in farming, nutrition, financial literacy, and climate awareness. We believe this would create a lasting foundation for youth empowerment, food security, and environmental stewardship within our community.
💵 USD Budget
Immediate Needs
• School Tuition — $160
• Field Study Trips — $50
• Textbooks — $18
• School Maintenance Fee — $14
• Medical Treatment Support — $30
Immediate Total: $272
USCI Long-Term Development Needs
• Permanent Land (1 Acre) — $4,600
Equipment, Tools & Supplies
• 10 Hoes and 5 Pangas — $20
• Wheelbarrow — $40
• 2 Backpack Sprayers and 5 Watering Cans — $100
• Gum Boots, Reflectors and Overalls for Youth Volunteers — $100
• Vegetable and Fruit Tree Seeds — $40
• 2,000-Liter Water Storage Tank — $100
Equipment Total: $400
👉 Support this work here:
https://givebutter.com/tumwine
Thank you for standing with Uganda Sustainable Community Initiative (USCI). 🙏💛
🌍 Many hands make light work.
🌱 To learn more about APSN or connect with fellow changemakers and rainmakers across Africa and around the world, join our community:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/africapermaculturesupportnetwork
