Sound & Fair - A campaign to realise a sustainable trade in African blackwood.
For people living in the forests of Southern Tanzania, the African Blackwood tree has the potential to be worth its weight in gold.
On the outside it looks ordinary - short, spindly – you certainly wouldn’t stop to marvel. Strip away the bark however and something extraordinary is revealed: dark, lustrous heartwood – perfect for local wood carvers and for export to manufacturers of woodwind instrument, especially clarinets, oboes and bagpipes.
Naturally something so valuable is very much in demand. The tree has already disappeared from parts of its former range in East Africa. The forests of Southern Tanzania remain a stronghold although this may not be the case if the current rate of deforestation continues.
The short clip you see here tells you something about our work.
This campaign highlights the crucial work that is being carried out to protect the blackwood tree and improve the livelihoods of its local custodians, some of the poorest communities in East Africa.
