Every year, the Washington University/ Missouri Botanical Garden partnership class "Sustainable Development and Conservation: Madagascar" travels to the village of Mahabo-Mananivo, in South Eastern Madagascar. Mahabo-Mananivo is a subsistence farming community, completely dependent on local production of rice, cassava, and sweet potato. Villagers have negligible resources at best, and most are illiterate. This year, the village is on the verge of complete famine, having been ravaged by extreme drought and wildfires.


What's left of one of the area's rivers.

There has been no appreciable rain in Mahabo since early June. Currently, all rivers in the area are dry, and the only source of water is an intermittent well on the Missouri Botanical Garden's compound. Villagers arrive before 5 AM, hoping to fill their buckets before the well runs dry.  The rainy season normally runs from October to March. Without any rain, the coming dry season threatens to be deadly, but you can help.
Villagers waiting to use the one remaining well.


Villagers have been unable to grow rice, cassava, and sweet potatoes--the local staples. Additionally, breadfruit trees are not producing, and the fishing in the nearby Indian Ocean has been very poor due to a lack of storms.  Two children in a neighboring village have already succumbed to starvation. We want to make sure this doesn't happen again.

All money raised will be safely sent to the Missouri Botanical Garden representative in Mahabo. He will purchase food staples in the closest city, and bring them to the people of Mahabo-Mananivo. The villagers have no way to do this themselves, so your help is absolutely critical.

I am the undergraduate teaching assitant for the "Sustainable Development and Conservation: Madagascar" class. I will be returning to Mahabo in May with the class to help students implement their projects, many of which will be related to water, agriculture, and nutrition. However, we cannot not wait until then to help the people of Mahabo. We hope you will join us in giving to a group of wonderful people in a truly desperate situation.

All donors will receive a handicraft purchased from the Mahabo crafts-people and weavers. I can deliver to the St. Louis and Indianapolis areas, and other students may be able to deliver to donors they know.



Location of Mahabo along Madagascar's Southeastern coast.