I can’t believe our princess Isolde is 2 years old today!

Isolde yar’Arwen, born September 1st 2008

Wasn’t it just yesterday that I came back from Sweden and found a delightful little filly in the garden of Isthar’s Ark? Isolde yar’Arwen was the first filly born in our care. Raising an equine from the very beginning has [...]

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This one was from Eden’s field station, 13km south of Tanout in the heart of Niger, where the rainy season is in full bloom. Hope you enjoyed!

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Ever since the beginning of July when the bush turned green,

…Nature’s Pantry in the Zinder area has been providing food for free for anyone who would like to harvest.

There’s no place I can ride to,

without stumbling upon people out in the fields, busy harvesting valuable leafy annuals that will be consumed within the household or [...]

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On Sunday, another death occurred in my world when our neighbour Malam Mamuda lost his daughter Jamila to malaria.

Jamila (in black, bottom row) & Aichatu, Adama and friends

I met Jamila often. Even when her family moved away and only her father stayed to continue his bike repair shop, Jamila came by to stay [...]

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On a recent ride in the Zinder bush, close to the aid field, I stumbled upon a large bird of prey. He sat in full solitude, as if he had no worries in the world, looking out over the huge expanse of untouched land.

I decided to take my chances and ride up to him, while [...]

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A week after the death of Maurice, I went over to his family and asked his son Emmanuel if he wanted to help me move the horses.

Eager to start riding with me soon, Emmanuel was happy to help, and his brother Eric and sister Sadika joined us.

Horseback riding is a precious thing in Niger, and [...]

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My dad and I were out riding in the Midik area just before the rainy season had kicked in, when we rode past these a pair of girls harvesting palm fruits to sell.

Nature’s Pantry offers a wide selection of foods that is very important to local households in Niger.

For some reason, however, these important contributions [...]

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Maurice Lawal Saley
On Monday morning, tragedy struck in my world again when Maurice Saley, close family friend and national director of Eden Foundation, passed away.
Maurice had just gone back to his people in the bush and met Renate at the field station. He had a high blood pressure and felt his left arm was funny, [...]

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Some weeks ago, just before the green of the rainy season set in, I invited fellow Norwegian Katrine (working for the UN) for a ride in the Zinder bush.

With Katrine on Arwen, my dad on Sahara, Habu on Ivory and me on Ebony - it was the first time that all four senior horses of [...]

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Gasaya leaves from Mirriah
During the rainy season in Niger, there are few vegetables on the market. Although there are plenty of onions, tomatoes, carrots and zucchinis are hard to come by, making it hard to cook for an entire household. Thankfully, however, nature’s pantry is full of food, including various tasty leafy vegetables such as [...]

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Copyright Eden Foundation
Throughout Niger, following a poor rainy season in 2009 that left many families with insufficient millet harvests, people have been living off hanza beans this year.

Copyright Eden Foundation
Why anybody wants to call this protein-rich beanlike seed “famine food” is beyond me, because once you’ve rinsed away the bitterness, the [...]

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During dry season, it gets too warm for Sheba to accompany us on our long bush rides after the tapkis (seasonal waterholes) dry out, but now that’s it has rained again, I took her out for a dip in the Dadin Serki waterhole.

As it was getting dark, we traveled the 7km distance at full speed [...]

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The first rains arrived early this year, and in the beginning of June, the millet had already started to come up in the Zinder bush.

Millet however is far from the only livelihood of the Nigerien farmers.

Much of the Nigerien culinary tradition is based of edible leave, and now that it has rained, the countryside is [...]

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After a month in Niger I finally I had the opportunity to ride Ebony, who I hadn’t ridden since our slow-slow walks to recovery way back in January, when she had just been brought in from the bush. Well, Ebony has certainly undergone some changes and is no longer a famished creature - instead, she [...]

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Rainy season beauty over the Zinder bush (Niger, West Africa)
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