Elementor Page #405 - The Rain Starts With Us

What Is “The Rain Starts With Us?

The Rain Starts With Us is a film campaign aiming to inspire and empower local communities to restore forest cover with indigenous trees, protect their water towers and build climate resilience in one of Africa’s most climate-vulnerable regions, the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda.

The campaign builds on the award-winning documentary series, Rwenzori Rainmakers that offers a unique insight into a grassroots movement started by a bronze foundry, in Western Uganda. The Rwenzori Founders 18-year-long reforestation and rewilding movement has planted over 200,000 trees, brought back endangered species, and united the communities of Kasese District, Uganda.

The campaign will build on the participation and track record of this movement and will use the power of film to inspire and empower similar communities to restore their forests with indigenous trees and increase their resilience against droughts and floods.

Why is it so important?

Project Pressure, an expedition that surveyed the Rwenzori mountains in Uganda, found that 2 of the mountain range’s 3 main peaks no longer have any glaciers. The last remaining glacier, the Stanley Plateau glacier, lost nearly 30% of its surface area between 2020 and 2024. This glacier loss is threatening a vital water source for over 5 million Ugandans and the Nile River system.

In 2022, Kasese District where the mountains are located, experienced a deadly landslide that killed 18 people. Climate change, deforestation, and poor land practices continue to cause devastating floods and landslides and loss of life. All these issues are a stark indicator of the accelerating impacts of climate change in Uganda and many other African countries today, and the urgent need for climate action.

We see Rwenzori Rainmakers as more than just a film, but as a powerful tool that can be used to safeguard Uganda’s Rwenzori region and other mountainous landscapes across Africa. By showcasing and replicating a successful community-led reforestation and rewilding model, the film offers hope for climate action and a blueprint for change.

Our Impact Goals

Restore the Foothils of Rwenzori Mountains with Indigenous Trees – We aim to promote reforestation using native tree species to improve climate resilience, biodiversity, and long-term environmental health particularly in the foothills of Rwenzori Mountains. We also aim to discourage tree poaching and deforestation.
Inspire grassroots replication of the Rwenzori Rainmakers model – We will equip communities with the knowledge to replicate the Rainmakers’ model of reforestation and rewilding, help them to start tree nurseries and organize collective land care efforts.
Use Film Screenings as Seeds of Change – We will deliver targeted film screenings in deforestation hotspots, followed by workshops, discussions, and immediate indigenous tree planting drives.
Promote Art and Totemism in Environmental Education – We will conduct art and environmental education workshops to promote the use of sculpture, storytelling and cultural totems, to encourage conservation among young people.
Target Policy Shifts in Tree Planting – We will advocate for policies that prioritize planting of indigenous trees over fast-growing monocultures and exotic tree species, by demonstrating the success of The Rwenzori Rainmakers rewilding initiative.
Amplify Women’s Voices in Conservation – We will work with women’s groups to highlight and support women’s roles as custodians of ecological knowledge, food systems, and intergenerational storytelling.

Screenings

A Premiere in Kampala, Uganda, targeting potential funders, NGOs, Media and influential personalities
Community film screenings in villages, markets, churches, universities and schools.

Workshops

Workshops and discussions on nursery creation, land restoration, collective land care and the role of women in conservation.
Art and sculpture events to better familiarize people with endangered animal species and revitalize totem-based environmental education.

Tree Planting

Tree distribution at every countryside film screening with accompanying tree care workshops

Key Partners and Sponsors

With the film now complete and receiving global recognition, including various film festival awards, we are seeking funding and partnerships to help bring its powerful message to communities and platforms where it can inspire real change. You can;

Fund mobile cinema screenings and tree planting drives in Uganda and/or Kenya
Fund environmental education and art sculpture workshops and tree planting drives in Uganda and/or Kenya
Support educational programming that will develop curriculum-aligned materials and short films for schools
Collaborate with us to integrate the film into your climate, biodiversity, or reforestation programs
Be a champion for reforestation and rewilding by hosting a screening for your community

Join us in transforming this vision into action. Because the rain starts with us!

The Rwenzori Founders

Seed funded by the Ruwenzori Foundation, The Rwenzori Founders is an Art Centre run by Ugandans for African Artists. Originally built on degraded land, they have restored several indigenous habitats and seen the rapid return of indigenous biodiversity as a result of planting over 200 000 trees. The project leaders Emmanuel Basaza, Isaac Okwir and Winnie Taaka-Basaza are the lead characters in the film THE RWENZORI RAINMAKERS which charts their successes (and a few challenges) in the face of Climate Change.

Talking Film Production

Talking Film Production Services provided the crew and expertise to shoot our documentary. As Uganda and the African continent as a whole becomes more and more popular for international film work, TFPS have gained a reputable, resourceful and reliable reputation providing a wealth of services and a skilled crew. They were a pleasure to work with.

Open Forests

Open Forests are a company that bridges field-level restoration and decision making owning the explorer.land platform and developing custom built tools to help make environmental impact visible, credible and actionable.

explorer.land

explorer.land is a project interactive map, embedding widgets, impact dashboard, geoanalytics including satellite timelines. The interactive project directory lets you share location-based stories with rich visuals, photos, videos, data layers, and updates. Check out the project we have set up for The Rwenzori Founders.

IB Consulting

We are thrilled to partner with Indrajit and Rachel Bardhan at IB Consulting who have provided sponsorship and valuable advice. Indrajit Bardhan, PhD, has had several prominent positions at Credit Suisse, Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs. Rachel Bardhan also works for ZSL.org (the Zoological Society of London) from her base in New York.

Woods & Wayside International

Woods & Wayside International is a nonprofit organisation that conducts scientific research, policy analysis, education and strategic communications to support more equitable and accountable decision-making related to forests. They work with partners in the United States, Brazil, Indonesia and beyond and we are thrilled to call them a partner.

The Global Rewilding Alliance

The Global Rewilding Alliance is a worldwide organisation working with rewilders on every continent to help nature heal itself and secure a thriving future for people, nature and planet.

By initiating the comeback of numerous wildlife species and working hand-in-hand with indigenous and local communities, rewilding is restoring healthy ecosystems. These functional ecosystems capture vast amounts of carbon, provide fresh air and clean water, and stabilise extreme weather – they are vital to our prosperity, survival, and security. Thank you for supporting our film and our impact plan.

Ruwenzori Foundation

As seed funders of the Rwenzori Founders, the Ruwenzori Foundation UK stands by three main aims : Culture (to promote, support and sponsor culture exchange between Africa and the wider world), Conservation(the restoration and expansion of the biodiversity of the environment and Community (the provision of health care, recognising the important of a healthy community and the social support required for a well-rounded, balanced and inclusive society. We thank The Ruwenzori Foundation for their sponsorship and help.

Ugandan Wildlife Authority (UWA)

The Ugandan Wildlife Authority are concerned with conserving and sustaining Wildlife. They manage 10 Ugandan National parks, and 12 Wildlife Reserves as well as 5 community Wildlife Management areas and 13 Wildlife Sanctuaries. They look after the Rwenzori National Park near where our documentary is set. It is wonderful to have their support in the film and for The Rwenzori Founders.

Avian Conservation Uganda

Avian Conservation Uganda (ACUS) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the research, conservation, and protection of Uganda’s birdlife and their natural habitats. They work to safeguard endangered species, restore ecosystems, and promote sustainable coexistence between birds and communities.

Their approach integrates scientific research, environmental education, and community-driven conservation to ensure a thriving future for Uganda’s Bird biodiversity.

Thank you for supporting our film and its Impact Plan.

Totem Trails Africa

Totem Trails Africa is a collective of young people exploring the intersection of culture and technology. Together, they are working to engage younger audiences in rediscovering their own cultural journeys, while shaping a new legacy of conservation.

By reconnecting with cultural identity through the ancient totem system, they are building a bridge between heritage and the future — strengthening community, responsibility, and belonging.

Thank you for your valued partnership in supporting our totem workshops.

Kickstarter

We used the Kickstarter Crowd Funding platform to raise the initial sum we needed to get filming in Uganda. They loved our project and we reached our target. Thank you Kickstarter for getting us going!

Ko-Fi

Ko-Fi says it exists so that we can create, share, connect with each other to support our passions and creations. Their premise is to ask what you can do for the price of a coffee (Ko-Fi). We have had lots of cups of coffee bought for us as well as saplings, spades and jerry cans for carrying water – thank you for hosting our shop and fundraiser.

We would like to send you occasional updates about THE RAIN STARTS WITH US campaign inspired by THE RWENZORI RAINMAKERS three part documentary. We will share with you information about screenings and events and how the campaign is going. These will be subject to our privacy policy.