Tianamo Lusia didn’t start with much.

At first, he had just a small amount of land on Papaelise, where he moved during the pandemic. Wanting a source of food to feed his family, he cleared away some of the overgrown bushes to plant papaya, breadfruit trees and a few heads of cabbage.

Not long after, these promising efforts received a boost when Live & Learn Tuvalu brought the Atoll Food Futures program to Papaelise.

Working in Tuvalu, Fiji and Kiribati, AFF aims to help atoll communities adopt climate-smart agriculture technologies and boost food production, with an emphasis on local knowledge and community-based solutions, to improve food security and reduce reliance on imported food.

When Tianamo heard about training offered by the program that focused on composting, propagation and using raised wicking-bed gardens, he decided to take part. As well as learning new skills and techniques, he also received a Biofilta Foodcube and gardening tools like trowels, shredders and wicking-bed materials.

Able to plant more vegetables and fruit trees, Tianamo was soon growing more than his family needed. With many people unable to grow their own food, he saw the need to grow more to supply fresh, nutritious food to them. As his surplus grew, he began not only sharing with his neighbours on Papaelise, but also taking to the Tau Maketi on Fongafale to sell through Live & Learn’s market stall.

‘I am happy and grateful,’ he says. ‘I sell my products daily, especially on the day of the Tau Maketi. I also supply the hospital with these products, and if I happen to produce more in a day, I sell the rest of the products at home.’

As well as the hospital, Tianamo also began supplying the Funafuti Lagoon Hotel with produce, including papaya, cucumber, breadfruit, spinach, bele, coconuts and other leafy vegetables. At the Tau Maketi he also sells pumpkins, coconut oils, leafy vegetables and bananas, sometimes making up to $700 in one selling at the monthly market.

Having been very successful in his own farming, which started from simply wanting to provide food for his family, Tianamo encourages everyone else to do the same.

‘I would like to encourage every household in the planting of trees and vegetables,’ he says. ‘One of the important tasks for every household and their children is to have a healthy intake [of food], so I would encourage all families to plant trees and vegetables so that families can have a healthy lifestyle.’

Having started with only a small, bushy block of land, Tianamo is now able to provide for his family and community through not only their food but also the income he makes from that, which he uses for expenditures on electricity, education and their futures.

‘I see the importance of planting: this effort is especially for my grandchildren, to provide for them,’ he says.

‘I will continue planting fresh, healthy foods for my family, and for the people of Tuvalu.’

The Atoll Food Futures Project is an Australian Aid initiative implemented by Live & Learn
Environmental Education on behalf of the Australian Government.