Empowering Smallholder Farmers. Healing Our Planet.

Join the mission

Our impact

At Biochar Life, we're on a mission to tackle climate change, enhance public health, and alleviate rural poverty by working with smallholder farmers. We train communities in the creation of biochar and help them generate c-sink credits, putting more money back into their hands while making a global impact.

Economic Impact: "Boosting Rural Livelihoods"

Through our training and support, smallholder farmers can generate additional income by producing biochar and earning c-sink credits. This financial empowerment leads to improved living standards and stimulates local economies.

Environmental Impact: "Protecting Our Planet"

By teaching farmers to create biochar, we protect the planet by advancing sustainable agriculture, sequestering carbon, reducing emissions, and fostering corporate carbon-offset partnerships to amplify our environmental impact.

Health Impact: "Improving Public Health"

Biochar enhances soil fertility and crop yields, reducing chemical fertilizer reliance. This fosters healthier food systems, cleaner water sources, and improved public health that ensures longer life expectancy for our farmer communities.

Equality Impact: "Fostering Social Inclusion"

Biochar Life champions social equality by offering equal opportunities to marginalized agricultural groups, empowering women, youth, and disadvantaged communities in the sustainable agriculture sector.

10 years; 10,000 farmers

Biochar Life and Warm Heart Worldwide have been teaching farmers how to make biochar for over 10 years. Our trainings and projects have been funded by: the American, Canadian and Swiss governments as well as thousands of individual donors from around the world. Accredited by the Ithaka Institute.

Over 10,000 farmers trained

Accredited by Ithaka Institute

International Biochar Initiative Trainings

Grants from US, Canada, Switzerland and others

Experience

Voices from our farmers

Join 10,000 happy farmers worldwide who are reaping crop and income benefits.

Frequently Asked Questions

Got a question? We've got answers. If you have some other questions, please contact us.

Our Solutions Overview document located within our Portal (free to access) includes details pertaining to our methods and procedures. It also includes further insight into the approved equipment, biomass and other criteria associated to the EBC standard.

The feedstock used to make the biochar includes agricultural waste after a farmer’s harvest. Currently, we use corn cob, corn stalks and tree branches which would typically be burnt in the open field. Without the financial incentive to make and use biochar, we believe farmers would continue to conduct open field burning.

By rule, only biochar that is buried, used as a soil amendment or in animal feed qualifies for payment. Farmers must show the final use of any char for which they wish to be compensated on the blockchain using photos, videos, and/or receipts. Our team and/or 3rd party verifiers make unannounced, random checks to ensure that the biochar actually sequesters CO2 for the long-term.

We use the European Biochar Certification standard developed by Ithaka Institute adapted for smallholder farmers. The EBC standard dictates emission considerations by biochar feedstock and other requirements to determine the amount of carbon sinked. The Carbon-sink value that Biochar Life records in its certificates includes the anticipated biological degradation carbon in the biochar over 100 years (C-sink100). Our calculations include emission expenditures from the pyrolysis and processing of the biochar, transportation, or post-production expenditures. Our calculation considers CH4 emission compensation benefits from the prevention of open field burning, which emits large amounts of CH4 (methane) into the atmosphere or planting of trees to compensate for the CH4 emissions generated from low-tech pyrolysis equipment. We include an emissions security margin for emissions. We calculate “additionality” based on the elimination of open field burning for the biomass that is made into biochar. Over time, we will continue to update our solution and calculations to ensure the most accurate C-sink impact.

The majority of the proceeds goes into the hands of smallholder farmers and employees who are hired from the local community. On average, 75% is distributed to the farmers and local community. 15% is used for administration and support. The remaining 10% is used for future project development or to support our children’s homes.

Yes. Warm Heart instituted fair and equal hiring practices from the moment we started 13 years ago. The Biochar Projects with Warm Heart and Biochar Life have gender and income equality as primary social aims through job creation for the poor and the creation of new income streams in rural communities.

Biochar Life is a Public Benefit Corporation registered in the State of Delaware, an impact venture of Warm Heart Worldwide (“Warm Heart''). Warm Heart is a registered 501 c. 3 tax exempt nonprofit in the United States and has partner charities registered in Thailand and Africa. As a Public Benefit Corporation, Biochar Life is required to report its results relative to its stated mission (taken from Warm Heart). Biochar Life is owned and controlled by Warm Heart to ensure the ongoing support for Warm Heart’s mission to support smallholder farmers and communities.