VETIVER GRASS TECHNOLOGY DESCRIPTION
CONTAMINATED LAND & WATER
A Tool for Individuals and Commmunities
Vetiver grass provides a low cost means to adapt to the challenge of climate change – an overview
VETIVER PLANTS - SUPPLIERS
OTHER USES OF VETIVER GRASS
The Vetiver Network International (TVNI) is a global nonprofit dedicated to promoting the Vetiver System and its core nature based Vetiver Grass Technology (VGT)—Chrysopogon zizanioides—to restore degraded land, conserve water, protect infrastructure, and build climate resilience. Through a decentralized network of volunteers, practitioners, researchers, and community leaders in over 100 countries, TVNI empowers local solutions to global challenges.
We advance sustainable development by applying vetiver grass technology across diverse landscapes—from farms and flood-prone slopes to polluted sites and urban infrastructure—delivering practical benefits such as erosion control, soil regeneration, disaster risk reduction, and economic opportunity through handicrafts and biomass.
Founded in 1995 by Richard Grimshaw, TVNI builds on World Bank-supported research and a scientific foundation rooted in hydrology, soil mechanics, and plant ecology. Our open-source, volunteer-driven model fosters collaboration, innovation, and knowledge sharing—without central management or paid staff.
TVNI supports the achievement of key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Zero Hunger (SDG 2), Clean Water (SDG 6), Climate Action (SDG 13), and Life on Land (SDG 15), while offering accessible educational resources, field-tested guides, and community-driven success stories.
TVNI history, achievements and time line presentation
HOW VETIVER ACTUALLY IMPROVES SOIL FERTILITY
Think of degraded soil at 1.5% organic matter barely supporting crops. Now imagine bringing it to 4.3%. That’s what Anno Farms in Ethiopia achieved over 15 years with vetiver. Not guesswork—measured data from a 200-hectare commercial operation. Here’s how: THE...
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The Soil Temperature Crisis: Climate Change Impact on Global Food Crops
Comprehensive Assessment of Staple Grains, High-Value Perennials, and Vegetable Crops Under Rising Soil Temperatures—and the Vetiver Solution The Crisis Beneath Our Feet While the world fixates on rising air temperatures, bare degraded soil now reaches 43-50°C during peak sun versus...
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The Hidden Benefits of Vetiver
When Farmers Discover What Science Had Already Proven The Vietnamese Discovery The Vietnam Vetiver Farmers Group (facebook.com/groups/vetiver4vn) has become the world’s most innovative vetiver community through careful field observation and documentation. Their farmers noticed something remarkable: crops planted close to...
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RETROFIT CONSTRUCTED CONSERVATION BUNDS AND TERRACES WITH VETIVER HEDGEROWS
Retrofit thousands of kilometers of constructed bunds, terraces, fanya juus BY planting one row of vetiver along the upslope foot (toe) of bunds or on the outer edge of terraces and these structures will start showing the benefits of vetiver...
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Newsletter (NL2026-03) – Mapping the Vetiver System Worldwide, Vetiver México’s ‘Vetiver for the Earth’ Competition, Paseo Ambiental Orégano (Venezuela) Celebrates 5th Anniversary, Farmer innovation/Solomon Islands, Community-first vetiver model for landslide-prone hillsides, Slope stabilization and carbon capture
Mapping the Vetiver System Worldwide: A New Country-by-Country Evidence Table TVNI has compiled a comprehensive country-by-country evidence table documenting the global reach of the Vetiver System. The table currently covers 120 countries and territories — each assessed across six evidence categories:...
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Newsletter (NL2026-02) — A belated February newsletter & Global Water Bankruptcy, Patricia Tello Reátegui, Potential Funding Opportunities for VS Practitioners, VS Academic Visibility, Slope steepness & rooting, and others….
Our February Newsletter is coming out quite late for technical reasons: we have just migrated the TVNI website from its long time host, CSS Communications (of Bellingham, Washington) to a new host and so were “down” during the transfer. As...
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