Green!Tea: Renewable Energy for the Vietnamese Tea Sector

What do we see on the project visualization?
The project aims to design a pilot integrated agrivoltaic-pyrolysis system including characteristics (business model, partnerships, costs and revenues for farmers, legal aspects, etc.) to be implemented in the tea-producing province of Nghe An or other tea-growing provinces. The crucial element is biochar.

How would you explain to a child what the project is doing?
The Asian country of Vietnam produces a lot of tea. Sometimes in summer, it gets so hot, that tea plants dry out and die. Then, tea farmers cannot sell tea and have no income. In our project, we use solar panels to create shading, and biochar is mixed into the soil to store more water for the roots.

What is the project’s main objective?
Green!Tea aims to improve the livelihood of farmers by combining measures to reduce the negative impact of climate change: a) re-establishing shading measures by agriphotovoltaics, b) developing a biochar-based fertilizer that can store nutrients better , and c) simultaneously improving the water storage in soils through biochar addition.

Why is the project important?
Tea production in Nghe An province is forced to produce good tea in times of increased temperatures, droughts, storms and dwindling workforce in agriculture. Rationalization, e.g., cutting shade tree as rationalization measure, led to increased vulnerability of the tea production system. Green!Tea aims to tackle these challenges.

What has been the most positive moment during the project?
We had the chance to get deep insights into the practice of tea production and get a deep understanding of this industry. We were able to establish a fruitful collaboration across the two cultures and backgrounds.

What have been the biggest challenges encountered in the project?
The main challenge has been and still is, to properly understand the needs and wishes of the partners across language barriers and cultural barriers.

What is the most important lesson learned from the project?
Vietnam is a “tiger state” and faces a rapid transition from an agriculture-based to an industry-based society. Mainly men don’t see a future in agriculture and look for jobs in cities. About 60% of the remaining workforce in agriculture consists of women. Our project is also involved in a major transition.