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
NEWSLETTER (NL2026-06): Attention: wine industry, Vetiver’s shifting climatic range, Hedging Bets: Sequestration vs. Storage Reality
On hikes that passed through wine-producing regions in Europe, scenes like those pictured below prompted thinking about how the Vetiver System could benefit vineyard owners around the world. Wine grapes want slopes – for drainage, for sun, for the cool...
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FIVE STUDIES. 1,300 FARMERS. THE QUESTIONS NOBODY ASKED
THE VETIVER ADOPTION PARADOX Understanding Why Farmers Don’t Use What They Know Works Part of the Global Farmer Demonstration Program series Introduction This post builds on our recent article Become a Farmer-Researcher: Six Vetiver System Models to Transform Your Farm,...
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Ethiopia’s Terraces Are Failing. Here’s What the Research Says They Need.
How Vetiver Retrofits Turn 7% Yield Losses Into 200%+ Gains—While Suppressing Pests Farmers Never Expected (the photos in this article are all from Ethiopia and show vetiver planted in the mid 1990s and the early 2000s) The transformation of Ethiopia’s...
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Bridging the Adoption Gap: TVNI’s 2026 Engineering Standards for Slope Stabilization
For three decades, Vetiver Grass Technology (VGT) has demonstrated extraordinary technical performance in stabilizing engineered slopes—yet struggled with institutional adoption. Hong Kong documented ten years of zero slope failures, then rejected vetiver. Hawaii faced $70 million in flood damage and...
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Become a Farmer-Researcher: Six Vetiver System Models to Transform Your Farm
An Invitation to Farmers and Other Vetiver Users Choose Your Path, Document Your Journey, Share Your Knowledge What if the greatest agricultural research wasn’t happening in laboratories, but on your farm? What if farmers like you—working the land, observing the...
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