Anu Rai and her team at Wetlands for Nepal along with Sustainability and Environmental Studies Endeavor (SENSE), took this complex challenge head-on. Rather than imposing solutions, they employed Appreciative Inquiry to engage with farmers, listen to their concerns, and co-create a sustainable path forward.

Farmers expressed a desire to transition away from chemicals but needed trustworthy alternatives. Simultaneously, the degraded wetlands required restoration. This dual challenge inspired WFN and SENSE to transform the invasive water lettuce problem into an ecological solution.

Through careful experimentation, they discovered water lettuce's potential as an organic agricultural input that could serve multiple purposes in crop management. The invasive plant showed promise as a biopesticide and biofertiliser.

The critical element was ensuring community ownership of the solution. Over 100 farmers received training in harvesting and processing water lettuce, learning techniques to create natural agricultural inputs that integrated seamlessly with their existing practices.