TED Talks Daily The missing piece in climate action (it's not what you think) | Yi Li
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Jan 19, 2026 
Yi Li, a climate entrepreneur and co-founder of Farmworks, shares her journey in building climate-smart farms in Kenya. She reveals that while initial metrics were promising, profitability emerged as the crucial factor for sustainability. Yi discusses farmers' distrust of fleeting projects, the importance of long-term financial viability, and how guaranteed offtake transformed the landscape by providing farmers with income. Li emphasizes that economically viable solutions are essential for lasting climate impact, reshaping the conversation around environmental initiatives.
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Built Farms With Science, Faced Market Reality
- Yi Li built climate-smart farms with dams, irrigation and organic fertilizers across Kenya but faced unexpected market challenges.
- She learned that having the right climate science didn’t prevent harvests from rotting when there was no buyer to pay farmers.
Learning Markets By Selling Tomatoes
- Yi Li joined Nairobi's chaotic Marikiti wholesale market to learn how prices and demand actually work.
- After initial setbacks she learned market dynamics, began selling produce directly, and sold almost everything.
Economics Trumps Knowledge For Adoption
- Farmers often don't adopt climate technologies because they lack capital and guaranteed returns.
- Yi Li realized that providing income and market offtake unlocked farmers to invest in better practices themselves.