Christopher Nesbitt is the director of Maya Mountain Research Farm, a former degraded citrus and cattle farm that is a registered NGO. Since 1988, applying permaculture principles to the land, the farm has been converted into an ongoing experiment in land repair, carbon farming and food security. Commonwealth Innovation Awards 2019 Prosperity category winner.
The Maya Mountain Research Farm has been recognised internationally for its innovations in integrated agroforestry, bringing ancient knowledge to modern problems. Its primary innovations include the use of tropical staple food trees in the agroforestry system, the application of biochar from crop residues to premium cultivars of cacao, turmeric, vanilla, and timber with cooperative family labour as the economic driver.