Three new partners selected for the Sustainable Community Forestry Programme

Blog post

11 Jan

Written By International Tree Foundation

Following a record number of applications, we are pleased to announce the successful organisations who will receive funding from our Sustainable Community Forestry programme. Three exceptional projects were selected by the grants panel and will begin activities in the coming weeks.

Spanning three different countries – Cameroon, Ghana and Madagascar.

The projects aim to tackle a wide range of environmental issues including conservation of endemic tree species, reforestation of degraded natural forest, sustainable forest-friendly agriculture and improved livelihoods.

We received many excellent projects from 22 countries, making the decision extremely difficult for the panel. But there is a very positive story behind this grants round: namely that there are many excellent community-led initiatives making a difference by planting trees and conserving their ecosystems.

This grants round was made possible by funding from Wessanen UK, who will be supporting the three successful projects. Activities will begin in the coming weeks and run for one year. A further ten projects were highly commended by the panel and twenty six more form a pool of potential partners for the future. Over the coming months, ITF will be actively seeking funding for these projects.

We would like to thank all the groups who applied to the Sustainable Community Forestry Programme. All applicants have now been notified of the panel’s decision.

Meet the Projects!

How to Make a Food Forest - Centre for Nursery Development and Eru Propagation (CENDEP), Cameroon

Working in Mbiame village, in the Bamenda highlands of Cameroon, this project is aimed at training young people in sustainable agricultural practices and forestry. CENDEP have been working with the community since 2006 to tackle montane forest degradation, mainly due to extensive subsistence agriculture and monoculture eucalyptus plantations. These issues have led to deforestation, soil infertility and erosion. CENDEP works to tackle these problems by promoting the conservation of forest resources.

CENDEP organises summer holiday workshops for young people who want to learn how to create a ‘food forest’. 16 young people will be trained on ‘analog forestry’ – a deep approach to agroforestry in which the farming system mimics the ecology and structure of natural forest. 40 young people will establish small tree nurseries and supply seedlings of up to 28 indigenous and fruit tree species for planting in the forest and on farm. ‘In the long run the entire Mbiame community of about 50,000 inhabitants that rely on the Mbiame forest as communal watershed will benefit from improved water flow through restoration of their forest.’

The young people have already elected their representative to work with CENDEP to make sure the tree nurseries gets the seeds and materials they need. 15,000 trees will be planted during the project.

Endemic Trees for Sustainable Agroforestry - Ny Tanintsika, Madagascar

“Endemic trees for sustainable agriculture” will work with 20 communities bordering the rainforest in South-East Madagascar. The project aims to increase the use of native trees in agroforestry – tree planting in agricultural systems.

The project will build on the work that Ny Tanintsika have done in the past, increasing the capacity of seed collectors and tree nursery agents. Ten species of endemic trees will be produced in twenty tree nurseries. A total of 20,000 trees will be planted by 800 vulnerable rural families in their agroforestry plots, improving soil fertility and providing long-term income generation opportunities.

Madagascar is a biodiversity hotspot which has suffered from very high rates of deforestation, and this project is a beacon to show how landscapes and livelihoods can be restored.

Conservation of Montonnso Sacred Forest to Safeguard Generational Socio-Economic and Socio-Ecological Benefits - Centre for Sustainable Rural Agriculture and Development (CSRAD), Ghana

Montonnso Sacred Forest is found in Western Ghana and is home to many endangered species of flora and fauna. The forest is a community protected natural resource, and provides livelihoods to over 4,000 rural people. However, Montonnso has come under threat from illegal activities such as timber harvesting, small-scale gold mining, agricultural expansion, bush meat hunting and charcoal burning.

Over a one year period, CSRAD will work with communities to increase awareness about the conservation status of the Montonnso Sacred Forest and help them to develop their own rules and regulations for managing it sustainably. 17,000 native trees will be planted both within the forest and on farmland. The project will also train 100 farmers in agroforestry cocoa production and increase their awareness around private tree planting, to encourage individual tree planting even after the project comes to an end.