The Emerging New Generation of Community Forestry

Towards protecting more forests, more rapidly, to address Forest Loss and Climate Change
The EC UNDP Small Grants Programme for Operations to Promote Tropical Forests ( SGP PTF )

Eduardo Queblatin Former Program Coordinator With Acknowledgement to EC, UNDP , SEARCA &SGPPTF Partners

 Community Forestry a nice concept But can it help in a really major way to help prevent forest loss and deal with climate change ? What can be done is Asia , particularly SouthEast Asia ( with its remaining tropical forests , biodiversity)?

Small Grants Program for Operations to Promote of Tropical Forests. SGP PTF
EC Grant of EU 15 M ( TFBL) 2001--2007
Building on the principles of GEF Small Grants Program

South Asia Sri Lanka Pakistan Southeast Asia Cambodia Indonesia

8 countries 1,000+ forest communities Through 247 sub grantees

Implementation: United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Execution: Southeast Asis Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA)

Malaysia Philippines Thailand Vietnam

Sustainable Forest Management (SFM )

Agenda of many Asian countries

A key challenge:
Limited National Government resources + = policy ambivalence
limited scope and pace of forest protection and regeneration

One government forest guard

Photo from www.fao.org

up to

= 12T hectares
to protect

Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) Trends in Country Agenda setting

Contribution to SFM

Logging concessions + state corporations

Community forestry + industrial plantations + protected areas

Time

High hopes for Community Forestry (CF) Expanding # of good cases , but overall, slow replication process ( policy, institutional etc) Can this desirable modality cover more ground ?

SGP PTF experience confirms observations of previous EC initiatives

Community forestry ( CF ) .

contributes to rural poverty alleviation Given the appropriate support, can protect more forests at faster pace

. Major input to SFM Agenda to more rapidly address forest loss and climate change

What communities with appropriate support, can achieve--Milestones of SGPPTF assisted communities and partners Efforts of 1,000+ communities
800,000 hectares+ of forests under varying intensities of protection and regeneration

EC Grant Resources used= EU 13 M , Forest Area covered /Grant funds used = EU 16.00/hectare*
*Illustrative Donor /government reforestation budget = EU 350.00/ha with no guarantee of sustainability

What we are learning :How to sustain and expand community forestry

Guarantee benefits to community in return to guarding the forests Help them cope with rapid social change Support food systems and livelihoods Tap Local Government support Engage the middle class or else Combine Small Grants with serious knowledge Management

1. Guarantee benefits to communities in return to guarding the forests ( resource access security) In countries with incipient legal framework (e.g Thailand, Malaysia ,Sri Lanka )
E.g. interim agreements with local governments and local forest offices

In countries with improving legal framework ( e.g. Philippines , Cambodia, Vietnam )

help communities navigate complex rules ; aim for local government support

2. To Cope with rapid social change, affirm and tap local knowledge

Indigenous forest communities

Need more than just Anthropological studies Include Local Knowledge in daily life even better e.g.
EU Parliamentarians visit Sarawak in education in local govt plans etc

3. Support Food systems + simple livelihood for different types of rural poor

Agro forestry based food systems .( for the the coping poor* )

Simple improvements on Non timber forest products ( NTFP) systems( for the the very poor ) Other cross cutting modalities: Water supply, fuel wood efficiency

Forest based enterprises (for the : the improving poor )

Community savings programs

4. Fully engage local governments

Decentralization trends Increasing devolved resources low cost, long term support to CF( vs high intensity, short duration donor support Can draw multi sectoral support

3 Types of Local Governments:

Those under Elite capture Those starting local NRM programs Those wanting to start NRM but dont know how
Start with these
Could be 35 % of local governments

45% of SGPPF Partner communities are now linked with Local Government programs.

Mutual benefit between forest communities and Local Government

The case of national government pine forests in a Java District
Community: needed more land for multistory community forests The Local Government: concerned w/ effect of Pine forest plantation on the municipal watershed .

Together they negotiate with National Government.

Results : *Forest Land allocated to communities . *Local Government supports the community agroforestry based rural industry;
water supply protected Improves

local revenues

5. Engage the middle class or else

could obstruct community forestry due fears of community induced deforestation and pollution . E.g. case in Thailand

Malaysia : Celebrities help build awareness among urban sectors

Community and Local Government Ventures in forest protection.

Builds on National policy reforms in the forestry and governance sectors Driven by guaranteed local benefit from forests Low intensity, but long term funding from LG large reforestation subsidies not needed in all cases Example : Assisted Natural Regeneration or ANR 30% of usual cost of reforestation

6. Combine Small Grants + Knowledge Management (KM) to rapidly spread good practices and help improve policy
Spread Practice by communities and Local Governments through peer to peer learning National Policy
Example: Vietnam case

Knowledge Management Learnings from the SGP PTF

ASEAN Regional Dialogue ASEAN Social Forestry Network ASEAN CENTER for BIODIVESITY

The emerging new generation CF :

Wider areas of forest protected and regenerated at faster pace

+
Communities with improving resource access Local Governments
Social/economic services

+
Low cost forest management practices

Build on improving national legal frameworks

Begin with the 35% of Local Governments (the good types)

Traditional + Science assisted systems

Addressing climate change :: Addressing climate change Role of the new generation CF Role of the new generation CF
New CF modality: Communities + Local Governments + low cost technologies Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) With wider, faster effort More effective prevention mitigation and adaptation to climate change

Social Capital

Backbone for grounding international forest strategies e.g. : Reduced Emission from Deforestation and Degradation REDD) , Payment for Environmental Services( PES) Forest Law Enforcement , Governance and Trade ( FLEGT) (

Summary: From long term studies and recent experience through projects like SGP PTF (with support from EC ):
A new generation of CF is emerging:
Communities + Local Governments + low cost forest management strategies

With appropriate support, the new generation CF can protect more forests, more rapidly and at probably lesser costs, to address forest loss and climate change

The EC UNDP Small Grants Programme for Operations to Promote Tropical Forests ( SGP PTF)