The Emerging New Generation ofCommunity Forestry

Towards protecting more forests, more rapidly, to address Climate Change

Experience ofEC – UNDP Small Grants Programme for Operations to

Promote Tropical Forests( SGPPTF )

Eduardo QueblatinFormer 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)?

EC Grant of EU 15 M ( TFBL)

2001--2007

Building on the principles of GEF Small Grants Program

8 countries1,000+ forest communities247 sub grantees

Implementation: UNDPExecution: SEARCA

Southeast Asia

•Cambodia

•Indonesia

•Malaysia

•Philippines

•Thailand

•Vietnam

South Asia

•Sri Lanka

•Pakistan

Small Grants Program for Operations to Promote of Tropical Forests. SGPPTF

Sustainable Forest Management (SFM ) –Agenda of many Asian countries

Photo from www.fao.org

One government forest guard

Limited National Government resources + policy ambivalence

up to

12T hectares to protect

=

limited scope and pace of forest protection and regeneration

A key challenge:

=

Contribution

to SFMLogging concessions + state corporations

Community forestry + industrial plantations+ protected areas

Time

Sustainable Forest Management (SFM)

Trends in Country Agenda setting

•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

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

1. Guarantee benefits to communities in returnto guarding the forests ( resource access security)

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

EU Parliamentarians visit Sarawak

•Need more than just Anthropological studies

•Include Local Knowledge in daily life even better e.g.

•in education

•in local govt plans etc

Indigenous forest communities

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

Forest based enterprises (for the : the “improving 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

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 – sectoralsupport

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

3 Types of Local Governments:

•Those under “Elite capture”

•Those starting local NRM programs

•Those wanting to start NRM but don’t know how

Start with theseCould be

35 % of local governments

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

+

Malaysia : Celebrities help build awareness among urban sectors

5. Engage the middle class or else……could obstruct community forestry due fears of community induced deforestation and pollution . E.g. case in Thailand

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

Knowledge ManagementLearnings from the SGP PTF

ASEAN Regional Dialogue

•ASEAN Social Forestry Network

•ASEAN CENTER for BIODIVESITY

National Policy

Spread Practice by communities

and Local Governments

through peer to peer learning

Example:Vietnamcase

The emerging new generation CF :

Communities with improving resource access

Local Governments Social/economic services

Low cost forest management practices

=+ +Wider areas of forest protected and regenerated at faster pace

Build on improving national legal frameworks

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

Traditional + Science assisted systems

Sustainable Forest Management

(SFM)

With wider, faster effort

Addressing climate change :

Role of the new generation CF

Addressing climate change :

Role of the new generation CF New CF modality:

Communities + Local Governments + low cost technologies

“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)

Social Capital

More effective prevention mitigation and adaptation to climate change

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