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Climate change, deforestation and poverty are global issues that go beyond the reach of single companies or governments; it takes public-private cooperation to solve them.
IDH, The Sustainable Trade Initiative brings governments, companies, CSOs and financiers together in action driven coalitions. We orchestrate the powers of law, of entrepreneurship and investments to work together to create solutions for global sustainability issues at scale.
Sector by sector and region by region we create, (co)finance and implement sustainable action plans. These plans can vary from working with the governments of Cote DÍvoire and Ghana and large cocoa companies to end deforestation, to investing with coffee companies and financiers in better livelihoods for hundred thousands of coffee farmers. All our plans and approaches start from a vision that sustainable impact will only last when there is a market and a viable business case for both (smallholder) producers as well as traders, buyers, financiers etc… to drive sustainability from niche to norm at scale.
In 2018 we reached over 2,7 million smallholder farmers of tropical food and cash crops in multiple sectors to improve their livelihoods. We worked with numerous plantations to close the living wage gap of over 50.000 workers in Malawi alone. We delinked commodity productions from deforestation in Africa, Latin America and Asia, bringing millions of hectares of land under sustainable production. And increased the demand for sustainable products globally.
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Displaying 6 - 10 of 13GLA - Liberia
General
Formal recognition of customary land ownership and security of tenure for the poor is a critical building block for inclusive and sustainable development. Since 2009, when Liberia enacted the Community Rights Law with Respect to Forest Lands that paved the way for communities to formalize their ownership claims to their customary forestlands, community rights with respect to natural resources have gained a prominent place on the political agenda. The move towards formalizing customary land claims gained further momentum in 2013 with the adoption of a Land Rights Policy that promised formal recognition and legal protection for customary rights. The Land Rights Act, which could ‘seal the deal’ for communities has however been stalled in the Liberian Legislature since 2015.
Objectives
The GLA programme for Liberia proposes to increase the capacity of communities to resist destructive oil palm expansion and logging, increase the respect and recognition of tenure rights of local communities by government and concessionaires, and increase adherence to the full implementation of policies and laws in forest and land management. This will provide opportunity for working in Liberia to contribute to the preservation of ecosystems and improved livelihood conditions for rural communities in Liberia and specifically in the Sinoe landscape. Friends of the Earth Netherlands (Milieudefensie) will support the Sustainable Development Institute (SDI whose main intervention strategy in Sinoe will be to (i) monitor Golden Veroleum Liberia’s non-compliance with policies or poor implementation of its commitments to respect the rights of local communities and produce deforestation-free crude palm oil and to (ii) strengthen local communities representative bodies in Sinoe and (iii) to monitor illegal logging in Sinoe and Grand Kru to campaign against illegal logging or forest conversion.
Other
In 2017 TBI will strengthen CSOs to monitor and advocate for transparent forest and landscape governance, with a strong focus on the Sinoe landscape and changes in land use, tenure and livelihoods. TBI’s main intervention strategy is to use research and capacity building for informed dialogue. As knowledge broker TBI will work on bringing stakeholders together for informed dialogue, while at the same time we promote the use of validated knowledge in this dialogue. TBI will support CSOs working in the Sinoe landscape with information that provides insight in (aspects of) wicked problems where no simple (technical) solution is available. As first step, TBI will facilitate the further elaboration of the context analysis prepared for the GLA inception phase, which will provide state-of-the-art information on forest related issues and actors in Liberia and specifically Sinoe. Together with CSOs and the CSO platforms, TBI will identify a (research) agenda on Sinoe landscape about sustainable development and improvement of local livelihoods, alternatives for oil palm expansion and root causes like land rights and governance structures without strong voice of the local communities. Some research topics that will be prioritized will be addressed in 2017. TBI will start a project to strengthen the capacity of non-state actors to improve FLEGT-VPA and REDD+ processes in Liberia, in collaboration with partners in Cote d’ Ivoire and Ghana. In addition, organizational capacity of the TBI main partner in Liberia will be built, based on the results of their capacity analysis.
GLA Uganda: Kalangala landscape
General
The GLA programme in Uganda focuses on the Kalangala landscape (especially on Bugala and Buvuma islands) because the forests in this landscape are seriously affected or under threat of degradation due to the introduction and expansion of oil palm plantations. Forest degradation in Kalangala is further exacerbated by collection of biomass fuel and logging for home use, construction and trade. Large oil palm plantations further lead to lake degradation due to erosion, water pollution due to use of fertilizers coupled with the disrespect for lake buffers, food scarcity due to commercialized mono-cropping of oil palm, alterations of ecosystem functioning and climate change impacts.
Objectives
The program will support the improvement of the ecosystem that is currently under threat. To ensure this, the GLA programme will build partnerships with the central government (NEMA, NFA, and MWE etc.), local government (in Kalangala landscape), and civil society to promote community rights and conservation of the landscape to protect International Public Goods (water provisioning, food security, climate resilience and biodiversity). The programme will also strengthen partnerships with the private sector so that they can participate in the conservation of the environment at the chosen landscape to ensure a win-win situation. In the end, the programme aims to achieve good community livelihoods and rich biodiversity to ensure conservation for generations. The programme has the following key result areas: - Expansion of oil palm plantations on both public and private land in Kalangala landscape stopped - Empowered communities are able to engage with the government and palm oil investors - Empowered, informed and supportive local and national government that appreciates oil palm safeguards on forests for improved community livelihoods -Women and other marginalized groups empowered to participate in oil palm expansion discussions.
Other
TBI’s main intervention strategy is to use research and capacity building for informed dialogue on complex and wicked problems in the multi-actor, multi-sector landscape of Kalangala. As knowledge broker TBI will work on bringing stakeholders together for informed dialogue, while at the same time we promote the use of validated knowledge in this dialogue. TBI will promote the use of the landscape approach, a central concept in the GLA program, dealing with the interaction between forests, trees, agriculture and external drivers for the Kalangala landscape. Within the Kalangala landscape, which consists of several islands in Lake Victoria, TBI will focus on the possible changes on Buvuma island due to large scale oil palm development that is planned by BIDCO, while gaining lessons from the foregone oil palm expansion on Bugala island. TBI will work on topics that are related to the (current and planned) oil palm expansion e.g. use of the landscape approach in changing landscapes, land grabbing process, land use planning process, impacts of the oil palm expansion on environment and livelihoods, benefit sharing, landscape governance, roles and power of the different actors, adaptation of land use and livelihoods and development of sustainable livelihood options. Building upon the GLA context analysis, TBI elaborated in more detail the actors involved and possible resource persons and organizations. TBI will organize a workshop with a wide group of stakeholders of the Kalangala landscape to jointly develop an agenda for research and informed dialogue. In addition, some short-term research will be carried out on topics that will provide essential information at this early stage of the GLA interventions.
GLA - Atewa and Juabeso-Bia in Ghana
General
The Green Livelihoods Programme (GLA) programme in Ghana works in the Juabeso-Bia landscape in the Western Region and Atewa forest landscape in the country’s Eastern Region. Both landscapes are situated in the tropical evergreen forest zone and are rich in biodiversity, as illustrated by areas that have been designated as Global Significant Biodiversity Areas (GSBA). Both landscapes support the provision of the four IPGs; water, food security, biodiversity and climate resilience. Juabesa-Bia landscape contains the only biosphere in Ghana and is extensively covered by cocoa plantations. Atewa contains the headwater for some of the important water systems in Ghana notably the Densuriver, on which a major part of the population in Accra depends. However, the landscapes are under serious threats from mining; illegal logging and expansion of farming. The threats are affecting its ability to support the provision of IPGs in the long term and the status of the GSBAs areas. Both landscapes are representative for larger parts of Ghana and face problems that are wide spread in the country. The GLA Ghana programme will be headed by Tropenbos International Ghana, A Rocha Ghana and Friends of the Earth Ghana. Other CSOs will be involved in the implementation of the programme.
Objectives
The GLA programme encourages governments at different levels to enact, implement, enforce and monitor policies and regulations, private sector to apply best sustainable practices, and local communities to be responsible stewards of the natural resources. Local communities will be supported to adopt sustainable natural resources (NR) practices and use nature-based approaches such as agroforestry and agro-ecological farming practices. For these communities, especially women, the reform of the land and tree tenure system is important to make benefit sharing arrangements more equitable. An important instrument to ensure communities’ rights is the Community Resource Management Areas (CREMA) concept, of which the establishment, legalization and up scaling will be promoted. The same accounts for integrated land and water management with strong community participation, which will give local communities greater access to, and control over, their landscapes. As overall approach, the programme will support local communities to engage government and the private sector in the sustainable management of forested resources. District assemblies (DAs) will be encouraged to integrate biodiversity, climate resilience and responsible NR approaches into medium-term development Plans (MTDPs) and participatory land use planning. And efforts will be made to get the private sector to adopt and apply climate smart practices and agro-commodity production systems, landscape standards and sustainable sourcing practices. To achieve these outcomes the Theory of Change shows the following strategies / pathways: the formation of CSO networks and platforms; gender and social inclusiveness in landscape activities and partner organizations; capacity development of CSOs to generate and use evidence; capacity development of CSOs for advocacy and lobby actions; organizational strengthening of participating CSOs.
Other
The GLA programme implemented by Tropenbos Ghana will contribute to all the three main outcomes identified to contribute to sustainably managed landscapes in Ghana, i.e. Local communities are responsible stewards of the natural resources; Government at all levels enact, implement, enforce and monitor policies and regulations; and Private sector applies best sustainable practices. Tropenbos will take the position of knowledge broker, making knowledge available for practice and policy and will focus on the Juabeso-Bia landscape. In 2017, Tropenbos Ghana will support the integrated planning and management of the Juabeso-Bia landscape. Stakeholders like local communities, local government and the private sector involved in the area will be made aware of the importance of integrated land and water management and efforts will be made for multi-stakeholder dialogue at landscape level. Linked to this integrated approach, we will work on improved logging and mining as well as reduction of illegal practices, tree tenure reform, legislation and upscaling of the Community Resource Management Area (CREMA) approach. More specifically, we will provide information and tools and create awareness to enforce, monitor and report on forestry, mining and logging laws and reduce illegal practices. We will strengthen non-state actors to improve FLEGT-VPA and REDD+ processes in Ghana. We will develop and support multi-stakeholder consultations on the proposed tree tenure reforms and prepare, together with other CSOs, a CSO plan to strategically approach this issue. We will create awareness of stakeholders on the CREMA approach and support initiatives to identify and develop new CREMAs. The main strategies that we will use are (1) constituting and strengthening Community Based Organizations and Civil Society Networks and Platforms at landscape level and (2) targeted capacity building for CSOs, CBOs and Networks on the topics mentioned above. In addition, capacity of TBI Ghana will be built on lobby and advocacy skills, legislation, gender, communication and strategy development as well as organizational strengthening.
Working Landscape Colombia
General
In recent years, Colombia has been confronted with very high rates of deforestation. Deforestation occurs in different parts of the country, but especially in the departments of Guaviare, Putumayo and Caquetá, where the Andean foothills and the Amazonian plains are connected. It is expected that further deforestation in this area will affect water supplies. Initially, deforestation took place in order to establish illicit coca crops. Later, widespread fumigation forced farmers to turn away from coca production, converting their fields and forests into pastures for cattle ranching. This process has transformed the vegetation cover, creating a mosaic of forests and areas with ever larger pastures. The guerrilla that dominated this area had imposed environmental rules that controlled deforestation and promoted the protection of water sources. But since the signing of the peace agreement the guerrilla became demobilized, while the state has very little control over the area. As a result, deforestation has been increasing. The National Development Plan estimates a loss of forest cover of 200,000 hectares per year for the next 4 years, contributing significantly to Colombia’s GHG emissions. The municipality of Solano, in the southern department of Caquetá, is located right on the edge of the deforestation border in the Colombian Amazon. The Solano landscape functions as an ecological corridor of two large National Parks, Chiribiquete and La Paya, which occupy more than 5 million hectares. The area represents the larger trend of expanding cattle production at the expense of forests. Solano is an interesting case, because it combines different types of land tenure: the indigenous resguardos with collective property titles on the one hand, and possessions of peasants and state forest lands on the other. Deforestation in the resguardos is much lower than in the other areas. We envision an intercultural climate-smart landscape with high forest cover that contributes to the connectivity and helps to maintain the ecological and climatic processes between the Amazon and the Andes. This landscape is shaped by intercultural participative inclusive governance that integrates different visions (including those of indigenous groups, peasants, women and youth) and production systems. The landscape consists of a mosaic of sustainable production systems, restoration initiatives, indigenous and peasant forest-use systems, diverse home gardens (chagras), and protected water sources and natural forests. There are financial mechanisms appropriate to the region that encourage the restoration and integration of the forest in different production systems. The landscape contributes to Colombia’s NDC and SDGs, by reducing deforestation and promoting an integrated model of mitigation and adaptation that values forests and trees.
Objectives
1. Ensure that the local government integrates different visions and production systems in spatial planning, with special attention to the role of forests and trees. This requires the establishment of a multi-stakeholder platform composed of the municipality of Solano, peasant representatives, indigenous authorities and CSOs. This Solano model needs to be made visible to influence governance in the six Colombian Amazon departments, and to contribute to debates about land allocation, land rights and access to resources. 2. Develop effective models that promote restoration, biodiversity conservation and sustainable land use in the main ecosystems present in the landscape. The models need to promote good practices for soil, water and forest conservation and restoration that include monitoring and evaluation of the results. Their successful implementation will require access to legal markets for timber and other forest products. 3. Existing financial mechanisms do not include options for indigenous communities with collective land titles and are very limited for peasants, as they do not have formal land titles. The few possibilities they have, are for the improvement of their agricultural and livestock activities without considering the forest. To change this, it is necessary to generate and implement tailor-made financial mechanisms that promote the conservation and restoration of forests. 4. Taking into account women´s specific role in assuring food security both in indigenous resguardos and in peasant households, special attention will be given to agrobiodiversity and climate-smart income-generating opportunities related to forests and forest products for women, based on their specific knowledge, skills and possibilities. We will also work to address the barriers that women face to participate in decision-making, especially in public. In the Colombian Working Landscapes programme we will also pay special attention to youth. In order to achieve a real transformational long-term change, we believe it is important to involve younger generations, and to assure they will have the knowledge and skills necessary to develop and maintain a climate smart landscape.
Working Landscape Suriname
General
In Suriname, the Working Landscapes programme focuses on the Upper Suriname River area (USRA), which is a heavily forested landscape with limited (but increasing) commercial activity, predominantly inhabited by the Saamaka Maroon population. Tropenbos Suriname has been active in the area since 2014 and has established good contacts and working relations with local people and traditional authorities. USRA is the most densely populated river basin in the country. The area of the landscape totals 201,000 ha, with 124,989 ha of primary forests and 75,906 ha of secondary forests. The population strongly relies on rain-fed subsistence agriculture, and is considered highly vulnerable to climate change. Changes in temperature and rainfall and drought spells are reducing crop output, affecting river water quality and freshwater availability. Floods will lead to homesteads being lost and droughts affect the accessibility of the villages by river, affecting the mobility of people and products, resulting in higher costs for households. The absence of effective legal safeguards for their traditional territories exacerbates their vulnerability. The rapid growth of the Maroon population in combination with a lack of formal land (use) rights and increased investments for the development of economic activities (such as tourism, infrastructure, logging, and mining), lead to increased pressure on the forest. Whereas commercial agriculture is currently limited due to high transportation costs and lack of markets, ongoing improvements of the road network are likely to increase commercial agricultural activities by local elites in the near future, increasing pressures on the forest. In Tropenbos Suriname’s vision, a climate-smart landscape in the Upper Suriname River area provides the best example of the possibilities of a Green Development Path, in line with the High Forest Cover, Low Deforestation (HFLD) status of the country. Local Saamaka tribal communities have formalized access or tenure rights over 85% of the forest in the landscape. For the governance of this area, communities have developed a coherent and comprehensive vision on their climate resilient development path in a participatory and democratic way and in collaboration with traditional and state authorities. Outside pressure on the land and resources from logging, mining, tourism and commercial agricultural is being dealt with adequately avoiding deforestation. District and national level government institutions take due account of Saamaka proposals for land-use planning and landscape governance. Forest user rights have been distributed among local inhabitants in a democratic and inclusive manner by traditional authorities to be used for future community forest management and forest conservation activities, well adapted to the culture of the people. Communities have adapted their productive agricultural activities and forest use to be climate resilient. The existence of well-developed agricultural and forest product value chains enables local people to economically benefit from the forest. Green investments and funding have been made available for the development of climate resilient productive activities and the development of value chains. Local communities have access to these funds and have successfully developed new income generating activities.
Objectives
1. Traditional and local authorities, communities and other stakeholders work together on the development of a strong future-oriented local governance structure. Specifically, local communities will actively participate in the development of legislation on formal tenure rights over land and forest resources. 2. Local people engage in watershed conservation and climate-smart productive activities (community forestry, agroforestry and cash crops) and product value chain development that allow for a significant increase in income for men and women and offer economic opportunities to the youth. 3. The investments necessary to develop climate smart productive activities and product value chains are made available by government, funding agencies, private investors and climate funds that people can access and manage properly.