Through the Accelerator, BirdLife International’s partner, Burung Indonesia, has set up a Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) mechanism and associated trust fund around water services. They will continue advancing these in the next phase of the Accelerator. © Burung Indonesia
BirdLife’s Forest Landscape Accelerator returns for its third year
The BirdLife Forests Team has announced support for eight National Partners, who are developing a range of Sustainable Finance Initiatives across four continents - the Americas, Asia, Africa and the Pacific. These Partners will have access to a package of services designed to accelerate their initiatives. This includes flexible seed grants and access to advice and technical training from experts in nature-based solutions, carbon financing and organisational capacity building. Projects range from sustainable, shade-grown yerba mate tea in Argentina, to butterfly farms in rural communities in São Tomé and Príncipe, and water services in Indonesia.
The Forest Landscapes Sustainability Accelerator has seen considerable success over the last two years, from successfully carrying out feasibility studies, to building conservation enterprises and shipping sustainable commodities worldwide. They are building on this success through expanding the portfolio of organisations supported, further advancing some of the major projects from the last two phases, whilst bringing on several newcomers who have ideas with huge potential. Not only this, but with the introduction of their new forest carbon portfolio into the Accelerator, BirdLife is supporting local conservation organisations to explore the potential for the multi-million dollar carbon market in their landscapes. Watch this space!
For more information about the Forest Landscape Accelerator click here.
Fighting for the planet – one community at a time
John Lotspeich visits a tree nursery in the Msasani area of Rwunge district, up in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania
In June, our Executive Director John Lotspeich made a long-awaited field visit to Kenya and Tanzania to meet teams on the ground and experience first-hand how local communities are integral to the work to protect and restore forests.
In his latest blog, John talks about what inspired him from the visit, in particular how conservation efforts must put economic imperatives front and centre as part of the human and natural landscape, not just as a calculation of carbon storage capacity. “The trees are a means to an end, but a different one from the carbon conversations most are having.”
Read John’s account of his visit to the Trillion Trees WCS project in Tanzania here.
Commitment to permanently protect Colombia’s land and seascapes, including 12% of the precious Amazon rainforest
The Colombian government, Trillion Trees partners WCS and WWF and a coalition of many other organisations recently announced a $245 million agreement to permanently protect 32 million hectares of Colombia's land and seascapes, including 12% of the Amazon rainforest.
Colombia is home to 10% of all the world's biodiversity, and this unique Project for Permanence Initiative, called Herencia Colombia (Heritage Colombia) plays a huge part in meeting Colombia's goal to protect 30% of its land and 30% of its seas by 2030. In this first phase over 10 years, Herencia Colombia is bringing together public, private and civil society to preserve its natural capital and strengthen the wellbeing of local communities.
And watch a video here.
