Since its inception, the NTFP Exchange Programme maintains informal contacts with scientists in relevant disciplines, not only in South and Southeast Asia but in the other parts of the globe. In recent years, the EP felt the need to intensify this collaboration through the establishment of a ‘Virtual Academy.’
The idea of a Virtual Academy or VA first sprung up at the end of 2003 during brainstorming sessions with NGOs and representatives from the academe in Indonesia and in the Philippines. In these sessions, it was agreed that the VA will be constituted of a group of eminent scholars and “practical academicians,” who are devoted to making their skills work for local initiatives directed at promoting community-based sustainable forest use and management.
It is aptly called “virtual” in the sense that it does not need to maintain offices, structures and the like. That its core members share common values – most important of which is truly wanting to help forest-based communities to build their capacities – is what binds this loose group of NTFP specialists.
Since the onset, the VA is envisioned to:
– maintain linkages with other scientists/institutes;
– assist in the writing of position papers on key issues;
– contribute to international conservation and development discourse;
– support the translation of grass root needs into concrete directions for future research agenda;
– facilitate individual members to act as resource persons for specific activities; and – provide inputs to customized training programs for NGO field staff.
The VA fellows and NTFP-EP have thought of preparing training courses/modules for partners in the network with the objective of establishing a basic course for practitioners, field personnel working on NTFP management. This course would be supplemented with more specific topic-based courses. Considering the dearth of relevant, customized, community-centered training programs available, this idea seems timely and useful for local practitioners.
The year 2006 signaled the reinforcement and further strengthening of the Virtual Academy’s mandate and its aforementioned dream as the beautiful resort-type facilities of the Eugenio Lopez Center in Antipolo City, Philippines (a hillside town about an hour’s drive outside Manila) paid host to this year’s VA Meeting held on 5-6 June 2006.
The meeting was participated in by VA fellows: Dr. Mary Stockdale of the Canada-based NGO Land and People Information Sharing (LAPIS) and author of Steps to Sustainable and Community-based NTFP Management: A manual written with special reference to South and Southeast Asia; Dr. Patricia Shanley, of the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and People and Plants International (PPI); Mr. Ridzki Sigit of Telapak, Indonesia; Ms. Ma. Theresa Padilla-de Guia of AnthroWatch Philippines, and the NTFP-EP Secretariat, led by its Executive Director, Mr. Jenne de Beer.
The group revisited the concept of the VA. A review of the curriculum of academic institutions offering NTFP courses (Royal Roads University-Canada and the Indigenous Peoples College in Davao City, Philippines) was also undertaken to provide a broad perspective on what distinct features could be adopted by the VA in its own training courses.
Prior to the meeting, a questionnaire was formulated and sent out to EP partners to consolidate their training needs, and to serve as an integral input in the development of NTFP courses. Responses highlighted the glaring and immediate capacity building needs that are country specific; existing training providers identified for certain identified topics/themes which need attention; and proposed modules to be developed which have been grouped into nine training themes:
– NTFP certification
– Processing/post-harvest/product development
– Marketing/business managementw Resource Management
– Identification/prioritization of NTFPs for communities
– Cultural aspects/knowledge and traditional use of resources
– Capacity building/institutional management/organisational development
– Advocacy/negotiation/resource access
– Sustainable livelihood planning and management
While the VA fellows who were present at the meeting are considered to be experts in the areas of resource management, advocacy, certification, cultural aspects, the themes on business management, marketing, product development, and enterprise development emerged as the top priority among partners. In response to this, an enterprise development committee was formed comprising of NTFP-EP partners known to have inimitable familiarity on these topics.
Future plans carved out during the meeting included publications to be released, intended workshops/conferences to be attended to by the members and prioritization of capacity-building programs for EP partners. Preparatory activities are making headway for the ecological monitoring training for India partners in November as well as the upcoming plans to go to Mexico and Brazil for the workshops on sustainable management of NTFPs in Latin America.
For more information on the Virtual Academy, contact the NTFP-EP secretariat at info[AT]ntfp.org
