Month: December 2021

The second day of the technical seminar and knowledge sharing on Customary Tenure (CT) and Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) provided an opportunity for the ASEAN Member States of the ASEAN Working Group on Social Forestry (AWG-SF) to reflect on the key messages and learning from the rich discussion in the previous day’s session, and to start the discussion on key elements to be included in the outline of the proposed ASEAN Guidelines on CT Recognition in Forested Landscapes in ASEAN.

Atty. Edna Maguigad, NTFP-EP’s CT and FPIC Regional Researcher, presented the discussion paper and zero draft of the guidelines during the first part of the discussion.

For the second part of the session, participants discussed the approach to develop a framework and guidelines on customary tenure recognition in forested landscapes—particularly setting the objective, pinning down its nature, identifying its intended users, determining the process to be undertaken, and finally, the guiding principles on customary tenure recognition in forested landscapes.

The following questions were presented to guide the group in reviewing the principles:

• Do these principles respond to the issues, barriers and opportunities identified during the meeting?
• Are these principles reflective of your community and national context?
• Are these principles aligned and consistent with the AWG-SF, ASEAN Food, Agriculture and Forestry, and overall ASEAN visions?

With guidance from the ASEAN Senior Officials on Forestry and in accordance with their strategic plan of action for ASEAN Cooperation in Forestry 2016-2025, the AWG-SF affirmed to put the development of the ASEAN Guidelines for CT recognition as a priority in their plan of action for 2021-2025.

“It is a super milestone to work for the development of the ASEAN Guidelines for Customary Forest Tenure Recognition,” said Dr. Dian Sukmajaya of the ASEAN Secretariat.

Sukmajaya added that the process has considered and ensured the ownership, seeing that ASEAN member states have actively participated and provided their significant and valuable input for the development of the guidelines.

As part of the continuing dialogue towards the development of the ASEAN Guidelines, the discussion continued in the regional learning exchange and policy dialogue “Linking Customary Tenure Recognition with Food Security, and Traditional Livelihoods in the ASEAN Region” held last December 1-3, 2021 hosted by the Asian Farmers Association for Sustainable Rural Development.

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The technical seminar and knowledge sharing is organized by NTFP-EP Asia, in collaboration with the CSO Forum on Social Forestry in ASEAN, the ASEAN Working Group on Social Forestry, and the ASEAN Secretariat, with support from the Mekong Regional Land Governance Project and the Green Livelihoods Alliance.

NTFP-EP Asia is looking for 3 INTERNs who will support its thematic programs, the Tenure Rights & Governance (TRG) and the Community-Based Conservation & Indigenous Food and Health (CBC-IFH).

NTFP-EP Asia is a membership network with over 100 partner non-governmental organizations and community-based organizations working with forest-based communities to strengthen their capacity in the sustainable management of natural resources in the Philippines, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Click here to learn more.

NTFP-EP provides 3-12 months internship opportunities for those looking to gain valuable pre-employment or on-the-job training experience with an established organization like NTFP-EP Asia that is focused on environmental and development work in South and Southeast Asia. The Interns will have hands-on exposure to thematic issues that impact upon the rights and livelihoods of indigenous peoples and local communities. S/he will gain insights into different program interventions that contribute to address such issues and will have an opportunity to apply her/his skills and interests to tasks that may be assigned. The interns easily become an active contributor to NTFP-EP’s programs and the benefits fall on both the intern/s and NTFP-EP for the duration of this exciting opportunity.

If interested, apply on or before 10 December 2021 (Friday):

1. Email your application letter, CV and sample works (if applicable) to applications@ntfp.org addressed to The TRG (or CBC-IFH) LEAD with the subject “Thematic Area (TRG or CBC-IFH) – Name of applicant”
2. Fill-up a form in this link: https://forms.gle/k2Y7XVXsUn8zprZ48

THE POSITIONS

The Interns will report directly to the Program Officer of TRG (or CBC-IFH) and will work with other members of the team, other staff, and partners. This will be a six (6) months appointment to begin immediately. Duty station is in Quezon City but due to the ongoing pandemic, the internship will be under a work-from-home arrangement.

ALLOWANCE AND CERTIFICATION

A modest monthly allowance will be provided for the duration of internship. NTFP-EP can provide certification for the internship period should this be required.

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE INTERNS

A. Skills/Interests

• Current course of study or has ample background in forestry, environmental or social science, development communication, community development, or related fields/discipline

• Good oral and written communication skills
• Has a multi-media skills and a good grasp of MS office applications and social media platforms
• Ability to collaborate well and to deliver work in a timely manner
• Well-organized, dependable and can work with minimal supervision
• Can represent NTFP-EP with professionalism and courtesy
• Comfortable coordinating with various stakeholders
• Has interest and passion for conservation, indigenous peoples and forests, tenure rights, governance, climate change and sustainable development
• Available at least 2-3 days a week, up to 24 hours a week (96-100 hours a month), but can be flexible around events, if any.
• Can work online on weekdays for a few hours each week, preferably between the hours of 9:00 am – 6:00 pm

B. Responsibilities for each Thematic Program:

Tenure Rights & Governance (TRG)

Community-Based Conservation (CBC) and Indigenous Food and Health (IFH)

Provide support to the Tenure Rights & Governance (TRG) projects particularly the Mekong Region Land Governance (MRLG), ASSERT Community-Based Forest Management (CBFM) in Nationally-Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Green Livelihoods Alliance (GLA) projects. Backstop the NTFP-EP Asia TRG staff in the following: training/capacity building activities, communication and knowledge management activities planned within the scope of the active projects Assist in content development of the ASSERT CBFM / SULONG CBFM social media page and related web contributions for the TRG theme Write monthly reports & assist in documentation of TRG meetings & activities Contribute content on TRG & its projects for the NTFP-EP’s website &/or social media channels or group pages administered, eg. SULONG CBFM Attend talks, meetings & webinars related to TRG, climate change & NDCs; Support coordination with partners and stakeholders of the NTFP-EP network, CBFM POs in the Philippines particularly the Palawan & Sierra Madre landscapes, CSO Forum & others Perform any other tasks deemed necessary to achieve the program objectives for its TRG initiatives and as may be assigned by the Supervisor from time to time, including requested support to NTFP-EP Country Offices.

Provide support to the Community-based Conservation (CBC) and Indigenous Food and Health (IFH) thematic programmes of NTFP-EP Asia supported by various donor projects; Backstop the Madhu Duniya Secretariat and the network on wild foods, biodiversity and livelihoods on knowledge exchange & capacity building activities, of these networks Assist in research and review of related literature on CBC and IFH related themes Write monthly reports and assist in documentation of CBC and IFH meetings and activities Contribute content on CBC, IFH and its projects for the NTFP-EP’s website, newsletter, &/or social media channels Attend talks, meetings and webinars related to CBC and IFH Support coordination with partners & stakeholders of the NTFP-EP network; Perform any other tasks deemed necessary to achieve the program objectives of NTFP-EP for its CBC initiatives and as may be assigned by the Supervisor from time to time, including requested support to NTFP-EP Country Offices.

Only short-listed applicants will be contacted for interview.

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NTFP-EP is an equal opportunity employer and values the diverse backgrounds of all its applicants. It follows the principles of honesty, trust and respect. It does not tolerate harassment or discrimination of any kind, such as cases involving gender, race, color, age, religion, citizenship, disabilities, sexual orientation, senior citizen status, or any other protected status. This policy follows applicable laws of the state governing non-discrimination in employment.

Forestry experts and representatives from indigenous peoples and local communities called for better regional and national policies related to Customary Forest Tenure (CT) and Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) in the ASEAN region during a technical seminar and knowledge sharing event on CT and FPIC held last 11 November 2021.

Around 100 participants attended the event including ASEAN member state representatives, government officials, those from civil society organizations, indigenous people and local community representatives, development partners, as well as members of customary tenure alliances and regional bodies. With travel restrictions still in place in most countries, the event was held online via Zoom.

“More than ever, we should see this as an opportunity to maintain our goal, have more extensive sharing experiences, and learning without borders,” said Dr. Bambang Supriyanto, chair of the ASEAN Working Group on Social Forestry.

Dr. Dian Sukmajaya, senior officer of the ASEAN Food, Agriculture and Forestry Division, emphasized the key role of forests and sustainable forestry in ensuring carbon neutrality, promoting a circular economy and the role of forestry cooperation in nature-based solutions. 

“Global leaders have underlined the need to reduce vulnerability, build resilience, enhance rural livelihoods, develop sustainable agriculture and recognize the multiple values of forests while also recognizing the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities,” said Sukmajaya in a keynote message. 

The three sessions of the event focused on global and regional trends and context of CT and FPIC, the regional situation in ASEAN, and concluded with a sharing of the current situation within the countries.

Click here to watch the entire seminar on YouTube, which is also available in six ASEAN languages.

The first session featured Dr. Alain Frechette who highlighted the need to take efforts towards CT recognition and to capitalize on gains where rights are already recognized, Gam Shimray who provided insights on the challenges and potential conflicts when it comes to recognizing CT, and Mai Think Yu Mon who focused on how the youth can play a role in ensuring food security, land rights and resource access.

The second session featured Natalie Campbell’s presentation on the state of land and regional CT in the Mekong region and Atty. Edna Maguigad’s research on the state of regional and national policies related to CT and FPIC. Indigenous youth representative Josefa Tauli also provided short comments on how FPIC can also be considered an expression of self-determination and consensus building by indigenous communities.

In the third session, speakers from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines provided the current situations in their respective countries. Myanmar’s Naw Ei Ei Min provided a key message that despite the challenges, as long as communities are there to apply their customary practices, then the quest for CT recognition can still push on and prevail despite ongoing conflicts and instability.

“Indigenous peoples and local communities must be at the heart of the process,” said Femy Pinto, executive director of NTFP-EP Asia and the facilitator of the seminar.

“More than just participation and engagement, it’s a good message to say that having recognition on who these customary peoples are and what their practices are, we can have meaningful discussions moving forward,” Pinto added.

The event continued on to the next day, November 12, for a closed-door meeting of the AWG-SF members and partners on the draft zero outline of the ASEAN Guidelines on Customare Tenure Recognition in Forested Landscapes.

The seminar is only the first event and the first step of the process on developing the ASEAN Guidelines on Customary Forest Tenure Recognition which will continue in 2022. Participants and supporters are invited to look forward for future announcements for upcoming events, including those that may be held face-to-face for the first time in two years.