Category: News

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.

A technical seminar and knowledge sharing on Strengthening the Recognition of Customary Tenure and Free, Prior, and Informed Consent in ASEAN: Status, Challenges, and Opportunities will be held on 11 and 12 November 2021 at 2:00 – 5:30 PM Manila (GMT+8) via Zoom.

This event is organized by NTFP-EP and the CSO Forum on Social Forestry in ASEAN, in collaboration with the ASEAN Working Group on Social Forestry and the ASEAN Secretariat.

Click here to register for the event.

Background  

Tenure covers multiple rights, including, at a minimum, the right to access, the right to make management decisions, and the right to withdraw resources from a particular area. The FAO in 2002 further defined customary forest tenure as a set of rules and norms that govern a community’s relationship and use of forest, land, and other natural resources. It is a set of socially legitimate, informal, and de facto rules and norms that regulate community allocation, use, access, and transfer of these natural resources. These ancestral lands are important as these are the source of indigenous peoples’/adat community’/ethnic minorities’/ethnic groups’ cultural, spiritual, social, and political identities and the foundation of traditional knowledge systems. The State of the World’s Forest in 2018 underscored that clear and secure tenure rights are essential prerequisites for the sustainable management of natural resources. Recognizing customary tenure also provides critical steps to address forest and land conflicts.

Social forestry across the region is pursued within a context of providing stronger tenure rights to communities. While there is no common model or approach for promoting social forestry from the regional level to the national level, however, many of the models of social forestry relate to customary tenure. Social forestry has to some extent, facilitated recognition of customary forest tenure, because, in the process of clarifying tenure for social forestry, in effect, it clarifies customary tenure.

While progress has been recognized in tenure and safeguards at the ASEAN (regional) level, challenges and gaps remain.  Pathways to formalize and recognize customary rights are unclear. The recognition of the tenure of indigenous peoples and local communities conserved areas and territories and their associated traditional knowledge is still weak. Due to large-scale public and private sector megadevelopment projects, indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) are more vulnerable to conflicts. For customary forest tenure, access and ownership are still conditional and restricted in several cases. Cases of encroachments in customary land and forests threaten customary rights and impede traditional livelihood and customary conservation and resource management practices. In the social forestry areas and programs, in most countries, customary forests are recognized. However, there are still areas where recognition remains weak.

The ASEAN Working Group on Social Forestry (AWG-SF) is an established WG under the ASEAN Senior Officials on Forestry (ASOF), which is mandated to provide policy recommendations/oriented research on social forestry within the context of sustainable forest management and responding to the emergence issues on the impact of social forestry. The working group is also mandated to develop and regularly review its Plan of Action (PoA) for ASEAN Cooperation on Social Forestry and identify key priority areas of social forestry that contribute to the Strategic Plan of Action for ASEAN cooperation in forestry 2016 – 2025.

In 2020, the AWG-SF’s plan of action for the ASEAN Cooperation on Forestry, identified two priority activities under Strategic Thrust 1, Activity 1.1.3a concerning customary tenure and Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). First, there is a need to review customary and statutory tenure arrangements at the national, including access and use rights, of indigenous and ethnic peoples, local communities, forest dwellers, and other forest-dependent communities. This is to ensure that they are recognized and respected, and protected by effective legislation. Another is to support mainstreaming the principle of FPIC in forestry-related decision-making efforts. The priorities mentioned above are an important entry point for continued dialogue and discussion among relevant stakeholders on customary tenure recognition and FPIC in the forestry sector.

As we recognize the above-mentioned conditions, challenges, and opportunities, it is vital to continue the discussion and knowledge sharing on recognizing customary tenure and understanding the importance and challenges in implementing key mechanisms that facilitate this recognition, particularly, FPIC and other existing safeguards to support customary tenure recognition.

This technical seminar and knowledge-sharing activity is the first part of a series of discussions of the AWGSF with andamong relevant stakeholders to understand and unpack the current situation, challenges, and opportunities of recognizing customary tenure and free prior and informed consent in forested landscapes. The result of this knowledge sharing and the succeeding policy dialogues and discussions will feed into the process of developing an ASEAN Guidelines on Customary Tenure Recognition in Forested Landscapes.

Objectives

The technical seminar and knowledge-sharing activity aim to provide a platform for the ASEAN Member States with CSOs and indigenous peoples organizations, and other relevant sectors to discuss and understand the current trends and opportunities on customary forest tenure/customary tenure and FPIC within the ASEAN countries and generate useful inputs into the development of a regional policy framework on customary tenure recognition.

Specifically, it hopes to achieve the following:

1. Share and present existing global, regional, and country trends, situation/status, challenges, and opportunities that facilitates and hinders customary tenure recognition and FPIC implementation
2. Present and collectively review the draft zero briefing paper and outline for an ASEAN Guidelines on Customary Tenure Recognition in Forested Landscapes
3. Present and discuss elements, potential entry points, guiding principles, and key opportunities that need to be explored and implemented to have an adequate, effective regional framework on customary tenure recognition; and
4. Among the AWG-SF, discuss the draft outline and identify areas for collaboration and opportunities at the country and regional level to support the AMS, CSOs, indigenous peoples organizations and other relevant sectors’ initiatives to implement the recognition of customary tenure and promote FPIC and other existing safeguards

Expected results

• Provided a platform for knowledge-sharing and learning opportunities for AMS, CSOs, indigenous peoples organizations, and other relevant sectors to discuss and understand the current global, regional, and national policy frameworks and practice landscape on customary forest tenure/customary tenure and FPIC
• Reviewed and discussed a Draft Zero briefing paper and outline of the ASEAN Guideline on Customary Tenure Recognition in Forested Landscapes
• Key elements and guiding principles for the ASEAN Guideline on Customary Tenure Recognition in Forested Landscapes identified and mapped out
• Identified key opportunities and action points for synergy and way forward to support the AMS, CSOs, indigenous peoples’ organizations, and other relevant sectors/stakeholders to implement and operationalize the recognition of customary tenure, FPIC, and other existing safeguards

Target Participants

• ASEAN Member State Representatives working in the forestry and environment sector
• Civil society organizations
• National CT alliance members in the Mekong region
• Regional CT Alliance Members
• Indigenous people and local community representatives
• Government officials
• Relevant regional and national bodies
• Relevant development partners

Format and schedule

To have a manageable, more focused discussion and sharing, the policy dialogue will be sub-divided into two parts: Mekong Countries (The technical seminar & knowledge-sharing activity will be divided into two main parts: the first part will have more focus on the trends, issues, and opportunities on customary tenure recognition and FPIC at the global, regional, and country-level. On the other hand, the second part will be a discussion of the ASEAN Working Group on social forestry on the draft zero outline of the ASEAN Guideline on Customary tenure recognition in forested landscapes. The result of these activities will be consolidated and synthesized to inform the overall guideline development process.

Click here to register for the event.

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For questions and other concerns about the event please contact Dazzle Labapis (dazzle.labapis@ntfp.org)

Forest honey and bee experts from Asia, Australia and Europe gathered online last August 20, 2021 for the Apis cerana (Asian honey bee) Expert Consultation and Workshop to discuss sustainable harvest and management protocols for NTFPs, the Forest Harvest Collective Mark (FHCM), and expanding the FHCM standards and NTFP protocols to include Apis cerana.

In the workshop co-organized by NTFP-EP and the ASEAN Center for Biodiversity, the morning session featured an introduction by Nola Andaya (NTFP-EP Asia) of the FHCM, with Theophila Aris Praptami (Dian Niaga) presenting the existing standards and protocols for Apis dorsata honey. Diana San Jose (NTFP-EP Asia) then presented the NTFP Sustainable Harvesting and Resource Management Protocols for Honey, which was part of the guidelines adopted by the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry last October 21, 2020.

Presentations on Apis cerana began with an overview of the species and types of honey production system by Dr. Phung Huu Chinh (Mountainous Bee Development Centre), a discussion on sustainable beekeeping and native bee subspecies conservation by Eric Guerin, and management of Apis cerana in its natural environment by Dr. Ranchit Wasanta Kumara Punchihewa (Apiculture for Government and NGO).

Rounding out the morning session are presentations by Robert Leo on Apis cerana Harvest Techniques and by Sunnti Duangtavanh (Green Community Development Association) on the beekeeping experience in Laos and the implementation of the Participatory Guarantee System for honey.

The workshop resumed in the afternoon with breakout room discussions on different themes such as threats, legality, sustainability, quality, socio-cultural aspects, ethical trade, and traceability of Apis cerana.

“[The] expert consultation workshop on Apis cerana or Asian honey bee is a key step in this important partnership. We believe that working together with NTFP-EP, our works will ultimately contribute to the greater benefit of indigenous peoples and local communities engaged in the value chain development of biodiversity-based products,” said Clarissa Arida, the director of the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity.

“We hope to live up to the NTFP network so we may look at continuing our earlier biodiversity-based product works towards participating in the development of the FHCM, and that we would be able to continue our cooperation so that we can continue to support these initiatives that we have successfully initiated in these pilot countries,” she added.

The workshop presentations and inputs will be consolidated and presented on the upcoming CBNE Forum 2021: A Season of Learning on 13-14 October 2021 which will inform policy and practice in the region.

Click here to watch a playlist of all presentations.

NTFP-EP Asia and NTFP-EP Malaysia have signed a letter along with a hundred organizations asking Malaysian timber giant Samling to withdraw its defamation suit against one of our partners, SAVE Rivers, and its board members.

The suit claims SAVE Rivers made defamatory statements against Samling in several press releases throughout 2020 and 2021, questioning the sustainability of their logging operations in Sarawak and the certification process by the Malaysian Timber Certification Council. The signatories from Malaysia and around the world believe this suit is strategic litigation against public participation (SLAPP), and is part of a growing international trend of silencing human rights and environmental defenders.

We stand in solidarity with our fellow signatories in calling for an end to the harassment of Indigenous environmental and human rights defenders.

The full text of the letter can be found below (via The Borneo Project)

To: Yaw Chee Ming, CEO, Samling Group

Dear Mr. Yaw Chee Ming,

The following organisations ask that Samling withdraw its legal suit against SAVE Rivers and its board members, and provide the communities of Samling’s Gerenai and Ravenscourt concessions in Sarawak with all of the environmental and social impact assessments conducted for the certification, including the High Conservation Value assessment. 

The suit claims SAVE Rivers made defamatory statements about the company in several press releases throughout 2020 and 2021. We believe this suit is strategic litigation against public participation (SLAPP), and is part of a growing international trend of silencing human rights and environmental defenders. 

Instead of addressing the very legitimate concerns of Sarawak’s indigenous communities and engaging in a meaningful dialogue, Samling has resorted to legal action. The suit against SAVE Rivers was filed while a case is pending with the Malaysian Timber Certification Council’s Dispute Resolution Committee. This undermines the necessary and clearly regulated dispute resolution process. 

The following signatories fully support SAVE Rivers and the Indigenous communities expressing concerns over certification, and demand that Samling refrain from legal action against civil society organizations and local communities. 

We urge Samling to drop the SLAPP suit against SAVE Rivers and its directors, to release all relevant project documentation, and to engage in meaningful consultations with local communities about their lands. 

Signed,

1stopborneo wildlife 

350.org Asia

350.org Japan

Advancing Knowledge in Democracy and Law initiative 

Agora Society Malaysia

Alaska Clean Water Advocacy

Aliran

All Women’s Action Society

Alternatives to Violence Project Malaysia

Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (ABIM)

Association of Toy Libraries Malaysia 

Biofuelwatch

Blueprint for Free Speech

Bob Brown Foundation

Bruno Manser Fund

BRWA (Badan Registrasi Wilayah Adat) – Indonesia

California Trade Justice Coalition

Canopée 

Caritas Diocese of MiriI

Center for Orang Asli Concerns

Center to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4 Center)

Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) Malaysia

Childline Foundation 

Clean Air Action Group

Climate Wise Women

COECOCEIBA – Friends of the Earth Costa Rica

Colong Foundation for Wilderness

Covenant Tribal Solar Initiative

Earth Island Institute

Earthsight

Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA)

Environmental Paper Network (EPN)

Environmental Protection Information Center

Environmental Protection Society Malaysia (EPSM)

Family Frontiers 

FECOFUN

Fern

ForestCom 

Forum Ökologie & Papier

Free Tree Society Kuala Lumpur

Friends of the Earth International

G25 Malaysia

Gabungan Darurat Iklim

Green Empowerment

GreenFaith

Greenpeace Southeast Asia 

Health In Harmony

ICCA Consortium

International Forum on Globalization

International Rivers

Japan Tropical Forest Action Network

Jaringan Kerja Pemetaan Partisiaptif (JKPP)

Justice for Sisters 

Kaoem Telapak

KERUAN Organisation

Kiu & Co.

LEAP – Land Empowerment Animals People

Malaysian CARE

Melbourne Rainforest Action Group

MyHutan

Non-Timber Forest Products Exchange Programme Asia 

Non-Timber Forest Products Exhange Programme Malaysia

North South Initiative 

Nuclear Consulting Group (NCG)

OGM dangers

Ohmsi Sdn Bhd

Oil Change International

Partners of Community Organisations (PACOS)

Penang Forum

Pergerakan Tenaga Akademik Malaysia (GERAK)

Persatuan Kesedaran dan Keadilan Iklim Malaysia – Klima Action Malaysia ( KAMY )

Persatuan Sahabat Wanita Selangor

Pertubuhan Alam Sekitar Sejahtera Malaysia -GRASS 

Pronatura – Friends of the Earth Switzerland

Pusat KOMAS 

Rainforest Action Network

Raptors Are The Solution

Real Food Real Stories

Rettet den Regenwald (Rainforest Rescue)

Sacred Land Film Project

Sahabat Alam Malaysia, Friends of the Earth Malaysia

Salva la Selva, Spain

Seacology

Seeding Sovereignty

Sisters in Islam (SIS)

Siti Kasim & Associates 

Society for Threatened Peoples (STP)

Stop Fish Bombing USA

Sustainable Development Network Malaysia

TENAGANITA 

Terabai Kenyalang Heritage Association of Sarawak 

The Altai Project

The Borneo Project

The KL & Sel Chinese Assembly Hall Women Division 

The Oakland Institute

The Woodland League

Third World Network

Thousand Currents

Treat Every Environment Special

Undi Sarawak

Viva Sierra Gorda

Western Australian Forest Alliance (WAFA)

Statement by Peter Kallang, Chairperson of the Southeast Asia Regional Council of the ICCA Consortium.
For information about the conference, click here.

Good morning ladies & gentlemen and thanks to the ASEAN Center for Biodiversity for this opportunity. I am delivering this message as the Chairperson of the Southeast Asian Regional Council of the ICCA Consortium, an association of indigenous and community organisations and civil societies. The ICCA Consortium has members in 80 countries around the world. Members in ASEAN are Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, and Vietnam.

The ICCA Consortium’s new report on territories of life adds to the evidence that Indigenous peoples and local communities play an outsized role in sustaining a healthy planet. They do so because of the deep relationships between their cultures, territories, governance systems, and other species and spiritual beings. One of the biggest opportunities to address both the biodiversity and climate crises is to support Indigenous peoples and local communities to secure their rights and their collective lands and territories.

A new spatial analysis co-published with UNEP-WCMC estimates that Indigenous peoples and local communities are actively conserving more than one-fifth of the world’s lands and at least one-third of intact forest landscapes globally. However, they are doing so largely without any form of legal recognition or support.

There are many powerful examples of these findings right here in Southeast Asia. For example, in the Philippines, an estimated 75% of remaining forests overlap with Indigenous peoples’ territories. An assessment of just 10 ICCAs in the country found that they store 10.5 million tons of carbon, equivalent to gas emissions of at least 7 million cars per annum. In Indonesia, over 11 million hectares of Indigenous territories have been mapped across the country. Over 460,000 hectares have been registered and uploaded to a national land rights portal. At least an additional 2.9 million hectares of the country are estimated to be conserved by Indigenous peoples and local communities. 

Territories and areas conserved by Indigenous peoples and local communities are sometimes abbreviated as “ICCAs” or “territories of life”. Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Parties have recognised ICCAs in a wide range of decisions at every COP since 2004. A number of countries around the world recognise ICCAs in some form within national and sub-national laws and policies. For example, Malaysia recognises ICCAs in its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. Other countries such as the Philippines have strong legal frameworks for Indigenous peoples’ rights. These provide positive opportunities for appropriate recognition and support, which must always be done in accordance with the communities’ rights and self-determination.

However, there is a huge implementation gap between what Parties recognise in the CBD and what is implemented at the national level, just as we see implementation gaps in laws and policies that support the rights and territories of indigenous peoples and communities. In both cases, this is often because social and environmental priorities are trumped by harmful economic industries such as logging, dams, mining and infrastructure in our homelands without our free, prior and informed consent, and in one too many instances even at grave risk to the lives of our families, communities and peoples. Some examples where we face these deep concerns are in the Tumandok and Dumagat-Agta-Remontado territories in the Philippines, in the Baram Peace Park in my homeland of Sarawak, Malaysia, and in the internationally recognized Salween Peace Park in Karen territory in Myanmar.

As the UN negotiations on the post-2020 framework intensify, the time is now to recognise Indigenous peoples and local communities as the true agents of transformative change. Supporting us to secure our rights and collective lands and territories of life is arguably a key ‘missing link’ in global commitments and national level implementation – and therefore, also one of the biggest opportunities for leadership and convergence.

On behalf of the ICCA Consortium’s membership in Southeast Asia, we are calling on the ASEAN member states to:

• Recognise the outsized contributions of Indigenous peoples and local communities to biodiversity, including by expediting the appropriate legal recognition of their rights and collective lands and territories of life.
• Recognise human rights as central to an effective and equitable post-2020 global biodiversity framework and ensure minimum safeguards to prevent human rights violations in the name of conservation.
• Protect Indigenous peoples and local communities against violence when they are defending their territories of life against threats, and halt the industrial drivers of biodiversity loss.
• Support communities’ self-determined initiatives to strengthen and sustain themselves and their territories.

Thank you.

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Peter Kallang is the current Chairperson of the Southeast Asia Regional Council of the ICCA Consortium. Peter is Kenyah, one of Borneo’s Indigenous ethnic groups, from Sarawak, Malaysia. He is the founding chair of SAVE Rivers Network (an ICCA Consortium member), a coalition of 8 non-governmental organisations and society-based organisations that mobilize the defense of indigenous territories and frontier landscapes against the construction of hydroelectric dams in Sarawak, Malaysia.

PALAWAN, PHILIPPINES – The Green Livelihoods Alliance (GLA) in the Philippines denounces the resumption of mine operations in Brooke’s Point, Palawan, and the Office of the Ombudsman’s suspension order on Brooke’s Point Mayor Maryjean Feliciano for her actions protecting the forested watershed from destructive mining. The GLA calls on government agencies to instead listen to the community voices who have long stood against the destructive mining in forested watersheds of Palawan.

On June 16, 2021, reports surfaced that the ombudsman issued a suspension order against Brooke’s Point Mayor Maryjean Feliciano, ruling in favor of Ipilan Nickel Corporation’s (INC) complaint on account of the local government’s orders to demolish INC’s mining-related structures within the watershed in 2017.

“The suspension order [for Mayor Feliciano] is troubling and can have a chilling effect on environmental defenders. If a local official can be suspended for representing the voice of her/his constituents in the fight against a destructive and extractive project, ordinary folks who are fighting mining can be harassed,” said Attorney Grizelda Mayo-Anda of the Environmental Legal Assistance Center, a GLA consortium member.

“[The] 25,000 trees cut by INC have more ecological value compared to the INC structures which were ordered demolished by the good mayor,” Mayo-Anda added. An estimated 25,000 trees were cut by INC in Maasin, Brooke’s Point, as part of its clearing operations in 2017.

A local Pala’wan women’s group, Mga Kalebonan et BICAMM (MKE-BICAMM) is leading a campaign in support of Mayor Feliciano.

“Kami ang unang impact area kapag natuloy ang pagmimina dito po sa bayan ng Brooke’s Point dahil lupaing ninuno namin ang miminahin. Unang maapektuhan ang mga kababaihan, pati mga sakahan sa ibaba ng miminahing lugar. Noon pa man ipinaglalaban ng aming mayor, hanggang sa ngayon, para sa kabutihan ng buong Brooke’s Point. Ang kanyang iniisip ay hindi ang pansariling kapakanan, kundi mas lalo’t higit sa mga katutubo,” the group said.

[Translation: We are the first impact area if mining operations resume in the town of Brooke’s Point because it is our ancestral lands that will be mined. Women will be the first affected, as well as the farmland below the mining area. From back then until now, our mayor had fought for the good of the whole of Brooke’s Point. She wasn’t only concerned for her own welfare, she was more concerned with the indigenous peoples.”]

The local government of Brooke’s Point, led by Mayor Feliciano, has staunchly supported indigenous communities, farmer associations, local residents, women, youth, and civil society groups’ resistance to large scale mines within the forests and watersheds of Brooke’s Point. The indigenous Pala’wan groups Pineuntungan Et KePelewanan (PEKP) BICAMM, and the Kabatangan Ancestral Domain ng Sampung Barangay (KAD10) expressed support for Mayor Feliciano’s anti-mining stance and the petition to recall the suspension order

“Sapagkat ipinaglalaban niya [ni Mayor Feliciano] kami na mapanatili at maprotektahan ang aming kalikasan na nagbibigay sa amin ng saganang buhay sa pamamagitan ng agrikultura, malinis na tubig at hangin, balanseng ecosystem na pinaninirahan ng biodiversity. Kaya, kung igagawad sa kanya ang suspension, para na rin kaming binalewala sa pagbibigay ng aming sagradong boto sa tatlong termino niya bilang mayor,” the groups said.

[Translation: “Because she [Mayor Feliciano] has fought with us to maintain and protect our environment that has given us bountiful living through agriculture, clean water, air, and a balanced ecosystem where biodiversity thrives. That is why, if they impose the suspension on her, it would be tantamount to disregarding our sacred votes that we gave her in her three terms as mayor.”]

Large-scale mining in Brooke’s Point continues to threaten the watershed as well as indigenous and local communities within the Mt. Mantalingahan Protected Landscape, the largest terrestrial protected area in Palawan. The INC mining site in Brooke’s Point threatens major water sources that supply close to 2,000 hectares of farmlands, and more than 20,000 residents in six barangays.

In 2017, the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development cancelled the Strategic Environmental Program Clearance granted to INC, as 90% of the mining site is located within natural forests and the core zone where mining is prohibited. That same year, a Palawan court issued a Temporary Environmental Protection Order calling on INC to cease mining activities and rehabilitate the forest areas they had destroyed. On August 26, 2018, INC’s Mineral Production Sharing Agreement with the government expired.

The Green Livelihoods Alliance denounces the DENR’s withdrawal of its cancellation of INC’s Mineral Production Sharing Agreement last June 2020, which extended the MPSA until 2025, recalled its cease and desist order, and restored INC’s Environmental Compliance Certificate.

The Green Livelihoods Alliance stands with Palawenyos’ resisting large-scale mining in Brooke’s Point, and recognizes the support of the local government, including Mayor Feliciano, to indigenous peoples’ groups, farmers, local residents intent on safeguarding the life-giving watersheds, clean air, water, food, and livelihoods threatened by large-scale, destructive mining operations.

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The Green Livelihoods Alliance is an alliance that aims to ensure that tropical forests and forest landscapes are sustainably and inclusively governed to mitigate and adapt to climate change, fulfil human rights and safeguard local livelihoods in twelve countries in South America, Africa and Asia, as well as internationally, the Alliance works with Civil Society Organisations, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.

For more information on this story, please contact Gaby Alegre (09989595791) or Rowena Combang of Mga Kalebonan et BICAMM (09683759967).

Enterprises managed by rural and indigenous communities will take the spotlight for the inaugural Forest Harvest CBNE Forum taking place this 1-5 June to highlight their untapped potential in contributing to forest conservation and community well-being.

Known as “community-based non-timber forest product enterprises” (CBNEs), these groups use materials gathered from their local forests to create market products like food, drinks, medicines, fabrics, handicrafts, accessories and many others. In turn, a portion of their income is then used to fund conservation efforts that protect the forest they live and harvest in.

The five-day online forum is co-organized by the Non-Timber Forest Products – Exchange Programme (NTFP-EP), the Green Livelihoods Alliance, the Forest and Farm Facility, the International Forestry Students’ Association, RECOFTC and the Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development.

“As millions of people in Asia depend on non-timber forest products for their livelihood, CBNEs help bring important natural products to the food, furniture, medicine and cosmetic industries,” said Crissy Guerrero, the senior advisor for strategic programmes of NTFP-EP Asia.

“Even before the pandemic, CBNEs were already struggling to access markets, learn skills, and upgrade their systems and technologies. The pandemic has not made it easy for them, but with this online forum, we wish to provide the opportunity to continue to share knowledge, connect sectors, and provide market opportunities for CBNEs through a suite of interactive and innovative activities,” she added.

Featuring expert speakers in the field of community forestry and enterprise development, the Forest Harvest CBNE Forum will host a variety of sessions focusing on three key streams: Capacity, Connectivity & Creativity, and Conducive Environment.

The Capacity stream features talks, roundtable sessions, coaching clinics, master class sessions and a storytelling competition. The Connectivity & Creativity stream explores interactive problem solving through a panel talk show, a branding clinic and a hackathon competition. Lastly, the Conducive Environment promotes policies and research findings that support CBNEs through talks and sessions with ASEAN bodies on protocols and government policies.

“Events like these help us expand our partnerships, gain recognition and give us opportunities to promote the traditional products made by cooperatives like ours,” said Emelly Lanzon, manager of Handicrafts of Aklan Multi-Purpose Cooperative (HAMPCO) in Aklan, Philippines. HAMPCO uses the income from their loom woven products to advocate for women empowerment, fair trade practices and environmental sustainability.

Participants from communities, CBNE practitioners, policymakers from the forestry, social and MSME sectors; and the private sector in the field of natural products are all welcome to participate in the forum. The youth, international and national donors, local organizations, researchers, scientists and non-government organizations are also all welcome to participate and represent their sectors.

Students and members of CBNEs can register for the forum free of charge. Aside from English, interpretations for Thai, Filipino, Bahasa Indonesia, Khmer, Vietnamese and more will be provided.

To learn more about the Forest Harvest CBNE Forum and register as a participant, visit www.forestharvestforum.com.

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NTFP-EP and the Civil Society Organizations Forum on Social Forestry in ASEAN (CSO Forum in ASEAN) will engage in several important plenary and breakout group sessions in the upcoming 3rd Mekong Regional Land Forum 2021 to be held on 26-27 May 2021. 

The 3rd Mekong Regional Land Forum will bring together reform-minded actors within and beyond the region to engage in an in-depth, interactive debate on issues that cut to the core of local tenure security and community resource management.

NTFP-EP and the CSO Forum in ASEAN will be in the following plenary and breakout sessions:

Session 2a (Plenary): May 26, 2021, 2:00PM – 2:45PM GMT +7 (Indochina time)
Increasing Customary and Collective Forest Tenure in the Mekong through a CFT Regional Policy Framework
Breakout (Regional): May 26, 2021, 3:45PM – 4:30PM GMT +7 (Indochina time)
Critical Elements in Customary Tenure Regional Policy Framework in ASEAN’s Forested Landscapes

Breakout (Regional): May 27, 11:00AM – 11:45PM GMT +7 (Indochina time)
Opportunities and Entry Points within ASEAN for Promoting and Applying FPIC to support Customary Tenure recognition (EN)
Session 3d: Online/Plenary: May 27, 12:00 PM – 12:15 PM GMT +7 (Indochina time)
Key takeaways and plans for further actions

This event is organized by the Mekong Regional Land Governance, Land Portal, the Swiss Development Cooperation, GIZ, GRET, and Land Equity International.

Click here to register for the the two-day event online

Click here to view the full agenda

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NTFP-EP Asia has launched a new podcast called #CommunitiesSpeak, a podcast hosted by the HIVE knowledge exchange and e-learning platform of the Non-Timber Forest Products Exchange Programme.

The #CommunitiesSpeak Podcast started as a call to action led by the consortium of NTFP-EP, the Asia Indigenous People Pact (AIPP), and the Asian Farmers Association (AFA) during the Asia Pacific Forestry Week back in 2016. The podcast aims to continue this work by amplifying the voice of our partner communities: representatives of civil society organizations and communities of smallholders, community forest producers and enterprises, and indigenous peoples living in forests and forested landscapes and their support groups

In celebration of this years’ Earth Day, the first episode features a conversation with John Vincent “Toto” Colili, an indigenous youth leader of the Samahan ng Nagkakaisang Katutubong Kabataan (SNaKK), in Palawan, Philippines.

Colili discussed their initiatives that contribute to restoring and protecting their forest ecosystems in their ancestral land. He also shared his experience, challenges, and advice to fellow youth on the importance of youth participation and youth organizing in environmental issues and some personal thoughts and outlook on youth engagement for healthy forests and healthy earth. 

Click here to visit the Spotify page for the podcast.

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#CommunitiesSpeak Podcast
Produced by: NTFP-EP HIVE 
Hosted by: Dazzle Labapis of NTFP-EP Asia, and Gaby Alegre of NTFP-EP Philippines  
Edited by: Jon Robin Bustamante, NTFP-EP Asia 
Music: Lake Victoria by Antti Luode (CC BY 3.0 license) 

For more questions, suggestions, send us an email: hive@ntfp.org  

The Green Livelihoods Alliance (GLA) in the Philippines is alarmed and dismayed by the issuance of Executive Order 130 re-allowing new mining projects in the country.

On April 15, 2021 the Malacañang released Executive Order (EO) 130 signed by President Rodrigo Duterte, lifting the nine-year ban on new mineral agreements, in the guise of economic recovery amidst the pandemic. Yet the mining sector contributes only 0.89 percent to the Philippine GDP, and constitutes 5.99 percent of its total exports.¹ EO 130 again opens up the country’s rich natural forests, watersheds, and key biodiversity areas to destructive exploration and extraction, and further exacerbates the risks to communities and future generations of Filipinos.

“Lifting the mining moratorium exposes his administration’s support for mining projects that will impact our water, food supply, forest, biodiversity, indigenous communities, and fragile island ecosystems,” said GLA consortium member Alyansa Tigil Mina.

As we face the climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing new mining will only endanger already environmentally-critical landscapes and threaten indigenous peoples, farmers, fishers, and local rural and island communities who rely on these life-giving ecosystems. Tropical forests and forest landscapes must be sustainably and inclusively governed to mitigate and adapt to climate change, fulfill human rights and safeguard local livelihoods—EO 130 does the exact opposite.

We call on the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Department of Finance, and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples to heed the calls of mining-affected communities and local governments, and support legislation that promotes inclusive governance and a just minerals regime that safeguards local livelihoods, health, and safety, such as the Alternative Minerals Management Bill (AMMB), which has already been filed both in the House of Representatives and in the Senate.

We urge the Office of the President to cancel EO 130, and instead fulfill his earlier promises of putting the environment and welfare of Filipinos first, and lead us towards a just, green recovery. 

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¹ Philippine Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. (2021). 2018 Report. Retrieved from https://eiti.org/es/implementing_country/2

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The Green Livelihoods Alliance is an alliance that aims to ensure that tropical forests and forest landscapes are sustainably and inclusively governed to mitigate and adapt to climate change, fulfil human rights and safeguard local livelihoods in twelve countries in South America, Africa and Asia, as well as internationally, the Alliance works with Civil Society Organisations, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.