Indigenous women farmers in Bataraza, southern Palawan, Philippines, plant upland rice in now-controlled slash-and-burn areas. Bataraza is a municipality nestled in the foothills of Mount Mantaligahan, 140 km south of Puerto Princesa City in Palawan, Phiippines. Within the vast Mount Mantalingahan mountain range lies the Mount Mantalingahan Protected Landscape. Covering 120,457 hectares of forest, this protected area serves as the headwater of 33 watersheds and is home to many highly-endangered wildlife species. In terms of farming, slash-and-burn agriculture has been used by the local communities for many generations, but its effect in today’s diminishing state of natural resources has been destructive and unsustainable. The USAID-funded Protect Wildlife Project, in cooperation with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, is helping indigenous people improve upland farming and strengthen local livelihoods so they won't need to expand their slash-and-burn areas or resort to wildlife poaching just to make ends meet. These women farmers have been taught the proper upland farming techniques, such as using a minimum land area for inter-cropping of vegetables and fruit trees. Slash-and-burn agriculture causes deforestation, accidental fires, habitat and species loss, increased air pollution and the release of carbon into the atmosphere, which contributes to global climate change. Photo taken in Palawan, Philippines on June 18, 2019.
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Stacks of sustainable charcoal produced at Mampu cooperative site outside of Kinshasa visited as part of a scoping mission looking at alternative local species to integrate into agroforestry woodfuel systems to increase the volume of sustainable charcoal supply for urban areas in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, carried out by the U.S. Forest Service International Programs and supported by USAID’s Africa Bureau in July 2018. Charcoal is the main source of cooking fuel in the the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and an increasing urban demand for it is resulting in forest degradation and deforestation.
A group of artisanal fishermen in Bahía Solano, along Colombia’s Pacific coast, learned how to improve their livelihoods while mitigating overfishing through Emprende Pacífico, an initiative implemented by ACDI/VOCA and the Ministry of Labor, in 2016. They learned sustainable fishing techniques, such as ending the practice of dragging large nets that catch all sorts of marine life and limiting the size of fish they capture. The initiative helped reduce conflict, as fishing communities experienced better livelihoods and fewer incentives to turn to informal work, such as drug trafficking, illegal mining, and other illicit activities that continue the cycle of violence.
Illegal alluvial gold mining in Colombia is a complex phenomenon that not only sweeps away vegetation but alters the balance of ecosystems through aggressive mechanical extraction methods that create deserts. In Antioquia, Colombia this has degraded over 45 thousand hectares of land, stripping away valuable trees that can absorb carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the main greenhouse gases. The USAID-Oro Legal Activity brought together indigenous and Afro Colombian communities, the private sector, and local and departmental governments to mitigate the environmental impact of uncontrolled mineral exploitation on more than one thousand hectares of degraded ex-mining land. Today 1,133,220 Acacia mangium trees and other native species are greening large tracts of land where just a few years ago only rocks and bare soil could be found.
Many farmers in coastal Sierra Leone cultivate rice as their staple food. In doing that, they clear land including mangrove forests to make way for their rice farms. Unfortunately, this has a counterproductive effect as the water during high tides overwhelms the rice farms and destroys these crops. WA BiCC introduced this new approach called "rice-mangrove integration" where mangrove plants are replanted around the rice farms to protect the rice crops from overwhelming amounts of water. These mangrove forests also serve as spawning grounds for fish, oysters, and other aquatic species, increasing food security in these communities, including Bonthe in coastal Sierra Leone.
Briquettes are blocks of flammable matter made from biodegradable waste. Rural households in Uganda use them to cook food. They burn with no air pollution; hence, maintain hygiene protecting natural systems in a changing world.
Briquettes are also cheaper and affordable than traditional charcoal. Additionally, they are made from locally available materials and waste improves sanitation. Briquette making is a simple and affordable technology. Above all they are important for protecting natural systems in a changing world for instance of cutting many trees, waste from charcoal made from forests may be utilized.
In March 2019, in Lam Dong Province, Vietnam, an ethnic minority woman practices receiving money on her mobile phone for the first time through Vietnam's Payments for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) mechanism. The PFES program addresses climate change by providing financial compensation to people living in the forest to protect and improve the landscape. The USAID/Vietnam’s Vietnam Forests and Deltas project improves the transparency and accountability of PFES by supporting the transition from cash-based payments to electronic payments. This Vietnam Forests and Deltas project is implemented by Winrock International in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam.
In March 2019, in Lam Dong Province, Vietnam, forest owners living in Cat Tien National Park learn how register to receive payments through their mobile phone through Vietnam's Payments for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) mechanism. They also learn how to access money once a payment is made, and how to transfer the money to other accounts. Vietnam’s PFES program addresses climate change by providing financial compensation to people living in the forest to protect and improve the landscape. The USAID/Vietnam’s Vietnam Forests and Deltas project improves the transparency and accountability of PFES by supporting the transition from cash-based payments to electronic payments. This Vietnam Forests and Deltas project is implemented by Winrock International in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam.
In March 2019 in Son La Province, Vietnam the USAID/Vietnam Vietnam Forests and Deltas Project joined with Son La Province for a ceremonial tree planting commemorating Vietnam’s commitment to sustainable development. In Son La Province, the Vietnam Forests and Deltas project supports Vietnam’s Payments for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) mechanism. The project supports the transition from cash-based payments to electronic payments to improve transparency and accountability, and works with provincial authorities to better monitor and evaluate the impact PFES has on Vietnam’s forests. The Vietnam Forests and Deltas project is implemented by Winrock International in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam.
In March 2016 in Nghe An Province, the USAID/Vietnam Vietnam Forests and Deltas Project worked with forest rangers in Pu Hoat Natural Reserve to use tablets to improve forest monitoring. The Vietnam Forests and Deltas project supports Vietnam’s Payments for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) mechanism to better monitor and evaluate the impact PFES has on Vietnam’s forests. The Vietnam Forests and Deltas project is implemented by Winrock International in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam.
In January 2019 in Lam Dong Province, a woman successfully withdraws cash from a distribution point in her village using her mobile phone through Vietnam's Payments for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) mechanism. The PFES program addresses climate change by providing financial compensation to people living in the forest to protect and improve the landscape. The USAID/Vietnam’s Vietnam Forests and Deltas project improves the transparency and accountability of PFES by supporting the transition from cash-based payments to electronic payments. The Vietnam Forests and Deltas project is implemented by Winrock International in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam.
Mrs. Noun Muoyheang fundraising to support her community’s fish conservation efforts in Aren, Pursat province, Cambodia. Noun and other community members have used these funds to plant trees and to make lasting improvements to key local fish habitats. With support from the USAID-funded Feed the Future Cambodia Rice Field Fisheries II project, 140 Cambodian communities like Noun’s have raised over US$150,000 to support and sustain their fish conservation efforts. Over 100 communities have expanded local dry season fish refuges, including in partnership with local government and the private sector. These expanded refuges provide wild fish with sustained protection from climate shocks such as seasonal and unseasonable dry periods, thus protecting a valuable resource that many local families rely on. Photo credit: Nin Mao, ANKO
A man harvests water lilies from a Community Fish Refuge in Pursat, Cambodia. The Feed the Future Cambodia Rice Field Fisheries II is supporting 140 communities in rural Cambodia to improve and manage local Community Fish Refuges to provide improved habitat and protection for valuable wild fish populations, and to provide water for many other uses, particularly in seasonal and unseasonable dry periods. Well-managed fish refuges led to a 71% increase in fish catch by the poorest households, strengthening food and nutrition security. Photo credit:
Fishermen in Pursat, Cambodia collect the fish caught in their bamboo fish traps from the surrounding seasonally-flooded rice fields. Thanks to the USAID-funded Feed the Future Cambodia Rice Field Fisheries II project, people in 140 communities are trained and resourced to improve and protect fish habitats. This in turn helps to protect local fish from climate shocks and illegal fishing, thus helping to secure a valuable public resource for future generations. By 2021, the project will benefit over 290,000 people in four provinces of rural Cambodia. Photo credit: Fani Llauradó / WorldFish.
Men throw cast nets into a water body in Pursat province, Cambodia. In rural Cambodia, people eat fish 4-5 times per week – more often than any other meat. Thanks to the USAID-funded Feed the Future Cambodia Rice Field Fisheries II project, people in 140 communities are trained and resourced to improve and protect fish habitats. This in turn helps to protect local fish from climate shocks and illegal fishing, thus helping to secure a valuable public resource for future generations. By 2021, this project will benefit over 290,000 fishing families in four provinces of rural Cambodia. Photo credit: Fani Llauradó / WorldFish.
Costa Rica, November 2014. The fertile fields of Costa Rica as seen from the slopes of Irazú volcano. Costa Rica's government acknowledges the importance of environmental sustainability, and has created many programs to incentivize good practices by the agriculture and infrastructure sectors, among others.