ArBolivia Reforestation Project

BACKGROUND

ArBolivia is a social enterprise solution to deforestation in the Bolivian Amazon, which is driven by poverty and poor land management in the form of slash and burn subsistence farming.  The mission of the ArBolivia Reforestation project was to reforest 6000 ha of farmland to restore forest, sequester carbon, and provide a new source of income for rural people. The project began in 2007 through a partnership with the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) reforestation pilot, the Dutch investment company Sicirec, and a Bolivian sustainable agroforestry NGO called CETEFOR.

GOALS & approach

The project enables poor farmers to better manage their land whilst helping them to grow, harvest and sell native hardwood trees.  Not only does this result in reforestation, but it means the rainforest is protected from further encroachment. The ArBolivia Project splits the profits from timber revenues equally with farmers, rather than paying local people a salary and exporting most of the profit overseas.

Reported TAKEAWAYS

ArBolivia provides a wide range of social and environmental benefits, including the sequestration of carbon.  With a high level of certification and compelling life stories of our families, this makes ArBolivia an ideal project that demonstrates how to integrate mitigatation of carbon emissions with key priorities of local communities.