02Annual Report Contents Cameroon
Message from the President 3 The General Board and Programme Advisory Committee 4 Message from the Director 5 Highlights during 2002 6 The Head Office 8 Programme Unit 9 Communication Unit 10 Business Unit 11 Colombia Training and Education 12 European Tropical Forest Research Network 14
Site programmes Cameroon 15 The Campo Ma’an Management and Conservation Project 16 Colombia 19 Ghana 25 Guyana 29 Ghana Indonesia 31 Vietnam 35
Acronyms 38 Guyana Indonesia
Page 1 Vietnam Vietnam Colophon
Text: TBI staff Editing: Jelle Maas, Mirjam Ros, and Howard Turner Layout: Blanca Méndez, Christine Naaijen Cover: Kim Trouwborst Photography: Tinde van Andel, Joost Duivenvoorden, Barend van Gemerden, Monica Gruezmacher, Bas van Helvoort, Dirk Hoftijzer, Erik Lammerts van Bueren, Jelle Maas, Jeanette Mulder, Dorinne Raaimakers, Marileen Reinders, Carlos Rodríguez, Angela Parrado-Rosselli, Pieter Schmidt, Jochem Schneemann, Willie Smits, Hans ter Steege, Kim Trouwborst, Johan van Valkenbrug, Dick Verkaar, Hans Vellema, Anneke Wieman Printing: Ponsen en Looijen Sources: CIA World Fact Book 2002, FAO Global Forest Resource Assessment
© Tropenbos International P.O. Box 232 6700 AE Wageningen The Netherlands Phone: +31 (0)317 495500 Fax: +31 (0)317 495520 E-mail: [email protected] Internet: http://www.tropenbos.org and http://www.tropenbos.nl
The TBI Annual Report 2002 is printed on Hello Silk paper. Hello Silk has an ISO 14001 Environmental Certification. Its wood fibre comes from sustainable forests; it is totally Chlorine free, fully recyclable and biodegradable.
Copies: 1500 March 2003
Page 2 Message from the president
The year 2002 has been an exciting one for Tropenbos International (TBI). In March, TBI organised a two-day international seminar on the role of new financing mechanisms in forest and biodiversity conservation in the tropics. Over 220 scientists and policy makers from 41 countries participated and contributed to the formulation of useful recommendations. Their central message was that the crucial role of forests in climate regulation, watershed management, erosion control and biodiversity conservation should generate revenues for local forest users and forest owners as an incentive to pursue forest conservation and sustainable management and as compensation for foregone benefits. Forest conservation efforts cannot be effective without such mechanisms. Training and capacity building should also play a role. Other important recommendations involved information exchange and further investigations into local opportunities and willingness to pay for services or products. These recommendations, together with experiences on indigenous management of natural resources and participatory monitoring of biodiversity, were presented during the 6th Conference of Parties (CoP-6) of the Convention on Biological Diversity, which was held in The Hague. The seminar in March coincided with a farewell party for Director Erik Lammerts van Bueren, who left TBI after twelve years of dedication and convincing leadership. His ambition and enthusiasm brought TBI to its current position. It was our task as General Board to find a suitable successor. After an extensive selection procedure we found a capable successor in the person of biologist Dr René Boot; former project leader of the Tropenbos-Guyana programme and Programme Leader of the Programa Manejo de Bosques de la Amazonía Boliviana (PROMAB). René’s scientific experience lies in the field of forest ecology and sustainable forest use. Another important development in 2002 occurred in the field of communication. The TBI programmes in Colombia, Ghana, Indonesia and Vietnam and the office in Wageningen were all strengthened with the arrival of Junior Communication Experts, granted by DGIS from their Junior Expert programme. In 2003, a sixth Junior Expert is to start assisting in the management of TBI-Ghana. This impulse for communication enables TBI to bridge the gap between science and society even more effectively. Old and new research results are to be translated into targeted information for the different stakeholders. In this annual report we are going to present more specific information on this mission in the communication and programme sections. Against the background of these changes, it was a challenge to develop the programmes in Ghana and Vietnam, to reorganise the programmes in Indonesia and Colombia, to explore additional opportunities in Surinam and to bring the World Bank project Campo-Ma’an in South Cameroon to a successful conclusion. Throughout all the changes, TBI is maintaining its focus on ‘improving tropical forest management – for people, conservation and sustainable development’.
Klaas Jan Beek President
Page 3 The General Board
- K.J. Beek (President) – Deputy Chairman of the Commission for Environmental Impact Assessment, Utrecht, the Netherlands* - C. Amoako-Nuama – Former Minister of Lands and Forestry, Ghana - P.J.C. van Dijk (Secretary/Treasurer) – President of the Netherlands Organisation for International Cooperation in Higher Education (NUFFIC), the Netherlands* - C. Geerling – Consultant, former Royal Dutch Shell, Wageningen University and United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (from March 2002)* - H. Haeruman Js. – Professor at Bogor Agricultural University, Deputy Chairman for Regional Development in the National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS) - I.R. Hunter – Director General, International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), Beijing, China - C.M. Karssen – Former Chancellor Wageningen University, the Netherlands - J.P. Lanly – Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Paris, France - P. Minderhoud – Managing Director of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, DHV Consultants, Amersfoort, the Netherlands* - Ms. S. Ozinga – Coordinator FERN, World Rainforest Movement, London, United Kingdom - G.A. Persoon – Lecturer at the Centre for Environmental Studies, Leiden University, the Netherlands (till March 2002) - H.H.T. Prins – Professor at Wageningen University, Tropical Nature Conservation and Vertebrate Ecology Group, the Netherlands* - M. Rodríguez Becerra (Vice-president) – Former Minister of Environment, Colombia - C. Baron van Tuyll van Serooskerken – Society for Technical Cooperation (GTZ), Eschborn, Germany
Programme Advisory Committee
- H.H.T. Prins (Chairman) – Professor at Wageningen University, Tropical Nature Conservation and Vertebrate Ecology Group, the Netherlands* - C. Geerling - Consultant, former Royal Dutch Shell, Wageningen University and United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (from March 2002)* - J. Krikken – Associate Director, Sector Research and Collections, National Museum of Natural History Naturalis, Leiden, the Netherlands - G.A. Persoon – Lecturer at the Centre for Environmental Studies, Leiden University, the Netherlands - A.K. Skidmore – Professor at the International Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences (ITC), Enschede, the Netherlands - W.G. Sombroek – International Soil Reference and Information Centre, Wageningen, the Netherlands - J. Sevink – Professor in Physical Geography, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
* Member of the Executive Committee Page 4 Message from the Director
Tropenbos International (TBI) has a wide network linking policy makers and forest users with researchers and people specialised in training and institution building. In 2002, this network of dedicated people and institutions together made substantial progress in the design and implementation of new programmes in Ghana and Vietnam, and recently in Suriname. The TBI-Ghana programme is running slightly ahead of the others. There a steering committee was appointed and consultations with stakeholders in the forestry sector were held. Thereafter, our partner organisations formulated research and training proposals which specifically address the previously determined demand for information and training. Finally, the Steering Committee approved a coherent work plan made up of some of these proposals. The development of the TBI-Vietnam programme has run a similar course. A detailed work plan elaborated by Vietnamese institutions and TBI staff is to be signed soon. The signing of this document will conclude the preparatory and planning phase and at the same time open the way for its implementation. The newly to be developed TBI-Suriname programme, on the other hand, is still lagging behind a little but TBI’s relationship with key institutions in the forestry sector in this country will ensure that the programme can be developed relatively quickly. The same approach to programme development is also beginning to yield results in Indonesia and Colombia. All these programmes have three basic features in common. First, they are owned at local or national level which means that responsibility lies with forest users, policy makers and partner organisations in the host countries. Secondly, research and training is demand-driven and only formulated after sector-wide consultations have taken place. Finally, the results are translated and made accessible to forest users and policy makers so as to secure their uptake. This approach is, without doubt, time consuming and its transaction costs are high. However, building strong partnerships and developing locally-owned programmes takes time. Perhaps it is fair to say that for some things – like building partnerships that work – there is no shortcut to success. Having seen these results first hand I am confident that this approach and the resulting programmes will significantly contribute to TBI’s chief objective, which is a better use and governance of forests and forest resources for the benefit of people, conservation and sustainable development.
René Boot Director
Page 5 Highlights during 2002
Shift in ownership The year 2002 was marked by the full implementation of TBI’s approach to programme development. Intensive consultations with stakeholders in Colombia, Ghana, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Netherlands led to new insights into the most compelling societal questions related to people, forest management, conservation and sustainable development. These new insights were used to formulate new frameworks for the research programmes. New research proposals are being selected on the basis of their relevance, feasibility, scientific quality and available budget. Training and capacity building are given top priority. While the present programmes in Colombia, Ghana, Indonesia, Vietnam are in full swing, the programmes that have been concluded (Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Guyana) are looking for a new position within the TBI network. These programmes are still producing interesting material and continuing some activities with support from several donors. A follow-up to the programmes in the form of an agreement with TBI is being discussed with the former partners. It is very likely that they will be able to benefit from the regional outreach of the new programmes and stimulate the uptake of results.
Shift in partnerships As the TBI activities are increasingly demand driven and focused on collaboration with local partners, the relation with Dutch research institutes is subject to change. The universities play an important role in training and capacity building in the TBI programmes, but will be less involved in the actual implementation of research activities. The initiating programmes in Ghana and Vietnam also provide new opportunities for intensive collaboration with national and international partners. The Ghana office is shared with the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), while TBI-Vietnam is preparing a joint inventory of bamboo in Vietnam with the same organisation. The Centre for International Forest Research (CIFOR) is also interested in getting involved in TBI’s programme activities. Collaboration in Vietnam, Ghana and the Netherlands is being discussed and initiated with the Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV). The participation of TBI in the Forestry Sector Support Programme (FSSP) has led to new opportunities for the TBI network in Vietnam. Furthermore, new financial opportunities (and challenges) have resulted from the development of new programmes.
Shift in staff Significant staff changes in 2002 have changed the face of Tropenbos International. The retirement of Erik Lammerts van Bueren after twelve years of directorship and the appointment of René Boot as the new director marks the start of a new era. New ideas and visions, new contacts and a different perception of upcoming developments are reflected in the choices and activities of TBI. Another important change is the assignment of six Junior Experts, granted by the DGIS Junior Expert programme. A Junior Expert
Page 6 from Ghana is to assist with the development of the TBI-Ghana programme, while the other Junior Experts are all engaged in communication activities. This sixfold increase in the number of staff in the Communication Unit has acted as a major stimulus to TBI’s efforts to link research with policy and management. One Dutch Junior Communication Expert has been assigned to each of the current programmes (Colombia, Ghana, Indonesia, Vietnam) and a Peruvian Junior Communication Expert has been assigned to the office in Wageningen.
Shift in outreach Throughout the years, TBI has functioned as a platform for forest-related topics and in recent years this platform function has been diversifying at both national and international levels. The TBI programmes are increasingly involved in national fora on conservation, forest management, certification and indigenous people. In the international arena there are TBI (co-)organised meetings on forest valuation and innovative financial mechanisms and on participatory monitoring and evaluation of biodiversity. Recommendations resulting from these meetings were communicated to policy makers and forest managers during meetings such as CoP-6 and SBSTTA 7 of the Convention on Biological Diversity as well as via publications, articles in popular and academic media, posters, leaflets and personal contacts. The collaboration with international partners such as CIFOR, FAO and especially ETFRN (European Tropical Forest Research Network) is indispensable for the reaching of all the target groups. The exhibition at the Amerika Museum in Cuijk, the Netherlands, attracting some 5,000 visitors (mainly school children), was a new experience with a new target group that certainly deserves a follow-up. After all, the future lies with the young.
Page 7 The Head Office
Located in the International Agricultural Centre (IAC) of Wageningen University and Research Centre (WUR) in Wageningen, the Netherlands, the TBI Head Office is divided into the Programme Unit, Business Unit and the Communication Unit. It has a core staff of ten and an additional staff of three who work for the European Tropical Forest Research Network (ETFRN). The main functions of the Head Office are: - Initiating and facilitating participatory programme development processes - Building networks - Monitoring and improving the coherence of the programme - Stimulating South-South cooperation and the development of common research protocols - Theme development - Building a bridge between science and policy - Supporting the training and exchange of experts - Offering a platform for dialogue and international cooperation - Fundraising - Communication and publications - Administrative and logistic support to the sites
Staff René (R.G.A.) Boot, Director (from 1.7.2002) Erik (E.M.) Lammerts van Bueren, Director (till 1.7.2002) Joke (N.M.J.) Mahulete, Secretary Mik (J.M.) Fortuin-Paauw, Assistant Office Management Hans (H.H.) de Iongh, Head of Programme Unit (till 31.12.2002) Hans (H.C.) Vellema, Programme Officer Jelle (J.B.) Maas, Head of Communication Unit Blanca (B.C.) Méndez, Junior Communication Expert (from 1.9.2002) Henk (H.J.) Lijftogt, Head of Business Unit Lyda (A.M.) Keijzer, Accounting Assistant Tonny (A.B.J.) Heupink, Administrator
ETFRN Willemine (W.J.) Brinkman, ETFRN Coordinator Jacqui McGrath, ETFRN secretary (till 31.12.2002) Jeanette van Rijsoort, ETFRN Programme Officer (from 1.11.2002)
Page 8 Programme Unit
The Programme Unit (PU) had an exciting year consolidating new sites, developing the programmes for these sites and supporting the ongoing programmes. Long-distance support was given to some of the last, mainly externally funded projects under the TBI programmes that were concluded in 2001 and 2002. The experience gained in the old programmes, the challenges in the new countries, increased local ownership and more emphasis on capacity building and institutional strengthening triggered discussions on how to adjust and improve the Tropenbos programme as a whole. Add to this the appointment of a new director and the challenging opportunities in communication with the recruitment of six junior experts, and one can imagine the impulse given to the dynamics of the PU. Opportunities to discuss the new developments with representatives of the TBI-host countries and TBI Programme Team Leaders abounded during the international conference on financing mechanisms for sustainable forest management, which TBI organised in March. In order to make the most of this opportunity and strengthen its network, TBI organised a meeting with these key players in the Tropenbos programme. Issues of common interest and lessons learnt were discussed as well as our strategy to achieve the goals set in the Strategic Plan 2001-2005. The meeting was very fruitful and generated: - management advices - ideas for inter-site collaboration - agreements on the implementation of the Strategic Plan
Programme development Programme development is in full swing, as can be read in the sections on the sites. The process developed for the TBI-Ghana programme was fine- tuned for Indonesia and Vietnam. At these sites, extensive consultations were held among stakeholders with a view to developing a locally owned, problem- oriented programme which links societal needs with the scientific capacity available. Compilations of existing information, interviews, workshops and field studies were used to identify the most compelling questions related to forest management, conservation and rural development. Making use of contacts in the host countries, the Netherlands and on the internet, a call for interest was widely publicised for the translation of these into research questions and projects. Obviously, the news spread rapidly and several new contacts were established as a result. The nationally established Steering Committees indicated their priorities to the pre-proposals submitted and some applicants were invited to prepare full proposals. Preference was given to proposals that combine research, capacity building and institutional strengthening. Participatory programme development is complex and time-consuming, but challenging as well and provides a solid base for a programme which is strongly embedded in national forest policies. Joint implementation of the programme, combined with successful external fundraising will be needed to realise the full potential of these programmes.
Page 9 Publications Communication Unit - Tropenbos Series 21 - Tropenbos proceedings on forest valuation TBI aims to achieve its mission – to improve the management of tropical - Annual Report 2001 - Strategic Plan 2001-2005 forests for people, conservation and sustainable development – by generating - 3 TBI Newsletters (26-28) and disseminating information relevant to policy and forest management. The - 4 books in the research, training and extension programmes are key to achieving this. It is a Kalimantan Series (6-9) strategic need for TBI to improve the coordination of information - 6 Cameroon Documents (8-13) dissemination and to develop improved communication channels with its target audiences. These include forest dwellers, forest managers, policy makers, research and training partners and donors. To realise this broad objective, the actual application of knowledge, methods and Fleur Deul Indonesia techniques needs to be pursued more actively. As a facilitator, the Communication Unit Blanca Méndez Netherlands obviously plays a key role in this. The Dutch Jeanette Mulder Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged TBI’s Christine Naaijen Colombia role as information broker and approved a proposal to support five Junior Experts in the Anneke Wieman Ghana field of communication. This crucial breakthrough led to a rescheduling of the Communication Unit’s agenda. The five Junior Communication Experts started in September and were prepared for their jobs through an extensive eight-week training after which they left for their posts (see table above). They will form a network for improving the internal and external communication. During their training period, the Junior Experts developed a communication strategy as well as a common workplan. They addressed the question of how communication could contribute to the TBI mission statement. Communication objectives are long-term objectives, which may continue to be valid for years and which may be achieved long after the project has finished. The communication workplans for the TBI Head Office and the sites were finished in December. In addition to the expansion of the unit itself, a lot of effort was put into the organisation and subsequent publication of the proceedings of the seminar on ‘Forest valuation and innovative financing mechanisms for conservation and sustainable management for tropical forests’ held in March 2002. Moreover, the Communication Unit coordinated the publication and dissemination of 17 books and documents. In addition to printed materials, more and more information is being provided electronically through e-mail and Internet. With more than 50 visitors per day, the website is the most important and extended communication tool for TBI. The password-protected ‘extranet’ contains internal information for TBI staff and affiliated researchers. Efforts are being made to produce CD-ROMs with TBI publications and an introduction guide to sustainable forest management. The latter is a joint effort of TBI and SNV. Electronic and tailor-made ‘ready to digest’ information will become more important as the Communication Unit develops. New developments are communicated at the TBI website and through the communication officers stationed at the sites.
Page 10 Business Unit
The principal task of the Business Unit is the consolidation of monthly figures on budgets and expenditures. It tries to tailor the requests of local project management and Steering Committees to donor’s procedures and requirements; “Delivery on demand” as they like to call it. The Business Unit does more than dealing with figures, however. Its core business is project management and financial and logistic procedures. The activities at both the Head Office and the sites require considerable guidance and demand tools for process control, budget analysis and readjustment, personnel affairs and contracts and this is precisely what the Business Unit offers. The unit played an important role in 2002 in facilitating the international seminar in March, in setting up local administrations (including local training) in the new Ghana and Vietnam programmes and in recruiting associate experts. Being the oil that keeps the Tropenbos engine going, the Business Unit also plays a crucial fundraising role. The results of the previous years and the new developments laid the basis for raising new funds from donors like DfID, FAO, SNV, Doen Foundation and DGIS.
The Netherlands International ETFRN Doen Foundation Guyana European Commission Guyana, Cameroon Core funding Associate DFID-FRP (United DGIS Seminar Experts Kingdom) Core funding International LNV GTZ (Germany) Colombia, Cameroon seminar NUFFIC Scholarships CARPE / USAID (USA) Cameroon PhD scholarships NWO FAO Seminar Seminar SNV Publication Gibbon Foundation Indonesia Global Environmental Various Dutch city Cameroon Core funding Facility (GEF) councils WWF Cameroon
Contributors In addition to the financial support of various donors (table) all the partners in the programmes made non-monetary contributions to the different programme activities.
Income and expenditures in 2002 (estimates)
Incomes 2002 (Euro's x 1000) Expenditures 2002 (Euro's x 1000) TBI Partners Netherlands government 1,905 56.5% Programme development 115 3.4% ministries (core funding) Site activities 1,295 38.4% EU-project activities 260 7.7% Programme activities 325 9.6% 1,200 EU-ETFRN 225 6.6% Special projects (ETFRN, Campo) 990 29.6% World Bank (Campo) 720 21.3% Organisational costs 380 11.2% Associate Expert programme 130 3.8% Associate Expert programme 115 3.4% Seminar 110 3.2% Seminar 150 4.4% Publication sales 5 Interest 10 0.9% Miscellaneous 5 TOTAL 3,370 100% TOTAL 3,370 100% 1,200
Page 11 Training and Education
Over 500 people have been trained at PhD or MSc level through the TBI programmes since their inception. In addition, more than 2,500 people received training through short courses and on- the-job training (such as practical placements for students or staff training). Capacity building is essential for the realisation of the TBI objectives. By linking research institutes in the South with the North, TBI enables the exchange of students and expertise. The TBI sites are well equipped for this task, offering a good infrastructure and opportunities to link up with other projects and experts. TBI’s focus is shifting more and more towards supporting local training needs. This is resulting in an increasing number of graduates from countries in which Tropenbos sites are located. The TBI capacity building programme is supported by many different organisations (see table below), which support demonstrates the level of trust in the TBI approach.
Project Name (country) Co-Financ
Cameroon Structure and composition of Mr Barend van Gemerden EU evergreen moist forest (Netherlands)
Biodiversity in Campo Ma'an Mr Gildas Peguy (Cameroon) World Ban
Agroforestry in Campo Ma'an Mr Jaques Kanmegne (Cameroon) World Ban
Sustainability of the exploitation of Ms Nicole Guedje (Cameroon) CARPE / U Garcinia lucida (PhD thesis in 2002)
Colombia Spatial distribution of rain forest plants Mr Alvaro Duque (Colombia) NWO / WO along environmental gradients
Moisture and nutrient cycling in Ms Patricia Tellez (Colombia) secondary tropical rain forest
Polarimetric data for tropical forest Ms Marcela Quiñones (Colombia) NUFFIC monitoring. Studies at the Colombian (PhD thesis in 2002) Amazon
Fruit availability and seed dispersal of Ms Angela Parado Rosselli(Colombia) plants
Forest dynamics in three landscapes Ms Catalina Londoño (Colombia) COLCIENC
Diversity of West Guyanan hard rock Ms Victoria María Arbelaez COLCIENC formations (Colombia)
Ghana To be developed Ms Joanna Ameyaw (Ghana) WUR
Mr Dickson Adjei Sakyi (Ghana)
Guyana Relations between disturbance, tree Mr Bert van Ulft (Netherlands) NWO / WO population dynamics and tree species Erik Arets (Netherlands) EU composition
Symbiotic Nitrogen fixation Ms Kristel Perreijn (Netherlands) NWO (PhD thesis in 2002)
Page 12 Project Name (country) Co-Financ
Indonesia Dipterocarp ectomycorrhizal Mr Mulyana Omon (Indonesia) NUFFIC development and succession in (PhD thesis in 2002) Shorea leprosula
Water stress physiology in Shorea Mr Aldrianto Pridjati (Indonesia) NUFFIC leprosula Miq. (PhD thesis in 2002)
Shifting cultivation: conversion of Ms Murniati (Indonesia) NUFFIC Imperata grasslands into agroforestry (PhD thesis in 2002) systems
Remote sensing monitoring system for Mr Mulyanto Nugroho NUFFIC, G forest management and land cover Mr Kemal Prakoso Foundation change Mr Bambang Suryokusumo of Forestry Mr Rhuanda Agung Sugardiman ESA / ERS (Indonesia)
Management of protected areas in the Ms Retno Maryani (Indonesia) NUFFIC era of transition to decentralisation in Indonesia
Post-fire development of a tropical Mr Mark van Nieuwstadt (Netherlands) CIFOR, NW dipterocarp forest (PhD thesis in 2002)) Utrecht Un
Butterflies as indicator species for Mr Danny Cleary (Netherlands) NWO disturbance and biodiversity (PhD thesis in 2002)
Assesing the behavioural ecology, Mr Siregar (Indonesia) Gibbon Fo population status and habitat use of orang-utans reintroduced to Meratus Forest
Genetic variation, ecological Ms Gabriella Fredrikson (Netherlands) NWO requirements and the role on forest regeneration of the Malayan sunbear Helarctos malayanus
Uritraceous woody pioneers as model Mr Karl Eichhorn (Netherlands) NWO organisms for monitoring early succession phases of tropical vegetation
2 S2 and 1 S1 students from Mulawarman University, Indonesia
Vietnam To be developed Mr Vu Tien Dien (Vietnam) ITC
Mr Le Tien Phong (Vietnam)
Page 13 ETFRN also participated in: - The European Forum on European Tropical Forest Agricultural Research for Development (EFARD) meeting of May 2002. Research Network This Forum aims to catalyse European research capacity on As host of the Coordination Unit of the European Tropical Forest Network achieving food security, (ETFRN) and as National Focal Point, TBI is deeply involved in this European alleviating poverty and network. The collaboration between TBI and ETFRN culminated in 2002 in hunger and assuring sustainable management the organisation of the international seminar on ‘Forest valuation and of natural resources. At innovative financing mechanisms for conservation and sustainable the Rome meeting the management of tropical forests’. TBI commissioned a guest editor to produce agenda featured agro- a special issue of the ETFRN News on this subject, which functioned as ecology, which deals with forests. seminar background document. The second day of the seminar was also an - The Finland (Hyttiälä) ETFRN workshop. On the two days following the seminar, TBI hosted the workshop on drylands Annual ETFRN Steering Committee meeting. This allowed several members rehabilitation in sub- of the ETFRN Steering Committee to participate in the seminar. Saharan Africa held in Together with the UK’s DFID Forest Research Programme, TBI also June. - The Madrid meeting of supported the ETFRN workshop on ‘Participatory monitoring and evaluation the European Initiative on of biodiversity’. This internet workshop was convened by the Environmental Agricultural Research for Change Institute at the University of Oxford, and took place in January 2002. Development held in The results of this workshop were presented at a one-day policy seminar in October, where ETFRN London on 21 May 2002. coordinator Willemine th Brinkman held a well- During the 6 Conference of Parties of the Convention on Biological received presentation on Diversity (CBD) the results of both workshops were also presented to policy ETFRN. makers, researchers and representatives of NGOs. - The Brussels FP6 (EC 6th Three issues of the highly appreciated ETFRN News were published in Framework Programme 2002. Issue 35, on financial mechanisms for conservation and sustainable for Research) launch conference in November. forest management, was developed together with TBI for the aforementioned - The European Tropical international seminar in March. Issue 36 was on new instruments for Forest Advisers’ Group monitoring and evaluation, while issue 37 is on forest use and soil quality. (ETFAG); an annual Further development and maintenance of the ETFRN informal meeting of web service included the topics pages. These bring forestry experts. This year, the meeting was together web-based forest-related information inside held in Frankfurt (Bad and outside the ETFRN network, on specific topics Soden) in November. such as biodiversity, climate change, water, people and Topics discussed included remote sensing. Other new features include the ELDIS forests and poverty, and illegal logging. news page, the ETFRN News in downloadable PDF - The November ANN- format and a new web discussion platform, developed ETFRN workshop in with EUFORIC and ANTENNA, which will be used for Austria. the dryland rehabilitation workshop discussion in 2003. - The Steering Committee ETFRN stimulated incorporation of the topic of meetings of the (tropical) forests into the EC 6th framework programme FORNESSA network and the GFIS Africa project, for research technological development and held in Libreville, Gabon, dissemination (FP6). As such it participated in the in December 2002. EFARD meeting of which the outcome was an input for the INCODEV (International Cooperation and Development) component of the 6th framework programme. ETFRN also stimulated the submission of Expressions of Interest related to tropical forests. The first calls under the FP6 programme were published on 17 December 2002 and include several opportunities for forest-oriented research programmes. ETFRN continues to facilitate the development of forest research programmes in response to these calls by providing information through e-mail, internet and at an information meeting in Brussels, planned for 4 February 2003.
Page 14 CAMEROON Cameroon
Size: 475,440 km2 After ten years of highly productive research, training and development activities, TBI’s involvement in Cameroon ended on 31 December 2002. Population: 17 million Although the Tropenbos-Cameroon programme had already been officially closed in 2001, it continued producing several reports and articles. More Forest: 238,580 km2 publications are to follow in 2003. Forest cover change: -0.88% The TBI component in the GEF Campo-Ma’an Management and Biodiversity Cameroon Conservation Project was officially concluded in December 2002, but most publications related to this project are to appear in 2003. Contact THE TROPENBOS-CAMEROON PROGRAMME The TBI-Cameroon programme covered four interacting ingredients of Tropenbos International sustainable forest management: the ecological, social, technical and PO Box 232 6700 AE Wageningen economic dimensions. In 2002, the focus was entirely on finalising the The Netherlands remaining publications. Office: Ecologically sound Lawickse Allee 11, Wageningen Tropenbos researchers Adamou Ibrahima and Jean-Claude Ntonga studied The Netherlands the nutrient cycle in the Cameroonian rain forest. Both used a modelling approach to determine the effects of logging and other human interferences Phone: +31 (0)317 495500 on the nutrient cycle. Adamou Ibrahima found that the amount of biomass in Fax: +31 (0)317 495520 the study areas was relatively high (581 t/ha). This also applies to the nutrient E-mail: capital. The amount of small-scale litterfall such as fallen leaves, small [email protected] branches and fruits is about 11 t/ha, equivalent to 2% of the biomass, while the amount of litter on the forest floor is only 4 t/ha. The litter decomposition rate is high, with most litter taking only about 4 months to decompose. This ensures the continuous availability of nutrients to be taken up by the growing biomass or to be leached. The disturbance of this cycle could lead to nutrient losses. Jean-Claude Ntonga made an effort to quantify changes in the nutrient content of the ecosystem due to logging. He found that timber extraction results in a biomass loss of about 2%, which is considered modest. In addition to the nutrients stored in the stems, logging may also result in a nutrient loss through leaching. Ntonga could not, however, confirm such a loss. The measured losses through leaching were always less than the recorded input of nutrients through wet deposition. As there seems to be a net gain in nutrients after logging, the present timber harvest intensity does not seem to jeopardise the “fertility” of the ecosystem. More alarming are the results of the plant-animal relation study by Humphrey Mbelli. He showed that the timber species studied depend heavily on monkey and bird species for their seed dispersal. The numbers of many of these animal species are rapidly declining due to hunting which is therefore not only a threat to the animals concerned, but also to the plant species dispersed by them. Another potential threat to sustainable forest management is the outbreak of insect pests. Bernard Foahom studied insects harmful to the regeneration of some tree species and showed that the monitoring of insect populations should be an element of any testing of forest management options.
Page 15 Partners Socially acceptable Nicole Guedje published her PhD thesis and several articles on Garcinia Cameroon: Ministère de l’Environnement et lucida, a small tree providing several non-timber forest products. She found Forêts (MINEF) that judicious regulation of resource access and the application of improved Institut de la Recherche Agricole pour le Développement exploitation methods through a participatory approach could encourage the (IRAD) sustainable management of the resource. Institut de Recherche Géologique et Minière (IRGM) University of Dschang Technically feasible - Department of Forestry In an article on reduced impact logging, Wyb Jonkers explained the Cameroon Cameroon - Departament of Sociology differences between approaches proposed by the Tropenbos programmes in University of Ngaoundéré University of Yaoundé I Cameroon and Guyana and earlier projects in Malaysia and Suriname. In - Department of Sociology addition to terrain characteristics and social factors, important differences - Faculty of Science refer to how size, abundance and spatial distribution of the trees to be felled The Netherlands: determine the prescriptions for directional felling and skid trail alignment. Wageningen University - Chair group Forest and Forest management planning Nature Conservation - Chair group Policy, Law and A key activity of the Tropenbos-Cameroon programme was the development Governance of an Environmental Assessment methodology. Guillaume Lescuyer - Chair group Nature developed and tested two methods: a Strategic Environmental Assessment Conservation in the Tropics and Vertebrate Ecology method for the Master Management Plan and an Environmental Impact - Chair group Plant Taxonomy Assessment methodology for the planning at village level. Both methods are - Chair group Soil Biology and designed in such a way that all stakeholders, including the local populations, Biological Soil Quality Leiden University can participate effectively in the planning processes. - Department of Cultural Anthropology and Sociology of Non-Western Societies - School of Asian, African and Amerindian Studies THE CAMPO-MA’AN MANAGEMENT AND Alterra Green World Research Netherlands Development CONSERVATION PROJECT Organisation (SNV) The Campo-Ma’an Management and Biodiversity Conservation Project is a Donors Campo-Ma’an: World Bank joint initiative of the Cameroon Government, the World Bank and the Global Global Environmental Facility Environmental Facility. The 7,772 km2 project site is located in the extreme (GEF) Directorate General for south-western part of Cameroon, between the former Tropenbos-Cameroon International Cooperation (DGIS) site near Kribi and the border with Equatorial Guinea. It consists of the Campo-Ma’an National Park (34%), surrounded by logging concessions (31%), agroforestry zones (26%) and agro-industrial plantations (7%). The project, which is being executed by TBI, the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV), is intended to ensure biodiversity conservation in the National Park and the surrounding forest, sustainable harvest of forest produce and socio-economic development. In 2002, the TBI activities focused on the finalisation of the master plan for the project area and the management plan for the National Park.
Master management plan The draft master management plan (Schéma directeur), which had been prepared in 2001, was discussed further with the stakeholders in two workshops. One of these was held in Yaoundé for government agencies, (inter)national NGOs and the holders of forest and agro-industrial concessions, and the other in Kribi for the local communities, government agents working in the region, local NGOs and other stakeholders. The comments of the participants were included in the plan, which was
Page 16 subsequently presented to the Minister of Environment and Forests and the Publications Campo Ma’an World Bank for approval. The plan will be published in 2003. These studies together provide insights into the Management plan for the National Park ecological richness of the A large number of research reports were prepared in the first semester of Campo Ma’an National 2002. These and earlier reports form the basis for the management plan of Park, including its flora and fauna (birds and mammals), the National Park. The draft management plan was completed and submitted and the effects of various to the stakeholders for consultation. Four workshops were held in December land and forest uses such 2002; one in Kribi for government representatives, (inter)national NGOs and as shifting cultivation and Cameroon entrepreneurs, and three in the region to consult the people who live in the hunting. The results of these studies form the basis for vicinity of the Park. A fifth the integrated master plan consultation had to be postponed for the project area and the till January 2003. After processing management plan for the the comments gathered during the National Park. consultations, the management Anye, N.D. (2002). ‘An plan is to be submitted to the assessment of avifauna and Minister and the World Bank for its potential as a bio-indicator approval. It is to be expected that for ecological monitoring in the Campo-Ma’an area, the plan will be published in 2003. South Province, Cameroon’. Projet Campo-Ma’an, Kribi, Cameroon. Bekhuis, P. (2002). ‘Elephant density and distribution in the southern part of the National Park Campo-Ma’an’. Projet Publications Campo-Ma’an, Kribi, Cameroon. Biesbrouck, K. (2002). ‘New perspectives on forest dynamics and the myth of ‘communities”: Bekhuis, P. (2002). reconsidering co-management of tropical rainforests in Cameroon. IDS-bulletin 33: 55-62. Based on environmental anthropological research on local tenure of forest resources in southern Cameroon, ‘Estimating elephant density this article emphasises that ‘communities’ in local tenure may be rather more complex than some policy and distribution in the UTO makers continue to assume and also dynamic, not least in response to state and international attempts at Campo-Ma’an’. Projet forest management. Campo-Ma’an, Kribi, Essama Etoundi, J. (2002). Le déroulement des activités de terrain du sous projet sylvicole F2, Cameroon. Programme Tropenbos-Cameroun. Tropenbos-Cameroon Reports 02-1. Tropenbos-Cameroon Bekhuis, P. (2002). ‘A programme, Kribi, Cameroon. population ecological base Fieldwork report of a project aimed at developing a silvicultural system based on natural regeneration and a for the conservation of forest growth and yield model to predict long-term stand development. buffalo in the Campo-Ma’an Foahom, B. (2002). Insect pest incidence on timber tree species in natural forest in south area’. Projet Campo-Ma’an, Cameroon. Tropenbos-Cameroon Document 12. Tropenbos-Cameroon programme, Kribi, Kribi, Cameroon. Cameroon. Hoeven, C.A. van der Report documenting the state and damage of insect pest on 22 timber tree species in natural forest in south (2002). ‘Assessment of Cameroon. The most common type of insect attack was leaf eating, followed by sap sucking, shoot boring mammal densities in the and wood boring. A total of 139 insect species were recorded, including 59 insect pest species. Thirty-three Campo-Ma’an rain forest by were reported for the first time as pest in Cameroon. way of pooled expert Guedje, N. (2002). La gestion des populations d’arbres comme outil pour une exploitation opinion’. Projet Campo- durable des produits forestier non ligneux: l’exemple de garcinia lucida (sud-Cameroun). PhD Ma’an, Kribi, Cameroon. thesis Université libre de Bruxelles. Tropenbos-Cameroon Series 5. Tropenbos-Cameroon Kanmegne, J. (2002). ‘Land progranne, Kribi, Cameroon. use changes along tree slash Study combining a plant demographic survey with experiments on different harvesting techniques and participatory monitoring and evaluation, in order to provide tools for an efficient, socially appropriate and and burn chronosequence in sustainable management system for G. lucida. southern Cameroon: effects Guedje, N.M., Nkongmeneck, B.A. and Lejoly, J. (2002). ‘Composition floristique et structure on biodiversity, nutrient des faciès de forêt à Garcinia lucida dans la région de Bipindi - Akom II (Sud-Cameroun)’, Acta stocks and fluxes and soil Botanica Gallica 149 : 157-178. quality’. Project Campo- An article about the composition and structure of forests where G. lucida is gregarious, as a result of the Ma’an, Kribi, Cameroon. harvesting of Garcinia bark and fruits. Mbatchou Tchouto, P. Ibrahima, A., Schmidt, P., Ketner, P. and Mohren, G.J.M. (2002). Phytomasse et cycle des (2002). ‘Flora, vegetation and nutriments dans la forêt tropicale dense humide du sud Cameroun. Tropenbos-Cameroon conservation of the Campo- Documents 9. Tropenbos-Cameroon programme, Kribi, Cameroon. Ma’an area, Cameroon’. This report provides an overview of some functional aspects of the moist evergreen tropical forest in Project Campo-Ma’an, Kribi, Southern Cameroon, with a focus on biomass accumulation and nutrient cycling in undisturbed and disturbed Cameroon. forest. (continues) (continues)
Page 17 (Publications,cont'd)
Jonkers, W.B.J. (2002). ‘Reduced impact logging in Sarawak, Guyana and Cameroon: the reasons behind differences in approach’, in T. Enters, P.B. Durst, G.B. Applegate, P.C.S. Kho and G. Man (eds.). Applying reduced impact logging to advance sustainable forest management. RAP Publication 2002/14. FAO, Bangkok, Thailand. Article explaining the differences between approaches proposed by the Tropenbos programmes in Cameroon and Guyana and earlier projects in Malaysia and Suriname. In addition to terrain characteristics and social factors, important differences refer to the size, abundance and spatial distribution of the trees to be felled. Lescuyer, G. (2002). ‘Tropenbos’ experience with adaptive management in Cameroon’, in J.
Cameroon Cameroon Oglethorpe (ed.). Adaptive management: from theory to practice. SUI Technical Series 3. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland. Article on the importance of adaptive management in promoting sustainable use in Cameroon, with lessons learnt from the Tropenbos-Cameroon Programme. Lescuyer, G. (2002). Environmental assessment as a new tool for sustainable management? An application in south Cameroon rain forest region. Tropenbos-Cameroon Documents 13. Tropenbos Cameroon programme, Kribi, Cameroon. A short presentation of the rationale and of the way Environmental Assessment can be integrated into the (Publications Campo Ma'an, cont'd) forest management procedure, and a description of the results of a trial to implement this tool in a south- Cameroon forest region. The approaches and techniques are described with specific attention being paid to Menye Menye, J.E., Meje, I. and the negotiation process with stakeholders at two levels – for the Master Management Plan of a 167,000 ha Bekhuis, P. (2002). ‘Etude de forest and for planning at village level. faisabilité pour l’habitation des Mbelli, H. (2002). Plant-animal relations: effects of disturbance on the regeneration of gorilles des plaines dans le Parc commercial tree species. Tropenbos-Cameroon Documents 11. Tropenbos-Cameroon National de Campo-Ma’an’. programme Kribi, Cameroon. Results of a study aimed at determining the role of animals in the regeneration of commercial tree species. Projet Campo-Ma’an, Kribi, Two monkey species and two hornbill species appeared to play an important role in the dispersal of seeds of Cameroon. important timber trees. Hunting these frugivores could have adverse effects on the recruitment of commercial Ngandjui, G., Anye, N.D., tree species which depend on them for seed dispersal. Chuenu, L.M., Eno, N.M. and Nounamo, L. and Yemefack, M (2002). Farming systems in the evergreen forest of southern Okie, E.S. (2002). ‘Densité, Cameroon: shifting cultivation and soil degradation. Tropenbos-Cameroon Documents 8. abondance relative et distribution Tropenbos-Cameroon programme, Kribi, Cameroon. de la faune mammalienne : Results of a study on the impact of shifting cultivation on soil degradation and the options to improve the évaluation de la pression de sustainability of farming systems in southern Cameroon. The authors make recommendations for technology chasse dans l’UTO Campo- transfer, soil productivity improvement and conservation, and the move from subsistence to income- Ma’an et propositions de generating farming. mesures de gestion, Ntonga, J.C., Waterloo, M.J. and Ayangma, A.B. (2002). Hydrology, erosion and nutrient cycling conservation et protection’. Projet in a forest ecosystem in south Cameroon. Tropenbos-Cameroon Documents 10. Tropenbos- Campo-Ma’an, Kribi, Cameroon. Cameroon programme, Kribi, Cameroon. Ngandjui, G., Bolle, R., This report contains data on rainfall, water, sediment and annual evaporation rates in three catchments Cheumani, C.N., Ngueguim, J.R., covered with undisturbed rain forest, selectively logged forest and forest/shifting cultivation. Annual evaporation rates were similar, but the sediment yield depended strongly on the land uses practices. Results Nguetsop, J.D., Tsafack, M.E., of a study of the nutrient budget in four compartments in the hydrological cycle in undisturbed forest show Ntyam S.C. and Ondo, B.O. that this is an auto-sustained rainforest ecosystem as far as nutrients are concerned. (2002). ‘Etude de la chasse Onguene, N.A. and Kuyper, T.W. (2002). ‘Importance of the ectomycorrhizal network for villageoise dans l’Unité seedling survival and ectomycorrhiza formation in rain forests of south Cameroon’, Mycorrhiza Technique Opérationnelle de 12: 13-17. Campo-Ma’an (sud ouest Assessment of the importance of living roots of adult trees as sources of inoculum for the survival, Cameroun)’. Projet Campo- ectomycorrhizal colonisation and growth of seedlings of Paraberlinia bifoliolata. Ma’an, Kribi, Cameroon. Tchatat, M. (2002). ‘Quelques études effectuées au Programme Tropenbos-Cameroun relatives à la gestion durable des produits forestiers non-ligneux’, in MINEF, Sous Direction des Produits Forestiers Non-Ligneux. Rapport de l’atelier sur l’état de lieux des produits forestiers non- ligneux au Cameroun. MINEF, Yaoundé, Cameroon. Article on NTFP studies carried out under Tropenbos-Cameroon programme. Wilde, J.J.F.E. de (2002). ‘Begonia montis-elephantis (Begoniaceae): a new species in section scutobegonia from Cameroon’, in J.J.F.E. de Wilde (ed.) Studies in Begoniaceae VII. Wageningen University Papers 2001-2. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, the Netherlands. A plant taxonomic description of a new Begonia species discovered by TBI researchers.
Page 18 COLOMBIA Colombia
Size: 1,138,910 km2 TBI-Colombia is the product of cooperative research by students and researchers of over 20 universities from Colombia, the Netherlands and other Population: 42 million European countries, with strong involvement of indigenous communities. During the 15 years of TBI-Colombia operations, more than 120 students Forest: 496,010 km2 have been supported and the academic level of the studies has been excellent. The challenge now is to consolidate a working group on tropical Forest cover change: -0.38% forest ecology among the universities. To this end, TBI-Colombia’s actions during 2002 have focused on cooperation and interaction between Dutch and Colombian Universities. The new MSc programme on tropical ecology, Contact coordinated by the University of Amsterdam, will be a starting point. TBI-Colombia The TBI-Colombia programme is Apartado Aéreo 036062 Bogotá DC concentrating on the conservation of Colombia biodiversity and on indigenous management of forest and forest resources. Office: Colombia Training, capacity building and knowledge Cra. 21 # 39-35 Santafé de Bogotá, dialogue are key issues. Research is being Colombia conducted in the Amacayacu National Park, located near the border with Brasil and Phone: +57 (0)1 3203502 / Perú, and in the Middle Caquetá River 3203319 Fax: +57 (0)1 3203319 region, between Araracuara and Peña E-mail: Roja. [email protected]
Box 1: The Hammock River: research site at the Amacayacu National Park by Monica Gruezmacher, TBI-Colombia
One and a half hours in a commercial airplane, followed by a two-hour boat trip will take you from Colombia’s capital Bogotá to Amacayacu National Park. This journey will bring you to one of the largest and rainiest National Parks in the country, with no less than 293,500 ha of tropical rain forest and an annual rainfall of 3,000 mm. Amacayacu means ‘Hammock River’ in an indigenous language, referring to an accident with a missionary boat full of provisions and hammocks. People from the Ticuna ethnic group live in this area. Six indigenous communities (San Martin, Palmeras, Mocagua, El Vergel, Macedonia and Saragoza) are involved in the Amacayacu research programme of National Parks and TBI-Colombia. Members of these communities are participating as co-investigators in undergraduate thesis projects. The goal of this model is to build a long-term participatory relationship with the local people in order to facilitate a knowledge dialogue. Thus far, twenty research projects have been carried out in this area and seven more are planned for the coming year. Most of these projects are in the field of plant and animal ecology, while land use and management studies have become more important in the past few months. The results of the studies are to be integrated into the park’s management plans. Some representatives of National Parks and TBI-Colombia met in order to discuss a scheme through which National Parks and the universities, with the support of TBI- Colombia, can realise this integration. Willingness and a positive spirit will ensure the proper organisation of Amacayacu´s future.
Page 19 TBI-Colombia Staff Box 2: Feathers, crowns and ornaments: towards the sustainable use of wildlife in the Middle Caquetá River region Carlos Rodríguez, PTL by Carlos Rodríguez (TBI-Colombia) Monica Gruezmacher, The Colombian Ministry of Environment and the Alexander von Humboldt Institute initiated this Assistant project with a view to finding legal alternatives for the illegal use and trade of native fauna. Up to Rosa Myriam Díaz, now the use of animals and their products (skins, feathers, etc.) for commercial purposes is illegal. Secretary However, the sustainable and controlled use of non-timber-forest products such as bird feathers Geraldine Duarte, could become an economic pillar of sustainable forest use. The indigenous communities in the Secretary Middle Caquetá River area (Nonuya, Uitoto and Andoque) use – as part of their culture – the Christine Naaijen, Junior feathers of the Macaws and other ornamental birds to make ceremonial crowns and ornaments for Communication Expert traditional rituals. The way they treat the animals can be developed to create a model of sustainable and legal use. Following the tradition of TBI-Colombia in Araracuara, participatory research has Hector Olarte, Operational been carried out on the use and management of ornamental birds by indigenous groups. Up to now, Assistant the indigenous researchers and an ornithologist have gathered cultural and scientific information on Gertrudis Matapí, General Macaws. They presented the information to the participants during a workshop in Bogotá, attended Services by representatives of the Ministry of Environment, the Alexander von Humboldt Institute, biologists Fabián Moreno, of the Environmental Administrative Department of Bogotá and students from several universities. Administrative Coordinator- The next phase of the project includes organised expositions of certified (feather) souvenirs or Araracuara handcrafts which will show the importance of legal use and fauna management. The last phase of the project will involve low-scale and controlled and sustainable commercialisation of ornamental Gilberto Tucano, feathers, without animal sacrifices. Convincing policy makers to legalise the controlled use of Operational Assistant- feathers is an important part of the project. During this process, TBI-Colombia plays a key role as a Araracuara platform for inter-institutional interaction. Colombia Colombia
Juan Mayr Maldonado, Colombian Minister of Environment: “The participatory projects that Tropenbos has been doing with indigenous communities on ‘traditional knowledge’, are unique. This information should be shared with the rest of the world in order to make clear that there is another way of thinking than the Western one”.
Inter-institutional cooperation The cooperation with governmental institutions has intensified. Projects directly supported by the Ministry of Environment and the Alexander von Humboldt Institute have begun to take effect, such as the Macaw initiative in the Middle Caquetá River region (Box 2). The indigenous people from the Nonuya, Andoke, Uitoto and Matapí ethnic groups as well as university students actively participate in this project which aims to promote the sustainable use of wildlife. Joint action with other non-governmental organisations and development agencies contributed to the formulation and implementation of the Indigenous Territorial Ordering Plan in the Middle Caquetá River region. This project, developed with the Nonuya-Andoke indigenous communities and financially supported by GTZ, aims to create educational material and information to support land-use planning and the management of indigenous territories. TBI-Colombia developed and implemented the first phase of this project, which later resulted in direct relations between the community of Peña Roja and GTZ. This process shows how institutional bonds have strengthened and how the communities are becoming more directly involved with other institutions.
Page 20 Responsible institutions Colombia: The Ministry of Environment The Netherlands: Tropenbos International Programme coordination The Netherlands: Hans de Iongh, TBI; René Boot, TBI (from 1.12.2002) Scientific coordination Colombia: Fernando Gast, Instituto Alexander von Humboldt The Netherlands: Antoine Cleef, IBED (UvA) Partners Colombia: Dr. Enrique Forero, Instituto Alexander von Humboldt Professor at the National Institute of Amazon Research ‘SINCHI’ COLCIENCIAS University of Colombia and National Environmental Forum: CIFOR, Fundación Angel Escobar, FESCOL, GTZ, TBI President of the VIII Latin Universidad Nacional American Botanical Universidad de Los Andes Universidad de Antioquia Congress: ICN – Universidad Nacional “The contribution of Institute of Amazon Research (IMANI) – Universidad Nacional Tropenbos to the congress The indigenous communities from the Middle to Lower Caquetá River (CRIMA) has been of immense
- Nonuya - Peña Roja community Colombia - Andoque - Aduche community importance. We appreciate Ministry of Environment: Special Administrative Unit of the National Parks System, UAESPNN the value of your Universidad Javeriana attendance and active Colombian Amazonian Herbarium (COAH) participation.” GAIA – COAMA OMACHA Foundation for Amazon research Puerto Rastrojo Foundation The Netherlands: University of Amsterdam: Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) National Herbarium of the Netherlands – Utrecht branch Wageningen University - Dept. of Terrestrial Ecology and Nature Conservation - Dept. of Water Resources Fungal Biodiversity Centre (CBS-KNAW) Other countries: University of Aarhus (Denmark)
Box 3: The monkeys eye view: canopy research in the Colombian Amazon by Angela Parrado-Rosselli, University of Amsterdam/TBI-Colombia
Canopy research has become an important means for studying forests, allowing researchers to come closer to the complex interactions in the upper layers of the forest. Several new techniques which allow improved access have been developed during the last two decades and the number of canopy studies has increased. To improve the knowledge of Amazonian forest canopies, TBI has been supporting canopy studies in the Colombian Amazonia since 1992. The first project was ’Reproductive characteristics of two different types of Amazonian rain forest communities: a study at the canopy level’ by Arthur van Dulmen. The main objective of this study was to characterise the pollination and seed dispersal spectra of the canopy of a seasonally inundated tierra firme forest along the Caquetá River. Two aerial walkways were installed in each of the forest types. Follow-up studies include information on epiphytes and bryophytes, on the spatial distribution of arboreal mammals and on seed dispersal. Presently, a University of Amsterdam PhD project is being carried out on fruit availability and seed dispersal of plants in the tertiary sedimentary plain forest of the Colombian Amazon. Angela Parrado Rosselli started this project in 2000 and is working together with students, researchers and indigenous people from local communities. Platforms and cableways are being used to provide permanent access to the canopy. All these investigations and activities have contributed to the organisation of a group of ’canopy people’, who provide support for studies into Colombian rain forest canopies. Moreover, an inter-institutional working group on this topic has been created with the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Current and future actions are focusing on the integration and development of collaboration and participatory research that involves indigenous communities through co-research schemes. The integration of western and indigenous knowledge is expected to lead to a better understanding of tropical forests canopies, while the indigenous people are interested in the results of research which they can use in their ecological calendar.
Page 21 Research TBI-Colombia continued to support students from various universities working in Amacayacu National Park. This is the start of long-term collaborative research to be carried out by universities and local communities under the auspices of the Amacayacu National Park and the National Parks office in Bogotá. The programme is linked to the National Parks Institutional Strengthening Programme supported by the Dutch Embassy and is a pilot project that may become a model for the National Parks Unit. With the first preliminary results available, we all hope that the research plans for 2003-2005 will be finalised in the next months.
National Environmental Congress The PTL of TBI-Colombia, students and indigenous people organise and participate in meetings, seminars, workshops and congresses to show the reach of the Tropenbos model to governmental and non-governmental organisations. One such event was the National Environmental Congress, organised by the Ministry of Environment, where the presentation of the TBI-Colombia participatory research Fabián Moreno, member of made a strong impression on the participants. the Nonuya ethnic group, administrative coordinator in Influence on policy making Araracuara: Colombia Colombia “The knowledge dialogue TBI-Colombia participates in the National Environmental Forum, which meets several between local people and times a year to inform and advise policy makers. One of the most important meetings Tropenbos researchers in 2002 was a seminar in Villa de Leyva, organised with the support of CIFOR. The appears to be the key central topic was the impact of armed conflicts on indigenous communities and the process to achieve the conservation of tropical forest ecosystems. During this seminar more than 40 objective of understanding delegates from indigenous organisations came to participate. and conserving nature, in order to live in harmony with nature.” Building inter-institutional relationships The Steering Committee meeting of August 2002 recognised and applauded TBI- Colombia’s role as a platform for research and action. The Minister of the Environment, Juan Mayr, attended the meeting. He listened to the presentation of some results and proposed a National (Colombian) and Bi-National committee with representatives from universities, indigenous communities and institutions like Colciencias and National Parks. The purpose of this new committee would be to generate an inter-institutional cooperation and action scheme that enables the future devolution of the TBI-Colombia programme.
Box 4: New MSc study in Tropical Ecology by Joost Duivenvoorden (IBED, Universiteit van Amsterdam)
Taking advantage of its long-standing relationships with Tropenbos and many other institutions and universities in the tropics, the Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) of the University of Amsterdam is developing a new MSc programme in Tropical Ecology. The principal aim of the programme is: - to train MSc students in the analysis of tropical ecosystems; - to further their understanding of the properties and functioning of these ecosystems and their interaction with mankind; - to create a basis for the development of tools for the wise use of tropical forest resources. Training will be given through conceptual and practical courses in Amsterdam (about six months), a practical training in South America (which includes field instructions and internships with academic, educational or conservation institutions) and a full year of dedicated research for the MSc thesis. After satisfactory completion of the programme, the University of Amsterdam will award the candidate the Master of Science degree in Biological Sciences, with a specialisation in Tropical Ecology.
Page 22 Publications
Duivenvoorden, J.F., Svenning, J.-C. and Wright, S.J. (2002a). ‘Ecology - Beta diversity in tropical forests’, Science 295: 636-637. (See Box 5). Duivenvoorden, J.F., Svenning, J.-C. and Wright, S.J. (2002b). ‘Beta diversity in tropical forests – Respons’, Science 297: 1439. (See Box 5). Duque, A., Sánchez, M., Cavelier, J. and Duivenvoorden, J.F (2002). ‘Different floristic patterns of woody understorey and canopy plants in Colombian Amazonia’, Journal of Tropical Ecology 18: 499-525. Distribution patterns of vascular plants were studied on the basis of compositional data. Species that occurred in more than one plot showed higher local abundances. This pattern was consistent among environmental generalists and specialists. Locally rare species appeared mostly in well-drained uplands. Tests showed substantial correlations between environmental data (such as soil chemistry, flooding and drainage) and species composition. Elimination of the spatial component did not reduce these correlations. Duque, A. (2002). ‘Comentarios al concepto y la definición de comunidades vegetales en la Amazonía noroccidental’, Crónica Forestal y del Medio Ambiente 16: 89-98. A continuous debate persists between supporters of the niche and dispersal assembly theories, when trying to explain the floristic composition of vegetation units. When applied to plant communities from the western Amazon, the results reveal different patterns, all depending on the scale of sampling. Thus, in the case of Pteridophytes and herbaceous angiosperms, the distribution is explained by the variability of physiography or soils. This study suggests that both patterns can be found in the same vegetation unit and for all types of plant organisms. Therefore, it is likely that the apparent distinct patterns revealed by many studies are generated by the differences in the scale of sampling (local or regional) and the scale of organisms sampled (trees or herbs). Jiménez-Rojas, E.M., Londoño-Vega, A.C. and Vester, H.F.M.(2002). ‘Descripción de la arquitectura de Iryanthera tricornis, Osteophloeum platyspermum y Virola pavones (Mysticaceae).’ Caldasia 24(1): 65-94. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá DC. An architectural analysis for Iryanthera tricornis, Osteophloeum platyspermum y Virola pavones (Mysticaceae) was carried out in two Colombia Amazonian ‘tierra firme’ forests. The species showed great similarity in their architecture, all of them grow according to Massart’s model. The architectural development of these species is highly dynamic and allows them to constantly adapt to environmental changes in order to reach the canopy. Hammen, T. van der (2001). ‘Paleoecology of Amazonia’, in I.C. Guimarães Vieira et al. (eds.) Diversidade biologica e cultural da Amazonia. Museo Paraense Emilio Goeldi, Belém, Brazil.(appeared in 2002) Environmental changes in history affected the development of the Neotropical flora. Former and present ecological barriers, speciation and extinction may have contributed to the present patterns of diversity and endemism. This study makes the link between species composition and climatic conditions, a reconstruction of history based on paleo-ecology. Martínez, X.A., M.P. Galeano (2001). ‘Plantas vasculares del municipio de Mitú-Vaupés, Colombia. Biota Colombiana 2(2).(appeared in 2002) This study focuses on the vascular plants of the Vaupés Department, part of Araracuara region in the Colombian Amazon. The article contains two tables, giving an extended and complete overview of the vascular plant species composition in this region. The first is a general listing of families per genera, including the number of species that is found per family and per genera. The second is a taxonomic list of all species, as far as they have been determined, with their distribution in the different landscapes. Most of the plants have been collected and can be found in the National Herbarium of Colombia or the Amazonic Herbarium. Parrado-Rosselli, A., Cavelier, J. and Dulmen, A. van (2002). ‘Effect of fruit size on primary seed dispersal of five canopy tree species of the Colombian Amazon’, Selbyana 23(2). Primary seed dispersal at canopy level was recorded for five tree species of a tierra firme forest along the Caquetá River in the Colombian Amazon. With these single-seeded species, the hypothesis was tested that the larger the fruit size, the lower the amount of seed dispersed. Results showed that primary seed dispersal was lower for larger fruits only when calculated as the seeds carried away from the tree crown by frugivores. Fruit size affected seed dispersal more than seed size, fruit mass or pulp content. In addition, larger fruit size was negatively correlated with the number of visits and positively correlated with fruit- handling times. Quiñones Fernández, M.J. (2002). Polarimetric data for tropical forest monitoring. Studies at the Colombian Amazon. Tropenbos Series 21. Tropenbos International, Wageningen, the Netherlands. This PhD study focuses on the use of radar images to monitor the forest. Airborne satellite systems can provide images from above, penetrating through the clouds. To know what these radar images mean, a comparison with field data has been made. From this a model has been derived that makes it possible to interpret the information of the radar images. The result is a wide range of thematic maps about land cover, biomass, forest type and flooding of the area. The conclusion is that radar is a helpful tool to monitor forests quickly and with sufficient quality. Rodríguez Fernandez, C.A. (2001). ‘Impactos sobre la diversidad íctica y sustentabilidad de la pesquería de los grandes bagres en el Medio y Bajo Rio Caquetá’, Amazonía colombiana, in T.R. Defler and Palacios (eds.) Zonificación ambiental para el ordenamiento territorial. Libro de memorias. Instituto Amazónico de Investigaciones / Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá DC. (appeared in 2002). This contribution to a congress contains new information on fishing places, fishing techniques, consumption and other factors that influence the cat fish population and dynamics. This information should be included in the ongoing discussion about sustainable fishing in the Caquetá river. The result is a wide range of thematic maps about land cover, biomass, forest type and flooding of the area. The conclusion is that radar is a helpful tool to monitor forests quickly and with sufficient quality.
Page 23 Box 5: Scientific discussion: space and environment as ecological factors behind tropical forest diversity by Joost Duivenvoorden (IBED, Universiteit van Amsterdam) Our understanding of the diversity and composition of tropical forests can be substantially improved if we pay attention to spatial processes, such as seed dispersal, species migration, herbivory and attacks by fungi. Including space as an explanatory factor is also important in order to know to what extent space influences biodiversity and compositional patterns in comparison with environmental factors (such as soil chemistry, flooding and drainage), measurement errors or just pure random variation. Condit et al (2002) modelled how the similarity between forest stands decayed along distances on the basis of dispersal processes. In a response to this study, Duivenvoorden et al. (2002a, b) put the role of space into perspective by showing that a fair amount of species’ compositional patterns in Panamanian forests were explained by space, but an equally substantial or even larger amount were not. At a different scale, Duque at al. (2002), using data from the Colombian site of the non-timber project supported by the EC and TBI-Colombia (Duivenvoorden et al. 2001), showed the relative importance of space in explaining plant species diversity. They showed that in well- drained upland forests, where important environmental factors like flooding and drainage are more or less constant, the spatial configuration of the sample plots explained more of the plant species’ composition than soils. The same authors also claimed that understorey plants showed higher correlations with soils and space than canopy trees.
References used: Condit, R., Pitman, N., Leigh Jr., E.G., Chave, J. ,Terborgh, J., Foster, R.B., Núñez, P., Aguilar, S., Valencia, R., Villa, G., Muller-Landau, H., Losos, E. & Hubbell, S.P. (2002). Beta-Diversity in Tropical Forest Trees. Science 295: 666-669. Duivenvoorden, J.F., Balslev, H., Cavelier, J., Grández, C., Tuomisto, H. and Valencia, R. (eds.) (2001). Evaluación de recursos forestales no-maderables vegetales en la Amazonía nor-occidental. IBED/University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Colombia Colombia Duivenvoorden, J.F., J.-C Svenning & S.J. Wright (2002a) Ecology - Beta diversity in tropical forests. Science 295: 636-637. Duivenvoorden, J.F., J.-C Svenning & S.J. Wright (2002b) Beta diversity in tropical forests - Respons. Science 297: 1439. Duque, A., Sánchez, M., Cavelier, J. and Duivenvoorden, J.F (2002). ‘Different floristic patterns of woody understorey and canopy plants in Colombian Amazonia’, Journal of Tropical Ecology 18: 499-525.
Projects
TBI-sponsored projects: - Fruit availability and seed dispersal - Forest dynamics in the Amazon - Recovery of traditional knowledge of natural resources - Monitoring of the use of fauna by local communities
NWO/WOTRO-sponsored projects: - Plant diversity on West Guayanan hard rock formations * ** - Spatial distribution of rain forest plants along environmental gradients** - Fungal diversity during regeneration - Reproductive characteristics of two rain forest communities
Projects funded from other sources: - Moisture and nutrient cycling in secondary forest (Universidad Nacional)** - Polarimetric radar use for monitoring vegetation** - Sustainable use of macaws (Ara) and other ornamental birds - Development of educational materials - Peña Roja
Local indigenous initiatives 2002: - Recovery of handcraft making with guarumo fiber for maintaining the Yukuna roundhouse - Management of the Cumare palm - Elaboration and design of educational materials - Cultivation of the Memi palm for wild salt production - Ecological calendar: towards the recovery and traditional application of ethno-agronomic activities in the Peña Roja community
* co-funded by COLCIENCIAS ** co-funded by TBI
Page 24 GHANA Ghana
Size: 239,460 km2 TBI-Ghana leads the way in locally led and participatory programme development through national and international cooperation. The year 2002 Population: 21 million marked the final stage of an intensive consultation process in which the programme gradually took shape. TBI-Ghana’s mission is to provide Forest: 63,350 km2 distinctive scientific input to the sustainable management of Ghana’s high forest resources. Research at large ‘real-world’ sites aspires to develop and Forest cover change: -1.72 % test guidelines for integrated sustainable forest management. This is defined here to embody the multiple functions of the forest and the manifold stakeholders involved in its use and management. Training and promoting the uptake and application of research results are spearheads of the programme. The locally led programme development process was very elaborate and Contact included stakeholder consultations in Ghana and the Netherlands, field TBI-Ghana surveys and exploratory studies. PO Box UP 982 The most compelling societal questions related to forest management, KNUST, Kumasi conservation and rural development were indeed identified. These were used Ghana to formulate the research framework, which formed the basis for a call for Phone: +233 (0)51 60310 interest. Fourteen institutions and NGOs from four countries responded to the Fax: +233 (0)51 60310 call, which generated 39 pre-proposals. Twelve pre-proposals considered to E-mail: be highly relevant were selected for further elaboration. The five elaborated [email protected] versions which were eventually selected were chosen on the basis of their relevance, feasibility, scientific quality and the budget available. The selected projects cover forest Ghana management, policy and social issues. Training features prominently in all the projects. Besides formal training, the Steering Committee also decided to support student involvement in all projects.
Box 6: Modelling composition and performance of timber tree regeneration after selective logging
The selection of trees for felling and retention as seed trees, as well as the distribution and intensity of extraction disturbance are variables having a major influence on tree regeneration. They are also variables that management and logging practice can influence. Implicit in Ghana’s current Girth Limit Selection system is the expectation that logging disturbance will permit, and may even enhance, the regeneration of timber tree species for future harvests. But tree selection and retention are largely based on market and milling demands. Current harvesting guidelines focus on a balanced selection of trees for felling with consideration of advance regeneration. These guidelines are not connected to seedling regeneration requirements. This project with the University of Aberdeen will link existing survey data on the composition of timber tree regeneration to seed sources, canopy and soil. The project aims to produce a model to predict the composition of timber tree regeneration in semi-natural forest following selective logging. The predictions will include spatially explicit estimates of the probabilities for the successful establishment of timber tree species in different parts of the forest that is being exploited.
Page 25 TBI-Ghana Staff Based on the contours of the research programme, a The honourable research site has been set up in the Goaso Forest Thomas Broni, Deputy Sam Nketiah, Programme Minister for Lands and Team Leader District, one of the richest forest areas in Ghana. The Forestry, said about the 2 Anneke Wieman, Junior site of 761.23 km is made up of six contiguous forest consultation process at Communication Expert reserves and their surrounding areas and offers the official launching of William Ampong, Accounts opportunities for studying issues connected with logging, the TBI-Ghana Officer research site: “Given Olivia Larbi-Nyanteh, wildlife and forest protection in their socio-economic the elaborate Programme Assistant context. The forests have been extensively logged, but consultation processes Dwobeng Nyantakyi, still remain productive and constitute one of the few that TBI-Ghana has National Service Personnel examples of sustainable logging in West Africa. Another undertaken in Abigail Nketiah, developing the Receptionist forest reserve, the Bobiri reserve close to Kumasi, has research agenda, we Kwame Dankwa, Driver also been selected because of the considerable amount expect that your Mike Ampah, Driver of basic data already available and the opportunities it research programme Vivian Haward, Cleaner offers for ecotourism studies. will address some of Sarah Paintsil, Cleaner the very pertinent Kwame Appiah, Gardener The Goaso research site was formally launched amidst challenges that confront much pomp and pageantry at Asumura near Goaso in forestry in Ghana the Brong Ahafo Region. The occasion was attended by today.” the local communities, traditional rulers, scientists, forest managers and policy makers. The launch ceremony was a good opportunity to publicise TBI-Ghana and also provided a platform for interacting with local communities, various forestry sector agencies, policy makers and NGOs. The research site will serve as the nerve centre for the research activities of TBI-Ghana involving mostly researchers and students from Ghana, the Netherlands, Germany and Britain.
Design and test of methods TBI-Ghana supports the design and testing of scientifically-
Ghana Ghana based methods for the formulation and implementation of policy and sustainable forest management techniques. Against this background, three TBI-Ghana projects have taken off in 2002. Each box in this chapter describes a project.
Research and training TBI-Ghana performs demand-driven basic and applied research to generate knowledge and deepen insights for effective policy formulation and management of rain forest resources in Ghana. Student research projects are a good way of contributing to the short-term applied research that is needed in addition to the long-term research projects by PhDs. In 2002, two students from Wageningen University followed MSc courses in Forest and Nature Conservation. They are going to conduct research within the TBI-Ghana research framework. Support was also given to a PhD student from Aberdeen University (UK), to enable silvicultural research to be carried out at the TBI- Ghana research site. In addition, initial contacts were made with a view to setting up an interdisciplinary and intercultural platform for student projects. TBI-Ghana actually hosted the first batch of students from a Dutch University for a six-week fieldwork programme. The platform is to be broadened to cater for students from more institutions in 2003.
Promoting uptake and application In pursuit of its mission, TBI-Ghana has embarked on a strategic programme to promote the application and uptake of research results. This requires the participation of relevant stakeholders and links between researchers and
Page 26 policy makers, managers and forest users. The arrival of the Junior Projects Communication Expert in October 2002 enabled TBI-Ghana to make major - Silvicultural interventions progress towards achieving a greater impact. The communication activities so in Ghana’s tropical moist far have resulted in a communication strategy, the setting up of a TBI-Ghana forest: an assessment of library and the production of fact sheets. Each fact sheet is a one-page forest responses summary of research results in easy-to-understand language to make the - Managing forest-based conflicts: rationality, publications accessible to a broader audience. The TBI-Ghana library targets power and institutions researchers, students and other actors dealing with forestry. In addition to - Modelling composition printed materials, electronic media will play a major role in the library’s and performance of information supply. The communication efforts at this stage of the programme timber tree regeneration after selective logging focus mainly on: - Increasing TBI Ghana’s corporate identity - Internal coordination and communication - Capacity building - Network building and maintenance - Support in fundraising
Collaboration and cooperation TBI-Ghana stimulates collaborative research and cooperation among relevant stakeholders such as forest owners, policy makers, stewards, forest fringe communities, researchers and academic institutions in Ghana and abroad. TBI-Ghana therefore actively participates in a number of workshops organised by the forestry sector on issues like forest certification, benefit sharing and the presentation of the results of a multi-resource inventory. TBI- Ghana also hosted three seminars in which graduate students and one of its researchers reported on their research activities. These seminars were very Responsible institutions well attended by researchers, students and forest managers. Separate Ghana: discussions were also held with representatives of the International Tree Ministry of Lands and Forestry Ghana Seed Centre (ITSC), two Dutch institutions (ITC and IAC) and INBAR to The Netherlands: explore possibilities for collaboration. TBI-Ghana is also a partner in the Tropenbos International Question and Answer Service of the Ghana Agricultural Information Network Programme coordination System (GAINS). This service is a partnership between different research Ghana: organisations and its aim is to answer questions on demand by users through Kwesi Orgle, Ministry of Lands verbal information, bibliographic references, full text documents, referral and and Forestry The Netherlands: an advisory service. TBI-Ghana also collaborated with GTZ and other Hans Vellema, TBI organisations to host a training workshop on grass-cutter rearing as an alternative livelihood strategy. Scientific coordination Ghana: Kyere Boateng, Institute of Renewable Natural Resources, KNUST The Netherlands: Frits Mohren, Wageningen Box 7: Silvicultural interventions in Ghana’s tropical moist forest: an assessment of forest University responses Partners Logging is currently the main silvicultural intervention in Ghana. Yield regulation is often based on Ghana: arbitrary felling limits and cycles. This is due to: Forestry Research Institute of - inadequate understanding of the complex forest ecosystem; Ghana (FORIG) Institute of Renewable Natural - inadequate knowledge about the forest’s response to disturbance; and Resources - inadequate growth data for rational yield planning and control. This research project by TBI-Ghana, FORIG and the University of Aberdeen aims to fill this gap and The Netherlands: contribute to the development of appropriate silvicultural systems and growth models for improved Wageningen University forest management. This will be done by evaluating the effects of past silvicultural treatments on - Dept. of Forestry forest condition and productivity. The study will examine tree growth and mortality rates and the competitive interactions resulting from the interventions. Other issues to be dealt with include shifts United Kingdom in forest structure and composition, plant diversity and the value of the forest to various University of Aberdeen stakeholders.
Page 27 Box 8: Managing forest- Publications based conflicts: rationality, power and TBI-Ghana commissioned three exploratory studies with a view to highlighting critical areas for institutions research intervention. In 2002, the key research needs that were identified in these studies are presented below: One of the challenging issues confronting forest policy and management in Ghana is Key research issues in multi-purpose rain forest management: how to deal with conflicts in - Policy for integrated land use the use and management of - Land administration reform and access to land forest resources. Dealing with - Harmonising timber and NTFP harvesting this issue is a must since - Promotion of income generation and strategic marketing of forest produce conflict has characterised, - Resource-based enterprise development and continues to - Ecotourism development characterise, forestry in - Establishing ecologically representative protected areas Ghana. This study – a collaborative Key research issues related to effective stakeholder collaboration in forest policy and effort between TBI-Ghana management in Southern Ghana: and Wageningen University – - The perceptions and interests of smaller groups in forest fringe communities aims at studying forest-based - The prospects of open access management of forest resources if a village becomes a town conflicts in Ghana with a view or large community to making scientific and policy - The potential of forest-based livelihoods in forest-adjacent communities in view of peoples’ recommendations for dependence on the forest and their interest in forest-related activities effective stakeholder conflict - The desirability, benefits and acceptability of various degrees of community involvement at management and various levels – planning, monitoring and legislation stakeholder collaboration. It - Trends in household livelihoods should be known to inform policy and practice aims to provide insight into the dimensions and dynamics Key issues for research related to effective planning, policy formulation and implementation: of forest-based conflicts, the - The concept of stakeholder participation in policy processes design and implementation of - The adequacy of professional training and the capacity of human resources given the conflict interventions and into new role and mandate of the professional forester stakeholders’ perceptions of - The nature and dynamics of corruption in the forestry sector and the actors, networks and forest-based conflict and influencing factors involved conflict management in - The degree to which social and Ghana Ghana Ghana. The resulting options political capital can be mobilised as for managing forest-based an incentive for the Ghanaian conflicts in Ghana will be government to act to ensure communicated to relevant adequate forestry politics scientists, policy makers and - A valuation of equitable benefit stakeholders in Ghana and sharing among stakeholders abroad. In this way, the - The conditions which will ensure project will provide policy stakeholder commitment to the makers and forest managers implementation of specific policies with a useful tool for conflict - The effect of agricultural, mining and management and help them investment policies on the to take a pro-active approach implementation of forest policies to preventing potential conflict scenarios resulting from policy and management decisions. New Office
TBI-Ghana has now moved into its new 12-room facility located on the premises of Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG). The building provides offices for three international organisations, which would increase collaboration and strengthen the coordination between the organisations’ activities. The building also includes a library that stocks all TBI publications.
Box 9: TBI-Ghana‘s key role in the NGO Platform
TBI-Ghana plays an active role in the activities of the NGO-Platform concerned with natural resource management in Ghana. The PTL serves on the Grants Group of the Platform, whilst the Associate Communication Expert is helping to set up a website for the Platform. TBI-Ghana has already hosted two meetings of the Platform.
Page 28 GUYANA Guyana
Size: 214,970 km2 The Tropenbos-Guyana programme ended in December 2001. As a final activity, TBI and the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) commissioned an evaluation of Population: 0.7 million the final four years. An independent team consisting of Mr Bas Loumans (CATIE, Costa Rica) and Dr William Wilson (University of Guyana) conducted this Forest: 168,790 km2 evaluation in January 2002. They concluded that the programme performed well, with particular success in training and outreach. The team was less contented with Forest cover change: -0.28 % the bad timing of the programme’s conclusion. The main objective of the evaluation was to assess whether the programme had achieved the objectives of contributing to forest policy and management and creating local research capacity. It also aimed to assess its relevance and impact Contact on Guyana’s forest policy and management. The team observed that it was too soon to reach a definitive conclusion about Tropenbos International the impact of the programme as several important projects had not yet been PO Box 232 6700 AE Wageningen concluded and impacts are often not felt until several years after a programme’s The Netherlands conclusion. The team concluded that the Tropenbos-Guyana programme was important for Office: Guyana and performed well on most of its stated objectives. It noted that after an Lawickse Allee 11, Wageningen initial focus on mainly ecological research it had gradually evolved towards The Netherlands capacity building and outreach. The timing of the programme’s conclusion was considered to be poor. It came at a time that much of the earlier work was starting Phone: +31 (0)317 495500 to bear fruit and have an impact outside the purely scientific field. In this respect, Fax: +31 (0)317 495520 E-mail: the team highlighted the contribution of the Tropenbos-Guyana programme to the [email protected] certification process, the development of reduced impact logging and protected areas planning. The components of the programme that were best appreciated by the stakeholders interviewed were the MSc and PhD programmes, the training courses, and the general publications and guides. These documents and activities were directed at the general public and show the mportance of the outreach factor of a programme like Tropenbos-Guyana. More resources and focus could have been given to outreach, training and capacity building, frequent programme evaluation and updating and improved involvement of national and local stakeholders in the governance of the programme. The team felt that this would have lead to a more effective implementation of the programme. The dominant role of professional scientists in the formulation and implementation of the programme has contributed to a focus on basic research in the programme. Guyana While the Tropenbos-Guyana programme has formally closed, not all Tropenbos activities in Guyana have stopped. One of these is the certification of a pilot concession in Guyana, funded by the DOEN Foundation. During 2002, a general forest inventory was completed and preparations were made to conduct a detailed inventory of all harvestable trees in the areas selected for harvesting. An internal Task Force consisting of key concession staff is in place to analyse how the business organisation and practice should be adapted in order to meet the needs of a certified company. Business structure and operational protocols need to be adapted to ensure that these requirements are met. The project runs in parallel with the National Certification Initiative in Guyana.
Page 29 Partners Three subprojects under the EU-funded ‘Conservation and sustainable use of botanical diversity in Guyana’ project, along with a related project funded by Guyana: Guyana Forestry Commission NWO, aim to increase the understanding of the effects of timber extraction on (GFC) botanical diversity and improved guidelines for sustainable forest University of Guyana management practices. A volume project on the effects of logging on tree - Faculty of Natural Sciences - Faculty of Agriculture (Forestry) diversity was almost completed. All data on liana biodiversity in logged forest, National Agricultural Research the results of eight years of fieldwork, were put together and analysed for final Institute (NARI) Guyana Natural Resources publication in 2003. An improved version of the website with illustrations and Agency (GNRA) descriptions of lianas is ready to go on-line. A draft growth and yield model for Environmental Protection trees based on SYMFOR was developed in collaboration with University of Agency (EPA) Demerara Timbers Limited Edinburgh staff. (DTL) The Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Publications Conservation and Development Alder, D., Oavika, F., Sánchez, M., Silva, J.N.M., van der Hout, P. and Wright, H.L. (2002). ‘A comparison of species growth rates from four moist tropical regions using increment-size The Netherlands: ordination’, International Forestry Review 4: 196-205. Utrecht University The authors compare growth rates and typical size for 204 species from permanent sample plots in Brazil, - Department of Physical Costa Rica, Guyana and Papua New Guinea. A website (www.myrlin.org) provides worksheets, software and Geography further documentation on simple tools for yield regulation in natural tropical forests. - Department of Plant Forget, P. M., Hammond, D.S., Milleron, T. and Thomas, R. (2002). ‘Seasonality of fruiting and Ecology food hoarding by rodents in neotropical forests: consequences for seed dispersal and seedling - Department of Anthropology recruitment’ in D. Levey, W. Silva and M. Galetti (eds.) Frugivory and seed dispersal. CABI Publishing, Wallingford, United Kingdom. Chapter in a book on the production of fruits by plants, their consumption by animals (frugivory) and the relevance of these to seed dispersal, adapted from the Third International Symposium-Workshop on Frugivores and Seed Dispersal held in August 2000 in Rio Quente, Brazil. Louman, B., Campos, J.J., Schmidt, S. Zagt, R.J. and Haripersaud, P.P. (2002). ‘Los procesos nacionales de certificación forestal y su relación con la investigación forestal’, Revista Forestal Centroamericana 37: 41-46. The authors discuss how, in Costa Rica and Guyana, the process of choosing a certification scheme and later developing a national certification standard has played a role as facilitator for discussions between different stakeholders. The process builds on past and present research and discusses and adapts management and policy proposals. The article identifies gaps in our current knowledge of forest management and its effects on the natural and human environment, as well as weaknesses in policy and legislation. Perreijn, K. (2002). Symbiotic nitrogen fixation by leguminous trees in tropical rain forest in Guyana. Tropenbos-Guyana Series 11. Tropenbos-Guyana programme, Georgetown, Guyana. Tropical trees need 14 nutrients to function properly and the largest quantity needed is Projects Nitrogen. The author shows how trees, in association with certain soil bacteria (rhizobia), can fix nitrogen from the air. She demonstrates that that the replenishment time for nitrogen after logging might be at least a factor three lower than previously assessed if N fixation is taken into account. However, for this to happen, a - Forest disturbance, tree 2 number of new policy and management measures are required. population dynamics Phillips, P.D., van der Hout, P., Arets, E.J.M.M., Zagt, R.J., van Gardingen, P.R. (2002). An and tree species ecological model for the management of natural forests derived from the Tropenbos permanent
Guyana Guyana composition: the effects sample plots at Pibiri, Guyana. Symfor Technical Note Series 9, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. of variation in An ecological model describing the processes of growth, recruitment and mortality was developed using a dataset reproductive from permanent sample plots established at Demerara Timbers Limited at Pibiri, in central Guyana by the characteristics (NWO- Tropenbos-Guyana programme. The model was implemented in the SYMFOR framework and calibrated and WOTRO) tested with simulations of primary forest dynamics. This document is intended to document the process of model development in such a way that would facilitate the development of similar models for other areas, forest types or - Patterns and causes of applications. The full text is available from http://www.symfor.org/technical/pibiri4.pdf. plant diversity (EU) Steege, H. ter, Welch, I. and Zagt, R. (2002). ‘Long-term effect of timber harvesting in the - Forest disturbance, tree Bartica Triangle, Central Guyana’, Forest Ecology and Management 170: 127-144. population dynamics In one of the longest time series available, the authors present a comparison between forest inventories of and tree species 1924, 1964 and 1999 of an 800 km2 forest-harvesting area in Central Guyana. Harvesting mainly targeted composition: species- one species Chlorocardium rodiei (Greenheart), of which the population declined by 63% over the 75 years specific responses to of harvesting. The conservation value of these forests can still be considered high, however. While the long- light (EU) term sustainability of Greenheart harvesting is low, other ecological criteria of sustainability are met. Short- term recovery of Greenheart is not to be expected due to low population growth and small numbers of seed - The use of liana trees. Strategic choices will have to be made with regard to harvesting the remaining Greenheart stands and diversity in logging the authors discuss three possible scenarios. damage assessment (EU) Walcott, A., Wilson, W., Walcolt, G. and Williams, M. (2002). Commercial potential of lesser- - Support to the used Guyanese wood species. Tropenbos-Guyana Report 2002-1, Tropenbos-Guyana certification process programme and GFC Forest Research Unit, Georgetown, Guyana. (DOEN Foundation and To date, the Guyanese timber industry has relied heavily on just a few species. With expected growth and PROFOR) expansion in the furniture and plywood industries, larger volumes of many of the lesser-used species are expected to be utilised.
Page 30 INDONESIA Indonesia
Size: 1,919,440 km2 Long-standing collaboration between TBI and FORDA makes the MOF- Tropenbos Kalimantan Programme (MTKP) one of the most qualified Population: 232 million organisations for forestry research in East Kalimantan. The synergy of FORDA’s expertise on Indonesian forests and TBI’s international experience Forest: 1,049,860 km2 and resources is enabling the MTKP to realise its objective of improving the use and management of forests to create a healthy environment, sustainable Forest cover change: -1.17 % development and prosperity for the people in East Kalimantan. The MTKP wants to achieve its development objective through development-oriented research, promoting the uptake of research results, education and training, and the strengthening of institutions and agencies Contact engaged in forest management in East Kalimantan. It focuses on socio- MOF-Tropenbos Kalimantan economic and ecological interactions at the interface between tropical forest Programme ecosystems and the surrounding human societies. It does so in a real-world PO Box 494 programme area that is representative of the issues and developments in the Balikpapan 76100 Indonesia forest sector in Kalimantan and Indonesia. The strength of this programme is its approach, characterised by participatory programme development and Office: execution. All research is carried out in close collaboration with (inter)national Jl. Jend. Sudirman universities and research institutes. Balikpapan Permai Blok F.2 No. 31 RT 16 RW 04 Balikpapan, Indonesia Forest ecosystems Interaction Interface Human society Phone: +62 (0)542 820503 / 820504 Fax: +62 (0)542 735773 E-mail: [email protected]
Social-ecological System (SES) Telake Watershed area (as a real-life example)
The MTKP pursues demand-driven basic and applied research to generate development-relevant information. By generating sound information, the programme aims to deepen insights for the sake of effective governance and the sustainable use of forests in East Kalimantan.
Call of interest In response to Tropenbos’ call of interest in May 2002, the MTKP received 28 pre-proposals, fifteen of which were selected for further elaboration. Of the fifteen full proposals, seven were submitted by Dutch and five by Indonesian institutes and universities. The MTKP management staff and the Scientific and Programme Indonesia coordinators proposed that the Steering Committee select three of the fifteen proposals for inclusion in the MTKP Multi Annual Programme for 2003-2005. The selected projects are all collaborative efforts between Indonesian and Dutch research institutes and universities and include the training of PhD and MSc students in Indonesia.
Page 31 MTKP Staff Programme organisation Responsible institutions The MTKP office was relocated from Wanariset Indonesia: Bas van Helvoort, PTL Samboja to Balikpapan, which is located closer to Forestry Research and Arsad Anom, Finance and Development Agency Administration Manager the new programme site in Pasir and offers better (FORDA), Ministry of Kade Sidiyasa, Project telephone connections. A staff reorganisation took Forestry Manager and Head of place and there were substantial reductions in the The Netherlands: Tropenbos International Researchers Group number of supporting staff not assigned on a Fleur Deul, Junior Communication Expert project basis. Programme coordination Susanti, Communication In 2002, Alterra withdrew the scientific coordinator Indonesia: Assistant of the Kalimantan programme and the Centre of Sulistiyo Siran, BPPK The Netherlands: Fauzi Anshari, Librarian Environmental Science at Leiden University took Irwansyah, Office Clerk Hans de Iongh, TBI Lusiana Palloan, Finances over scientific coordination of the programme, in René Boot, TBI (from 1.12.202) Abidin, Chief Mechanic close collaboration with the National Herbarium of Sariman, Driver the Netherlands and the Van Vollenhoven Institute, Scientific coordination Indonesia: Aang Suhardi, Driver both based in Leiden as well. Bachtiar, Head of Security Slamet Riadi Gadas, BPPK Yance Pitoy, Head of The MTKP has increased its collaboration with the The Netherlands: Technicians University of Mulawarman and invited the university Paul Hillegers, ALTERRA Gerard Persoon, CML, Leiden Arbainsyah, Technician to provide the Scientific Coordinator for the University (from 1.6.2002) Zainal Arifin, Technician programme in Indonesia. Priyono, Technician Marthen Buntu, Technician The arrival of a Dutch Junior Communication Syaiful Bahri, Technician Expert in October was a signal to start setting up the Communication Unit. Saweni, Technician This Unit is going to focus on building a strong network with stakeholders and Agusdin, Technician related organisations, on getting a clear picture of the institutional landscape of Pasir and on developing tools for assessing the impact of the programme. The Bi-National Steering Committee, which met in February 2002, decided to select the Telake catchment area in the Pasir District as the new programme research area. The members of the Steering Committee flew over the project area in order to personally survey the condition of the remaining forests. As part of the process of demand-driven programme development, surveys and stakeholder consultations were carried out in the Pasir area by the University of Mulawarman in December, with a special focus on the Telake watershed. Through an alliance with Indonesian universities, the Kalimantan programme endeavours to support education and training to improve local research and management capacity. The research programme aims to complement all research projects by Msc and PhD students from Indonesia. Five PhD students (three Indonesian, two Dutch) defended their theses successfully in 2002 and three S2 students and one S1 student, supported by the Kalimantan programme, have graduated from Mulawarman University.
Uptake of research information and impact assessment The Kalimantan programme is embarking on a strategic programme to promote the use and sharing of research results. This implies that efforts are put into the creation of effective platforms such as workshops, the
Indonesia Indonesia dissemination of publications, training and communicating the results to local communities.
Page 32 Collaboration and local embedding The Kalimantan programme fosters collaborative research and cooperation between stakeholders and researchers. To ensure local embedding of the research programme, the MTKP seeks to involve relevant stakeholders during all stages of programme development. To this end, the University of Mulawarman carried out a stakeholder analysis in the Pasir area in December. The idea was for this analysis to produce a clear picture of the current situation and the needs for information before the research proposals for 2003-2005 are selected.
Projects
Research projects completed in 2002: - Conversion of Imperata cylindrica grassland into an agroforestry system by application of Partners mycorrhiza and shading trees (PhD thesis by Murniati) - Water stress physiology in Shorea leprosula Miq. (PhD thesis by Aldrianto Priadjati) Indonesia: - Dipterocarp ectomycorrhizal development and succession as influenced by stress and ageing Forest Research Institute in Shorea leprosula Miq. (PhD thesis by Mulyana Omon) Samarinda (BPPK) - The production of the interactive CD-ROM on secondary forest trees of South and East Mulawarman University, Kalimantan by Paul Kessler and Kade Sidyasa Samarinda - After-fire regeneration of primary forest in Kalimantan (PhD thesis by Mark van Nieuwstadt) Centre for Research and - The impact of tropical forest disturbance on the diversity and community structure of insects Development In Forestry and (PhD thesis by David Cleary) Nature Conservation Indonesian Science Institute - Development and production of a dipterocarp nursery and propagation manual (by Wim (LIPI) Tolkamp) Sustainable Forest Management Project (GTZ) Ongoing research projects: Indonesia Forest Seed Project - An institutional analysis of forest policy decentralisation – the case of East Kalimantan (DANIDA) Province, Indonesia. State Enterprise for Forest - Remote sensing monitoring system for forest management and land cover change in Exploitation and Industry (INHUTANI I) Indonesia Association of concession - Diversity in woody pioneer species after the 1997/1998 forest fires in Kalimantan holders (APHI) - Assessing the behavioural ecology, population status and habitat use of orang utans reintroduced to Meratus Forest The Netherlands: - Rapid assessment of flora and fauna integrity of lowland forests Leiden University - Effects of forests fires on the ecology of the Malayan Sun bear in East Kalimantan - Centre for Environmental Studies (CML) National Herbarium of the Netherlands - Leiden branch University of Amsterdam - Institute of Systematic and Population Biology Wageningen University and Research Centre - Alterra - Dept. of Water Resources - Dept. of Forestry
Other countries The Gibbon Foundation Indonesia
Page 33 Publications
Cleary, D.F.R. and Menken, S.B.J. (2002). ‘Branden maken bossen extra kwetsbaar’, Natuur en Techniek 70 (3): 57. Article in a Dutch popular science magazine explaining the vulnerability of tropical forests after fires. Jong, W. (2002). Forest products and local forest management in West Kalimantan, Indonesia: implications for conservation and development. Tropenbos-Kalimantan Series 6. Tropenbos International, Wageningen, the Netherlands. Using evidence from a study on NTFP use and indigenous forest management in West Kalimantan, this book critically examines the proposition that commercialisation of forest products contributes to both improved incomes and forest conservation. It draws attention to the importance of man-made vegetation types, which increase the area under forest cover and have a surprisingly high biodiversity. Murniati (2002). From Imperata cylindrical grasslands to productive agroforestry. Tropenbos- Kalimantan Series 9. Tropenbos International, Wageningen, the Netherlands. PhD thesis on the options and conditions for the conversion of alang-alang grassland into a more sustainable and productive agroforestry system for smallholders. Based on experiments with tree and crop planting the author concludes that this conversion is technically feasible by planting a mix of mahogany, sungkai and candle nut trees and the leguminous Peuraria javanica. Nieuwstadt, M.G.L. van (2002). Trial by fire. Postfire development of a tropical dipterocarp forest. Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands. This study presents an overall view of forest regeneration after forest fires in East Kalimantan. It shows that a single forest fire does not destroy a tropical rain forest. Some of the trees survive the disturbance through above-ground survival, or through resprouting from below-ground parts. The persistence mechanisms are insufficient, however, to ensure the local survival of shade-tolerant species after repeated disturbances such as commercial logging of dead trees after the fires, or if fires occur repeatedly. The author argues that such disturbances must be avoided if the long-term objectives are to maintain a forest area and to secure the productivity of a timber concession. Omon, M. (2002). Dipterocarpaceae: Shorea leprosula Miq. cuttings, mycorrhizae and nutrients. Tropenbos-Kalimantan Series 7. Tropenbos International, Wageningen, the Netherlands. This study discusses mycorrhizal development under different dosages of NPK fertiliser, on different soil substrates and under different environmental conditions. Aeration or oxygen supply in the soil substrates, potential inoculum and light intensity came to the fore as the main factors affecting the growth of S. leprosula and mycorrhizal development. Priadjati, A. (2002). Dipterocarpacae: forest fires and forest recovery. Tropenbos-Kalimantan Series 8. Tropenbos International, Wageningen, the Netherlands. Forests fires are quite common in Indonesia and their results are disastrous. A burned forest takes between 40 to 45 years to recover naturally and there are major ecological and economical consequences. Forest researcher Aldrianto Priadjati, involved in forest rehabilitation projects in Kalimantan, has developed a technique in Dipterocarpaceae forests with high economic and ecological value that reduces recovery time. Priadjati, A., Leppe, D., Anshari, F., Tolkamp, G.W., Hendromono, Yasman, I., Sidiyasa, K., Noor, M., Omon, M., Rayan, Effendi, R. (2002). Manual Persemaian Dipterocarpaceae. Departemen Kehutanan, Jakarta, Indonesia. Illustrated manual in Bahasa Indonesia for dipterocarp nursery managers and workers. In a question-answer format, the manual deals with practical aspects of nursery design and management, cost calculation, dipterocarp propagation, species identification, etc. Tested during a course, it updates course material on dipterocarp propagation, produced in the programme in 1989-91, to incorporate research results since 1991. Slik, J.W.F., Verburg, R.W., Kessler, P.J.A. (2002). ‘Effects of fire and selective logging on the tree species composition of lowland dipterocarp forest in East Kalimantan, Indonesia’. Biodiversity and Conservation 11: 85-98. Article on primary, selectively logged and heavily burnt forest in East Kalimantan. The numbers of trees and tree species per area were significantly reduced in disturbed forest. Fire affects dominant species; selective logging the non-dominant species. In burnt forests, Macaranga species are important 15 years after disturbance, but much less so in logged forests. Indonesia Indonesia
Page 34 VIETNAM Vietnam Size: 329,560 km2
TBI-Vietnam started in April 2002 after TBI and the Population: 81 million Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) had signed an agreement in Forest: 98,190 km2 2001. The management team set up an office at the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (FIPI) Forest cover change: 0.54 % Head Office in Hanoi and recruited four new staff members. A call for interest was sent out Contact worldwide to mobilise partners for research and training proposals in support of the Forest Sector TBI-Vietnam Support Programme (FSSP) and the Five Million IPO Box 671 Hectare Reforestation Programme (5MHRP). Hanoi, Vietnam The overall objective of TBI-Vietnam is to Office at FIPI contribute to the development of policies, Thanh Tri District, Hanoi techniques and methods for the conservation and sustainable utilisation of tropical forest resources Phone: +84 (0)4 6870600 / 6870601 in Vietnam. Equally important is its aim to Fax: +84 (0)4 6870601 strengthen Vietnam’s professional and E-mail: institutional capacity. The Forest Sector Support [email protected] Programme (FSSP) and the Five Million Hectare Reforestation Programme (5MHRP) together form TBI-Vietnam’s framework for action. The goal of the FSSP partnership is to achieve sustainable forest management for the conservation of biodiversity through protection of the environment, improved livelihoods for people resident in forest areas and enhanced contribution of forestry to the national economy. More specifically, TBI-Vietnam aims to: - contribute to the design of the National Forest Research Strategy; - generate and disseminate meaningful information, methods and technologies in support of the conservation and sustainable utilisation of Vietnam’s tropical forests; - promote the transfer of these outputs into policy and the practice of forest management; - educate MSc and PhD students and assist universities and other organisations in training researchers and research managers; - extend insights and methodologies to forest managers, supervisors and communities.
Page 35 Vietnam Vietnam TBI-Vietnam Staff Call for interest PTL Jan de Wind: A call for submitting pre-proposals for research and ‘The high number of Mr Jan Wind, PTL pre-proposals clearly Dr Nguyen Phu Hung, PTL capacity building was sent to more than 40 international indicates that TBI- Jeanette Mulder, Junior and national organisations, institutions, universities and Vietnam fulfils a need Communication Expert researchers. It was also published on the TBI website. and reflects the Nguyen Thuy Hang, Twenty-five researchers from institutions and universities eagerness of the Communication Officer Vietnamese to Trinh Thi Hong Dung, involved in forestry or natural conservation participated in participate in Translator / Interpreter a one-day workshop on the research agenda held in Hue international forestry Nguyen Bich Thao, in October. TBI-Vietnam received 61 pre-proposals. research.’ Secretary Selection will take place in 2003 with input from national and international experts and an endorsement by the Steering Committee.
Research priorities TBI-Vietnam will focus on the topic areas selected in the Forest Sector Support Programme (FSSP) framework as the priorities for forestry research from 2001 to 2010. This framework is supported by 21 international donors and NGOs, including TBI. All the major stakeholders have accepted the national research framework, which was developed through an extensive participatory process. The framework includes social, economic and ecological aspects of forest conservation and utilisation in their mutual interaction. The main aim of the research is to gain insight into patterns and processes at the interface between the political and socio-economic sphere and their effects on the forest ecosystem.
Selection of the research site The Provinces Thua Thien Hue and Quang Tri in Central Vietnam, with the Bach Ma National Park and Dakrong Nature Reserve, have been chosen as the main initial research sites of the TBI-Vietnam programme. At a later stage, the research sites could possibly be expanded to include the entire North Central Agro-ecozone which covers four other provinces as well. Of the eight agro-ecozones in Vietnam, this one has the highest biodiversity, the largest areas of remaining natural forest and, in relative terms, is home to the poorest people in Vietnam. The TBI field office will be based in Hue.
Box 10: Bach Ma National Park
The National Park was created to protect high mountain forest with beautiful landscapes, highly diverse plant species and the typical wildlife species living along the central coast line of Vietnam. The wider Bach Ma-Hai Van area is considered to be one of Vietnam’s seven globally important ‘Centres of Plant Diversity’. Bach Ma National Park also has wider significance as a link in the last chain of contiguous natural forest between the Laotian border and the East Sea.
Vietnam Page 36 Vietnam Desk studies Two national experts, Vu van Dzung and Nguyen Quoc Dzung, gathered information on the research areas in the Thua Thien Hue and QuangTri Provinces. They aimed to identify the most compelling conservation and sustainable forest use issues as well as priority research themes and topics. They compiled existing information on the areas such as technical information, relevant projects, reports, literature, web links, maps and contact addresses. Their report will provide an important input for the research selection process and will be distributed among the parties to be contracted later. A second desk study is being carried out to explore opportunities for cooperation between TBI-Vietnam and INBAR in the field of bamboo cultivation, propagation, processing and marketing in the North Central Agro- ecozone of Vietnam. TBI-Vietnam, in cooperation with several stakeholders, developed a proposal Responsible institutions Vietnam: and started fundraising for a National Forestry Research Capacity Building and The Ministry of Agriculture and Fellowship Programme for the period of 2003-2008. Two FIPI staff members were Rural development (MARD) sent to the Netherlands and started their MSc studies in September 2002. The Netherlands: TBI-Vietnam set up a Communication Unit staffed with a translator/interpreter and Tropenbos International a national and international Communication Officer. The latter is taking part in the Programme coordination international communication network connecting the TBI programmes worldwide. Vietnam: The team designed a communication plan for the period 2002 –2003. Tran Kim Long (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural The communication efforts at this stage of the programme will consist of: Development: International - Increasing the corporate identity and promoting TBI activities Cooperation Dept.) - Network building and maintenance Netherlands: Hans Vellema, TBI - Improving the information management infrastructure ‘The forestry sector in - Capacity building Vietnam will greatly Scientific coordination - Internal communication (TBI and contracted partners) benefit from TBI’s Vietnam: presence, especially - Supporting fundraising activities Dr Do Dinh Sam, Forest from the capacity Sciences Institute Vietnam building activities in the TBI-Vietnam has actively participated in the activities of Netherlands: forestry sector.’ FSSP and has become a signatory of the FSSP Ngo Ut, Forest Prof. Dr Alfred de Gier, Partnership in 2002. The programme management has Inventory and Planning International Institute for Institute Geoinformation Science and also participated in many national and international Earth Observation (ITC) workshops chaired by MARD and FSSP. What does the TBI-Vietnam Research programme have to offer? - Partnership between national and internationals research institutes Partners - Embedding of research results in forest management, national policy and research environment Vietnam: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural - A locally owned, problem-oriented research programme Development (MARD) - A multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary research programme represented by the Forest - Administrative and logistical support Inventory and Planning Institute (FIPI) - Field research sites Forest Sector Support - Shared funding Programme (FSSP) partnership signed by: - Capacity building MARD, WB, ADB, FAO, UNDP, WWF, CARE International, FFI, IUCN, OXFAM UK, SNV, Bird Publications life, JBIC, Helvetas, EC and the embassies of Denmark, Finland, Vu van Dzung and Nguyen Quoc Dzung (2002). Nature conservation and sustainable forest Sweden, the Netherlands and management in Thua Thien Hue and Quang Tri Provinces. TBI Desk study, Hanoi, Vietnam. Switzerland Gathering information about TBI-Vietnam’s research area, the authors show that the Thua Thien Hue and Quang Tri Provinces form an area with high biodiversity. It is situated in the transition climate zone of the tropic and monsoon tropical zones and is extremely rich in fauna and flora. Many endemic and endangered plant and animal species can be found here. The fauna of the two provinces includes three newly discovered large mammal species. The area is located in the southern part of the Central Vietnam lowlands zone of endemic birds, one of the three endemic bird centres in Indochina. As a result, there are many endemic and endangered bird species in the area. Moreover, the region is famous for its endemic species of pheasant groups, such as Lophura edwardsii, L. diardii and Rheinardia ocellata as well as many famous tree species such as Sindora tonkinensis and Hopea spp. that are endemic in Vietnam.
Page 37 Vietnam Vietnam Acronyms
5MHRP Five Million Hectare Reforestation Programme (Vietnam) ADB Asian Development Bank APHI Association of Indonesian Forest Concession Holders (Indonesia) ANN Austrian National Node (ETFRN) BAPPENAS Regional Development in the National Development Planning Agency (Indonesia) CARPE Central African Regional Program for the Environment (USAID, United States of America) CATIE Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación de Enseñanza (Costa Rica) CBD Convention on Biological Diversity CBS Fungal Biodiversity Centre (the Netherlands) CIA Central Intelligence Agency (USA) CIFOR Center for International Forest Research (Indonesia) CIRAD Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (France) CML Centre for Environmental Science, Leiden University (the Netherlands) COAH Colombian Amazonian Herbarium (Colombia) COAMA Consolidación de la Región Amazónica (Colombia) COLCIENCIAS Instituto Colombiano de Investigaciones Científicas y Proyectos Especiales “Francisco José de Caldas” (Colombia) CoP Conference of Parties CRIMA Consejo Regional Indígena del Medio Caquetá (Colombia) CTFS The Smithsonian Centre for Tropical Forest Management (United States of America) CU Communication Unit DANIDA Danish International Development Agency (Denmark) DFID Department for International Development (United Kingdom) DGIS Directorate General for International Cooperation (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Netherlands) DTL Demerara Timbers Ltd. (Guyana) EC European Commission EFARD European Forum on Agricultural Research and Development EIA Environmental Impact Assessment EPA Environmental Protection Agency (Guyana) ESA European Space Agency ETFRN European Tropical Forest Research Network ETFAG European Tropical Forest Advisors’ Group EU European Union EUFORIC Europe’s Forum on International Cooperation FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FESCOL Fundación Friedrich Ebert en Colombia FFI Flora Fauna International FIPI Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (Vietnam) FORDA Forestry Research and Development Agency (Indonesia) FORIG Forestry Research Institute of Ghana FORSPA FAO Forestry Research and Support Project for Asia and the Pacific FORNESSA Forestry Research Network for sub-Saharan Africa FP6 6th Framework Programme, Directorate General Research, European Commission FSSP Forestry Sector Support Programme (Vietnam) FRIS Forest Research Institute Samarinda (Indonesia) GAINS Ghana Agriculture Information Network System GB General Board GEF Global Environment Facility GFC Guyana Forestry Commission (Guyana) GFIS Global Forest Information Service GIS Geographic Information System GNRA Guyana Natural Resources Agency (Guyana)
Page 38 GTZ Gesellschaft für Technologische Zusammenarbeit (Germany) HFC La Forestière de Campo (Cameroon) IAC International Agricultural Centre (the Netherlands) IBED Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, UvA (the Netherlands) IMANI Institute of Amazon Research - Universidad Nacional (Colombia) INBAR International Network for Bamboo and Rattan INCODEV International Cooperation and Development IPB Agricultural University Bogor (Indonesia) IRAD Institut de la Recherche Agricole pour le Développement (Cameroon) IRGM Institut de Recherche Géologique et Minière (Cameroon) ITC International Institute for Geo- Information Science and Earth Observation (the Netherlands) ITSC International Tree Seed Centre ITTO International Tropical Timber Organization IUCN World Conservation Union KNAW Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (the Netherlands) KNUST Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi (Ghana) LBA Large Biosphere Atmosphere experiment in Amazonia LIPI Indonesian Science Institute LNV Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries (the Netherlands) MAP Multi-Annual Plan MARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Vietnam) MINEF Ministère de l’Environnement et Fôrets (Cameroon) MOF Ministry of Forestry (Indonesia) MSc Master of Science (university degree) MTKP MOF-Tropenbos Kalimantan Programme NARI National Agricultural Research Institute (Guyana) NASA National Aeronauts and Space Administration (USA) NGO Non-Governmental Organisation NHN National Herbarium of the Netherlands (the Netherlands) NTFP Non-Timber Forest Product NUFFIC Netherlands Organisation For International Cooperation in Higher Education (the Netherlands) NWO Nederlandse Science Foundation (the Netherlands) OMACHA Foundation for Amazonian Research (Colombia) ONADEF Office National de Développement des Forêts (Cameroon) PAC Programme Advisory Committee PDF Portable Document Format PhD Doctor of Philosophy (university degree) PROMAB Programa Manejo de Bosques de la Amazonía Boliviana (Bolivia) PT. INHUTANI Indonesian State Enterprise for forest Exploitation and Industry PTL Programme Team Leader PU Programme Unit SBSTTA Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice, Convention on Biological Diversity SES Social Ecological System SNV Organisatie voor Ontwikkelingssamenwerking en Bewustwording (the Netherlands) SYMFOR Silviculture and Yield Management for Tropical Forests TBI Tropenbos International TIEN Tropenbos Inter-site Electronic Newsletter UAESPNN Special Administrative Unit of the National Parks System (Colombia) UNDP United Nations Development Programme USAID United States Agency for International Development UU Utrecht University (the Netherlands) UvA Universiteit van Amsterdam / University of Amsterdam (the Netherlands) WB The World Bank WUR Wageningen University Research Centre (the Netherlands) WOTRO Foundation for the Advancement of Tropical Research (the Netherlands) WWF World Wide Fund for Nature
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