Across Latin America, Model Forests are providing a natural laboratory for learning and experimentation about landscape governance.
(Lea este aporte en español aquí) This post provides some insights on a recent Model Forest event, reporting on experiences of its application across Latin America and the Caribbean and how Model Forests, as a landscape approach, advance sustainable development.
On March 9th, landscape leaders from Latin America’s forests gathered in Puerto Rico for the Ibero-American Model Forest Network (RIABM) 2016 annual Board Meeting. Over the span of a week, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources of Puerto Rico hosted representatives of Model Forests and governments from over 10 countries. The group participated in workshops, field trips, and cultural exchanges to immerse themselves in the experiences of emblematic areas of the Puerto Rican National Model Forest.
Puerto Rico hosted the 2016 Board Meeting of the Ibero-American Model Forest Network, which connects 32 landscapes in Central America, the Caribbean, South America, and Spain.
The RIABM was founded in 2002, 10 years after the Model Forest concept was officially presented to the world at the UNCED (Earth Summit) in Rio, with the purpose of connecting and supporting the Model Forests of Central America, South America, the Caribbean, and Spain. As a voluntary partnership that is endorsed by government entities of each member country, it currently brings together 15 countries and 32 landscapes to share knowledge and exchange experiences. RIABM’s cross-landscape activities have been described in this publication that shares some thoughts about successful networking.
Model Forests: not exactly a model, yet more than just forests
The concept of a Model Forest is purposefully fluid, which can make it a little difficult to get a hold of. Even after 10 years of working with RIABM, the General Manager sometimes jokes that he still doesn’t know what a Model Forest is! This speaks to the flexibility of the concept of the Model Forest to take on different forms in practice across the region and the world.
So, what is a Model Forest anyway? Model Forests can be defined as landscape-level processes focused on people working together, voluntarily, and in partnership towards a common vision founded in sustainable human development. This takes place within large landscapes, with diverse land uses and values, and in which forest ecosystems play an important role. It goes beyond forests to include the broader landscape. Each Model Forest is “modeled” according to local context, making the practice of the underlying concept exceptionally diverse. However, in spite of their diversity, all Model Forests share a core set of six principles, as described here.
To put it in another way, Model Forests are “integrated landscape management” approaches that seek to be participatory and inclusive and are, more often than not, community-based. Indeed, this community-feel was tangible during our stay in Puerto Rico!
Drawing parallels, creating bonds
During the first two days of the event, we listened to updates of Model Forests, participated in debates on the valuation of ecosystem services, and got a glimpse of community-driven environmental management programs in action. The Department of Natural and Environmental Resources of Puerto Rico did a spectacular job in inviting community members and youth to participate in the events throughout the week, demonstrating how embedded their own Model Forests activities are in the socioeconomic and environmental context of the island.
EcoAgriculture Partners, as the Secretariat of the Landscape for People, Food and Nature Initiative, was invited to join the event by the International Model Forest Network (IMFN), one of the international organizations sitting on RIABM’s Board. Some other organizations represented on the board include the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Centre (CATIE).
Lucila presented on the Landscapes for People, Food and Nature Initiative, drawing on the parallels of the IMFN and LPFN missions, and highlighting opportunities for collaboration with RIABM. Fortuitously, a representative of Bolivia’s Chiquitano Model Forest, Hermes Justiniano, had participated in the LPFN’s 2014 meeting in Nairobi. At the end of the presentation, he shared positive feedback about his experience with African peers who are tackling some of the same issues experienced in Latin American landscapes.
Achieving gender equality in the representation of its leadership was one of the resolutions passed in the RIABM 2016 Board Meeting. This photo was provided by Josique Lorenzo/CATIE.
Welcoming two new Model Forests into the network
Following the workshop, the official Board Meeting was held at Casa Pueblo, the community organization that led the formation of the Tierras Adjuntas Model Forest in 2007 and advocated for its legal designation in 2014 as the National Model Forest of Puerto Rico. Casa Pueblo remains an integral actor in its management and was a hospitable and inspiring host for the Board Meeting. We were received with a warm welcome, expressed by a local chorus, procession of flags, and local gifts.
One of the highlights of this year’s meeting was the inclusion of the Chocó-Andino Model Forest in Ecuador and the Noroeste de Olancho Model Forest in Honduras. Both new members were welcomed into the network with unanimous votes. Each of these landscapes displayed high interest in contributing to advancing sustainable development in Latin America.
Casa Pueblo, a community organization in Puerto Rico, provided a hospitable environment for the annual Board Meeting. In this room, two new Model Forests, one from Ecuador and one from Honduras, were inducted into the network.
The Puerto Rican landscape experience
Puerto Rico joined the RIABM in 2007. In the year of 2014, this Model Forest is the only one in the world that received institutional support at the national level. The resulting national statute expanded the Model Forest’s size from approximately 14.000 hectares to more than 150.000 hectares. It is also the only Model Forest in the Americas with two coastlines; a visitor can drive the height of the island, aptly titled the Isla del encanto (Island of enchantment) while traversing the Model Forest. In only five hours, one will navigate winding roads through highland tropical rainforest, chaparral and secondary forest recovering from slopeside fires, riparian habitats, lagoons, wetlands, mangrove forests, and seaside estuaries. The event featured field trips to many of these ecosystems.
This is a map of the western side of the island that outlines the expanse of the National Model Forest of Puerto Rico. This graph is posted on the website of Casa Pueblo, found here.
It is the best and the worst of times for landscapes around the world
On the positive end, the landscape approach is enjoying unprecedented recognition. From local to international scales, leaders in multiple sectors are expressing its value for efficiently managing natural resources. The other side of the coin paints a less optimistic outlook. While momentum and public interest in landscapes are building, it can be challenging to secure funding that sufficiently supports these initiatives. There are many reasons for this, including the difficulty to convince donors that landscape approaches, like Model Forests, need long-term support to deliver their real benefits. Model Forests are not projects. Rather, they are long-term social processes that undergo permanent construction.
The Cueva Ventana is a cave in Puerto Rico that opens to an overlook of a lush valley. The area seen through the “ventana,” window in Spanish, is part of the Puerto Rican National Model Forest.
It can be hard to grasp what a Model Forest is, and each country has a different application of the concept and unique experience in generating institutional support. This poses several challenges in advancing and piecing together the conceptual elements of a Model Forest, but it is also very enriching. After the Board Meetings held in Ecuador in 2014 and in Cuba last year, Puerto Rico took the opportunity to enlighten its Latin American peers by displaying its progress and growth as a Model Forest. The energy in Puerto Rico was infectious; the group left Puerto Rico feeling reinvigorated and motivated to continue building momentum for the Model Forest approach in Latin America.
Learn More
Visit the Ibero-American Model Forest Network website
See how RIABM is connected to International Model Forest Network
An EcoAgriculture Partners report on financing innovation in landscapes, based on research in Kenya
The authors would like to thank the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources of Puerto Rico and Casa Pueblo for their hospitality during their visit.
Josique Lorenzo is a researcher based in CATIE, Costa Rica. Having volunteered for two years with the RIABM, she now consults the International Model Forest Network. Lorenzo is part of the Open and Collaborative Science in Development Network, which supports a project she is currently conducting with two Model Forests. She strongly believes in the potential of Model Forest approach as a means for advancing the sustainable development goals.
Lucila Fernandez is a Communications Associate for EcoAgriculture Partners. She provided writing support for this post, based on her recent trip to Puerto Rico to represent the LPFN at the RIABM 2016 Board Meeting. This article is translated by Fernandez, which can be found here.
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