UNDP Publishes Arimae Case Study

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Photo of Arimae's native tree species nursery Arimae's native tree species nursery The UNDP-GEF’s Small Grants Programme recently published a case study on Arimae’s sustainable agroforestry project.

The piece highlights the three main components of the project, which Arimae conceived as a way to explore sustainable economic alternatives:

  • Seed collection from native trees and nursery planting
  • A carbon analysis of 500 hectares Arimae’s reserve
  • Reforestation with a mix of native timber and fruit species

Planting Empowerment played a role by helping to manage the project and providing technical support. The project is generating social and environmental impacts by offsetting carbon and providing jobs and training to Arimae community members.

We expect to build on this success by facilitating agroforestry projects with other communities and incorporating that experience into our own operations.

Download the case study (PDF, 2.3MB)

Have your [cacao] and eat it, too

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Planting Empowerment employee Liriano tends to a cacao sapling planted for the UNDP projectConventional thinking by most agronomists holds that creating a more biodiverse field or planting area ultimately reduces yields. However, a recent study entitled "Combining High Biodiversity With High Yields in Tropical Agroforests" suggests just the opposite: that increased yields and biodiversity can go hand-in-hand. The article, authored by Clough et al., examined biodiverse cacao (cocoa) plantations in Indonesia. 

Last year through the UNDP's Small Grants Program we worked with Arimae to plant cacao in some of their older tree plantations. Arimae planted some of the cacao beneath the canopy of a 10-year old mahogany stand, and the rest in a new parcel of rosewood with more sun exposure. We will be closely monitoring the differences in growth and yield between the two parcels as they mature and begin to produce.

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Pixels, Plots and People - Adapted for Panama

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Recently, I wrote a blog post for the World Bank about including Indigenous Peoples in the measuring of forest carbon monitoring. Although Planting Empowerment doesn't operate REDD projects (nor plans to), we do think it is important for Indigenous Peoples to understand their assets so they can make better decisions.
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On "Forests vs. Food?"

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On February 7th TIME magazine posted an article on their website entitled Forests Vs. Food?. The piece examines the relationship between deforestation and rising food prices.

According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), global food prices have reached record peaks this year, and are expected to keep rising. They attribute this rise to increased demand for resource-intensive products such as beef, and poor farming conditions leading to reduced yields in agriculture-producing countries.

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Planting Empowerment featured in UNDP Report

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The UNDP recently released a report entitled Latin America and the Carribean: A Biodiversity Superpower.

The report aims to "... assess and communicate the economic contribution of biodiversity and ecosystems services to development and equity in the region."

One of the UNDP's case studies features Planting Empowerment's innovative tenure model for forestry and development.

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