Uplifting Indigenous Communities Through The Restoration Initiative
The Restoration Initiative (TRI) has been pivotal in uniting people and the planet in their important environmental restoration projects. Not only focusing on mitigating land degradation, TRI has been uplifting Indigenous communities that call this land home. With extraordinary connections to the land, Indigenous peoples possess traditional ecological knowledge and practices that are critical in the fight for environmental restoration. Through their various projects, the TRI are finding a balance between actively restoring land areas while protecting local communities’ rights and livelihoods that have lasted generations.
Empowering Indigenous Communities in the Central African Republic
In the Pissa and Berberati regions of the Central African Republic, TRI projects are aiding the transition away from unsustainable farming practices in order to relieve the depletion of forest resources. The survival of local villages and indigenous groups has been based on scarce resources such as timber and wild meat, but with the help of TRI, new forms of income are being established.
Pictures from CAR nursery in Bayanga area managed by partner WWF © FAO/Benjamin DeRidder
With the trust of the local people, long-term solutions are being established in the form of community forests. These forests aim to give Indigenous people long-term rights to use and manage their resources, empowering sustainable practices and collaboration. Through extensive engagement with local villagers, 500 hectares of land has been mapped out for this restoration project, with the potential to improve food security, increase animal habitat, provide alternative income sources, and improve the lives of surrounding communities. Training has been provided to empower indigenous peoples, teaching the importance of land management, legal rights, and allocation of community forests. … Read the rest