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Civil Society Organizations operating in and around forested areas are some of the most effective champions of forest conservation and management. However, they frequently lack the resources or knowledge of how to incorporate the latest forest-monitoring technology into their research, advocacy, and field work. The Small Grants Fund provides financial and technical support to organizations around the world to use Global Forest Watch’s tools and data to turn forest monitoring information into action. Working in close partnership with local organizations also helps GFW to understand how we can best adapt our tools to meet the unique needs of this user group.

<ul>
<li>Grant awards between $10K &#8211; $40K.</li>
<li>Individualized training and support.</li>
<li>Form part of the GFW partnership.</li>
</ul>

Small Grants Fund projects have used GFW to strengthen community land rights, by providing evidence of the benefits of community-monitored forests; alert authorities to illegal deforestation, resulting in fines for the perpetrators; and create campaigns, to raise awareness of deforestation drivers and hold those responsible to account.

102 projects from 30 countries

Over 840 million hectares of forests monitored using GFW

Over 6,000 people trained in using GFW

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Small Grants Fund

The Global Forest Watch Technology Fellowship aims to recruit and train the best and brightest forest managers, protectors and advocates in facing growing threats to forests through use of pioneering technology solutions and big data, and support others in their networks to do so as well. The objective of the fellowship program is to scale impact by developing a community of GFW power users and champions to support the use of the platform in priority countries, and develop a shared vision on how GFW tools and other forest monitoring technology can be used to protect forests in priority regions around the world. Fellows may be indigenous leaders, investigative journalists, public interest lawyers, foresters, environmental law enforcers, conservationists, or open data experts who have the passion to provide training and ongoing support to governments and local activists to use forest data and monitoring technology effectively within their work and to enhance their ability to participate in monitoring of illegal deforestation.

<ul>
<li>A monthly stipend, and access to additional discretionary funds for feld visits, equipment purchases, professional development, or workshop costs.</li>
<li>All expenses paid (airfare, visa costs, meals and accommodation) to participate in tech camp and the GFW User Summit in Washington, DC.</li>
<li>Training by experts in forest monitoring, land use planning, advocacy and enforcement, and project design and implementation.</li>
<li>Participation in the GFW partnership and SGF/Fellowship alumni community.</li>
<li>Communications coverage in WRI’s newsletters, blogs and social media.</li>
</ul>

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Tech Fellowship

If you would like to contribute to supporting communities, civil society, organizations, and individuals in using GFW to protect and sustainably manage the world’s forests, please contact us at <a class="text -paragraph -color-4 -light" href="mailto:gfwfund@wri.org">gfwfund@wri.org</a>.

Support the Small Grants Fund and Fellowship

The Global Forest Watch Small Grants Fund seeks to strengthen the capacity of civil society organizations to reduce illegal or unplanned deforestation and sustainably manage forests by incorporating GFW into forest monitoring strategies. Successful projects translate data into action, applying GFW to overcome challenges in protecting the world’s forests.

We are no longer accepting applications for the 2024 Small Grants Fund Cycle.

Please feel free to review the following materials to prepare for the next cycle: 
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="-" data-font="Calibri" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;-&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1"><a href="https://gfw.smapply.io/protected/r/FkmBTc_C-GJ6iD28zx8OmMjdxwM6qbz1XFuiwusn6cZuCfL4rsHcpSa1CsnERXPM_5dq1Vk5-ompaQHCymljdQ==/Guidelines_for_SGF_Applicants_2024_Corrected.pdf">2024 Guidelines for Applicants</a> </li>
<li data-leveltext="-" data-font="Calibri" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;-&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="6" data-aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.globalforestwatch.org/help/faqs/grants-fellowships/">Small Grants Fund Frequently Asked Questions</a> </li>
<li data-leveltext="-" data-font="Calibri" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;-&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="7" data-aria-level="1">2024 Applicant Webinar <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqJ1Vw8S2ls">recording</a>, <a href="https://www.slideshare.net/slideshows/2024-small-grants-fundslidespdf/266044890">slides</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MG2397wM3sk">GFW demo</a> </li>
</ul>

Interested in being notified about the next call for proposals? <a class="Hyperlink SCXW28701949 BCX0" href="https://www.globalforestwatch.org/subscribe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Subscribe to the GFW newsletter</a>, and select “Small Grants Fund and Tech Fellowship” as interests to be added to the list.

We are not currently accepting applications for the GFW Tech Fellowship. For more information about the Tech Fellowship, see our <a href="https://www.globalforestwatch.org/help/faqs/grants-fellowships/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Frequently Asked Questions</a>.

For questions about the Small Grants Fund or Tech Fellowship program, or to be notifed when the next call opens, please write to us at <a href="mailto:gfwfund@wri.org">gfwfund@wri.org</a>

The Small Grants Fund and Tech Fellowship support civil society organizations and individuals around the world to use Global Forest Watch in their advocacy, research, and field work.

With financial and technical support from GFW, organizations and individuals around the world are using Global Forest Watch to monitor large-scale land-use projects, enforce community land rights, defend critical habitat, and influence forest policy.

MEET THE GRANTEES AND FELLOWS

Grants & Fellowships

Global Forest Watch Content

https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/gfwGlobal.png

<a href="https://www.forestfund.or.id/">Yayasan Pemantau Independen Kehutanan Indonesia or Independent Forest Monitoring Fund (YPIKI-IFMF)</a> will work to build the capacity of government-managed Forest Management Units (FMUs) and civil society-led Independent Monitors (IMs), made up of both individuals working for NGOs with legal status and communities living in proximity of the forests, to strengthen the Timber Legality Assurance System, a mandatory system developed by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry designed to ensure that timber and timber products produced and exported from Indonesia meet legality standards and that forestry laws and regulations are enforced. To improve IMs’ capacity and knowledge on laws related to harvesting forest products, YPIKI-IFMF will engage with Indigenous youth to train them and help them disseminate knowledge among other local IMs. YPIKI-IFMF will also work to foster collaboration among FMUs and IMs around using GFW tools and data for improved forest monitoring.

YPIKI-IFMF will work to build the capacity of Forest Monitoring Unit and civil society-led Independent Monitors to strengthen the Timber Legality Assurance System.

<a href="https://internationalanimalrescue.or.id/">Yayasan IAR Indonesia (YIARI)</a> will work to enhance forest protection in Lampung, Sumatra, and West Kalimantan, Borneo, by developing a near real-time Integrated Forest Crime Alert System (IFCAS). The project will pilot this system in the Batutegi Protected Forest, an area that holds significant ecological value and harbors numerous threatened and flagship species such as Sumatran tigers, pangolins and tapirs, with the goal of expanding use of the system to other protected areas in Indonesia. By incorporating GFW near real-time deforestation alerts into IFCAS while concurrently working with Forest Management Units — governmental management units that manage each provincial forestry service area to improve law enforcement — the project hopes to reduce deforestation and other threats in Indonesia’s protected areas.

Yayasan IAR Indonesia (YIARI) will work to enhance forest protection in Lampung, Sumatra, and West Kalimantan, Borneo, by developing a near real-time Integrated Forest Crime Alert System (IFCAS). 

<a href="https://infonile.org/en/">InfoNile</a> is a geojournalism media platform and cross-border network of more than 800 environmental journalists working in the 10 Nile Basin countries and is an arm of Water Journalists Africa (WJA), a Uganda-based NGO whose network of environment and water journalists spreads across Africa. Their project will train and support journalists from the InfoNile/WJA network on GFW tools and data to report investigative stories on deforestation in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and cross-border timber trafficking from DRC into transit and destination countries for illegal timber. The project will provide broad-reaching journalistic training targeting data journalists using GFW, followed by focused support of 10 selected journalists in DRC, South Sudan, Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda and Kenya to identify, investigate and pitch cross-border stories to publish in InfoNile and other major media houses. InfoNile will also organize community screening and exhibition events in DRC close to where the stories were reported to encourage awareness and action around the story findings.

Water Journalists Africa - InfoNile will train and support journalists from the InfoNile/WJA network on GFW tools and data to report investigative stories on deforestation in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and cross-border timber trafficking from DRC into transit and destination countries for illegal timber. 

Two-time SGF grant recipient <a href="https://www.botanicomedellin.org/">Medellin Botanical Garden </a>will continue working to address deforestation in Colombia’s Antioquia region, this time leveraging new technologies to automate monitoring and communication. Working with the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM), Medellin Botanical Garden will implement a robust reporting system that automatically generates deforestation alerts with information from IDEAM and GFW and disseminates this information to relevant environmental authorities, police, army and media. Using the<a href="https://observatoriobosquesantioquia.org/curso-virtual-explorando-los-bosques-deforestacion/"> free online course</a> they created during their 2023 SGF project, they will also provide specialized training for relevant authorities and organizations to use the reporting system and GFW tools to enhance their deforestation response.

Medellin Botanical Garden will continue working to address deforestation in Colombia’s Antioquia region, leveraging new technologies to automate monitoring and communication.  

<a href="https://kwcgh.org/">Knowledge for World Conservation (KWC)</a> will work to improve capacity of forest and community guards in the Offinso Forest District of Ghana in a multi-stakeholder approach to reducing illegal forest activities and improving response to ongoing or new forest crimes. Their project will train forest rangers and community guards on the use of tech-based spatial monitoring systems equipped with geolocation features such as the GFW platform and Forest Watcher, including how to upload, analyze and incorporate field reports into their monitoring activities. They will equip forest guards with smartphones to use near real-time deforestation alerts on GFW for forest monitoring. Additionally, KWC will engage at community durbars (traditional community meetings) to raise awareness of the importance of forest protection and work with the community and other stakeholders on joint efforts using geospatial technology to safeguard forest resources.

Knowledge for World Conservation (KWC) will work to improve capacity of forest and community guards in the Offinso Forest District of Ghana in a multi-stakeholder approach to reducing illegal forest activities and improving response to ongoing or new forest crimes.  

<a href="https://ibcperu.org/">Instituto del Bien Comun (IBC)</a> will work with two Indigenous Federations in Peru, the National Federation of Kakataibo Communities and Federation of Native Communities of Puerto Inca and Tributaries, to develop and implement a surveillance system of Indigenous territories in the Kakataibo and Pachitea landscapes using digital technology.  The Indigenous territories in this region are under threat from land invasion and exploitation, but currently the affected communities do not have the tools and resources to provide adequate and timely information to the state agencies responsible for dealing with offenders. IBC will work with a pilot focus group that includes leaders and security guards of the two Indigenous Federations to train them on using GFW tools for forest monitoring and develop the surveillance system. Community patrols will then be able to develop reports using Forest Watcher and community mapping so state entities can take preventative actions.

In Peru, Instituto del Bien Comun (IBC) will work with two Indigenous Federations, National Federation of Kakataibo Communities and Federation of Native Communities of Puerto Inca and Tributaries, to develop and implement a surveillance system of Indigenous territories in the Kakataibo and Pachitea landscapes using digital technology.  

<a href="https://ibifbolivia.org.bo/">Instituto Boliviano de Investigacion Forestal (IBIF)</a> will work with the Guarayo Indigenous Forestry Association (AFIG) to help consolidate a Territorial Monitoring Unit (UTT). The AFIG oversees all forest management plans for the territory of the Gwarayu Indigenous Nation, which covers approximately 1.3 million hectares of forest in eastern Bolivia. The UTT will be responsible for monitoring threats such as illegal deforestation and wildfires. IBIF will train the territorial monitoring unit team in the use of integrated deforestation alerts and VIIRS fire alerts in GFW, as well as implement a Monitoring Center with its own monitoring system for managing their territory. IBIF will also assist AFIG in developing agreements with the Bolivian Forestry Authority so that the monitoring system is legitimately recognized and validated to report violations in their territory. 
&nbsp;

Instituto Boliviano de Investigacion Forestal  (IBIF) will work with the Guarayo Indigenous Forestry Association to help improve their Territorial Monitoring Unit.

In Myanmar, <a href="https://www.forest-trends.org/">Forest Trends</a> will work with Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation (MONREC) forest managers and administrators under the National Unity Government to use GFW tools to monitor, document and mitigate forest pressures resulting from political crisis. Myanmar has experienced political turmoil since a military coup in 2021, which has created challenges for forest conservation. Forest Trends will train the team of forest managers in monitoring deforestation hotspots using GFW, and in using Forest Watcher to conduct verifications. The forest managers will share quarterly reports of findings and the status of deforestation in two target areas with MONREC officials and work towards improving forest management practices and governance based on the findings.

Forest Trends with work with Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation (MONREC) managers in Myanmar to monitor, document and mitigate forest pressure.

Deforestation is persistent in the Chocó region of Ecuador, even within federally protected areas such as the Mache-Chindul Ecological Reserve, which suffers the highest deforestation rates of any reserve nationwide in part due to limited capacity for monitoring and enforcement. <a href="https://fcat-ecuador.org/">Fundación para la Conservación de los Andes Tropicales (FCAT)</a> aims to revolutionize deforestation monitoring in the Ecuadorian Chocó region by integrating AI-powered insights with GFW data, combined with intensive local capacity building. FCAT will develop Chocó Forest Watch, a novel application that uses satellite and high-resolution drone imagery and applies a deep learning model to predict forest loss and degradation, with the aim of increasing detection accuracy by 25%. Chocó Forest Watch will be hosted on <a href="https://mapbuilder.wri.org/">WRI&#8217;s MapBuilder platform</a>, creating semi-automated continuous updates to local forest cover maps for accurate and timely deforestation tracking.

Fundación para la Conservación de los Andes Tropicales  (FCAT) aims to revolutionize deforestation monitoring in the Ecuadorian Chocó region by integrating AI-powered insights with GFW data, combined with intensive local capacity building.

The Samaaka territory is a highly forested landscape in the Amazon that is experiencing increasing pressure on forest resources from logging and mining activities. However, the Samaaka people do not currently have tools and methods to detect and report on these threats and the impact to their forest and livelihood. The <a href="https://saamaka-oto.org/">Association of Samaaka Communities (VSG)</a> will set up a community-based monitoring system in the Samaaka territory to build the capacity of Samaaka people to participate in forest monitoring, such as raising awareness among local Samaaka youth about GFW tools and on conducting field verification patrols. VSG aims for the community to be able to use the information gathered to influence land-use policies and counteract forest threats, and also hopes to work with government officials to recognize the Samaaka monitoring system for improved enforcement in their territories.

The Association of Samaaka Communities (VSG) will set up a community-based monitoring system in the Samaaka territory to build the capacity of Samaaka people to participate in forest monitoring, such as raising awareness among local Samaaka youth about GFW tools and on conducting field verification patrols. 

2023 SGF grantee, <a href="https://ajesh.org/">Ajemalebu Self Help (AJESH)</a> will join the 2024 cohort focusing their project in the Yabassi and Nlonako Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs), which serves as a rich carbon sink while being home to endangered primates and birds. AJESH will contribute to government action to conserve the two KBAs by taking a multi-pronged approach. They will train and work with officials of the Ministry of Forestry to adopt a spatial deforestation monitoring system using GFW tools and data as well as drones while also continuing to intensify stakeholder engagement and trainings that began during last year&#8217;s cycle with community members on the use of GFW and drones. AJESH will then evaluate the data generated from nine months of monitoring throughout the project towards Cameroon&#8217;s progress on their international environmental commitments.

AJESH will contribute to government action in conservation of the Yabassi and Nlonako Key Biodiversity Areas in Cameroon using GFW tools and drones.

<a href="https://www.yel.or.id/">Yayasan Ekosistem Lestari (YEL)</a> will work in the Leuser Ecosystem and Batang Toru Ecosystem in Indonesia to improve effective monitoring for sustainable forest management by training the national park and forest management teams on the use of GFW tools including Forest Watcher and how to analyze GLAD and RADD deforestation alerts. Park agents will be trained in forest monitoring and uploading field information into the Forest Watcher app. In addition, they will conduct training programs for community ecotourism groups in reporting deforestation to relevant government agencies by capturing data using the Forest Watcher app on their smartphones. Field surveys using drone technology on focused target areas will be conducted and monthly reports will be published documenting the causes of changes in forest cover and wildlife habitat data. Each National Park and Forest Management agency will then develop a Habitat Management Plan to inform policy and create a sustainable plan for long-term management of each forest area.

This project will work to leverage effective monitoring for sustainable forest management through targeted patrols of deforestation hotspots in order to investigate, report, and ultimately reduce the number of deforestation events that are threatening critically endangered habitats. 

In Peru, <a href="https://rainforestfoundation.org/">Rainforest Foundation US (RFUS)</a> works in partnership with thirty-two indigenous communities of the Kichwas, Ticunas and Shipibos to protect thousands of hectares of indigenous forests in the Loreto and Ucayali Regions using spatial data evidence useful for enforcement actions. For this project, RFUS will partner with 2020 Small Grants Fund recipient, ORPIO, a regional indigenous organization in Peru, to continue the pilot a monitoring program called Rainforest Alert and will be building two new technology hubs to support its growth. These satellite technology hubs serve as locations for field monitors to process deforestation alerts and evidence collected by patrollers to support more efficient field verification visits of deforestation events. In addition, this project will further improve the two technology hubs that have already been built by providing new computers and better internet accessibility to allow field teams to do more advanced analysis and provide better reports on trends across communities. These activities will result in monthly forest use maps as well as a customized map using <a href="https://mapbuilder.wri.org/">MapBuilder</a>, which will document collective action against deforestation in that region.

This community-led rainforest monitoring program connects Indigenous Peoples with remote sensing technologies to map, monitor, and secure their territories against illegal deforestation by combining satellite imagery with investigations on foot. 

  

Observatoire de la gouvernance Forestière en RDC <a href="https://ogfrdc.cd/">(OGF)</a> will work to strengthen the capacities of local actors to disrupt the flow of illegal timber in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. OGF will train key stakeholders in GFW tools for field verification of deforestation alerts, and will partner with a local REDD+ project to conduct field missions with resulting reports from on-the-ground findings. OGF will utilize WRI&#8217;s <a href="https://opentimberportal.org/">Open Timber Portal</a> to input their findings to increase transparency in the logging sector and incentivize sustainable and legal logging methods. Finally, OGF will develop an advocacy note in partnership with the National Network of Independent Observers based on the recommendations of the monitoring patrols to improve forest governance at the provincial level, which will be amplified via publication on their website, a press briefing and follow-up meetings with administrative and political authorities.

OGF will work in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to disrupt the flow of illegal timber by building the capacities of key actors in forest monitoring such as the agents of the administration in charge of forest controls along with civil society actors.

Colombia has one of the highest deforestation rates in the American tropics. Additionally, Colombia has one of the highest mortality rates for environmental activists. Antioquia, with an average annual deforestation rate of 240 km2/year, is Colombia&#8217;s fifth most deforested province. Building public and collective awareness and knowledge dissemination about forest loss would minimize the risks for local activists reporting deforestation. As such, <a href="https://www.botanicomedellin.org/">Medellin Botanical Garden</a> will promote using GFW tools to monitor and report deforestation in nine regions in Antioquia involving local stakeholders including citizens, communities, journalists, and environmental authorities. This will be achieved through an educational program with over 125 environmental officer participants, which will hold in-person and virtual workshops. In addition, MBG will design and establish a free media-based learning program for non-expert training in forest monitoring using GFW tools.

This project will work to raise public awareness and strengthen the capacity of local organizations and journalists to use deforestation alert systems to monitor, verify and respond to threats to forests in Antioquia, Colombia.

<a href="https://jpik.or.id/">The Independent Forestry Monitoring Network (JPIK)</a> will provide workshops and training on Global Forest Watch to Indigenous People and local communities (IPLCs) in the area which will be used to detect tree cover loss in the Kerinci Seblat National Park (TNKS) area on Indonesia. The TNKS area is a world heritage that has continued to shrink since 2011 due to rampant forest encroachment and illegal logging. High-value trees are prone to becoming targets for loggers, meanwhile deforested land is being traded into illegal plantations, which is causing this important ecosystem to deplete. The main objective of this project is to increase the participation of IPLCs and forest rangers in the TNKS area in monitoring forest crimes and deforestation.

JPIK’s project will work to increase the monitoring capacity of JPIK members, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, as well as forest rangers by using the GFW platform to detect illegal logging and deforestation.

The Strengthening Environmental Law Enforcement in Forestry Crime project takes place within the overall goal of integrating criminal justice into the forest monitoring and enforcement of the Takoradi Forest District in southwestern Ghana. <a href="https://henmpoano.org/">Hen Mpoano</a> will seek to strengthen the capacity of enforcement actors for effective forest law compliance and enforcement; gather spatial data evidence useful for enforcement actions; and to promote pro-conservation behavior among forest fringing communities leading to voluntary compliance with forest laws. This project will build on past GFW project which has successfully built the forest monitoring capacity of communities and forest managers to reduce deforestation in the Takoradi Forest District through enhanced community-based monitoring. The project will combine the ongoing monitoring activities with a more targeted, punitive approach, through more effective use of the criminal justice system, while promoting pro-conservation behavior using behavioral change communication materials and channels.

This project will build on Hen Mpoano's ongoing GFW project which has successfully built the forest monitoring capacity of communities and forest managers to reduce deforestation in the Takoradi Forest District in Ghana through enhanced community-based monitoring. 

The Leuser Ecosystem in Indonesia is the last place on earth where Sumatran rhinos, orangutans, elephants, and tigers still live together in the wild. <a href="http://www.haka.or.id/">HAkA</a> has been working to release the latest data on the condition of Aceh&#8217;s forests since 2016 and have trained more than 1600 individuals on GFW tools from the government, NGOs, students, police, journalists, and local communities. Now they will focus their project on deepening the understanding and usage of GFW tools within 3 Forest Management Units and 1 National Park Management Unit. These intensive mentoring visits to these units will work to improve their current usage of GFW tools and encourage more frequent joint patrols to the field to verify deforestation alerts.

HAkA will build on their training activities over the past 6 years to focus on the intensive application of GFW by 3 Forest Management Units (KPH) and 1 National Park Management Unit (BPTN), by encouraging more frequent join patrols and countermeasures by law enforcement against widespread forest destruction. 

The Pico Bonito National Park (PBNP) in Honduras is home to important forests and rich biodiversity that calls for effective forest conservation and sustainable resource use of these natural resources. As illegal activities have increased in these forests, <a href="https://www.forestsoftheworld.org/">Forests of the World</a> is acting to improve forest monitoring and management to enforce the protection of these vital ecosystems by organizing a network of young environmental protectors to participate in forest monitoring of two illegal deforestation hotspots in PBNP. These individuals will conduct field visits to verify GFW integrated deforestation alerts. Meanwhile, capacity building efforts will be conducted with local and regional authorities who will be trained on the use of GFW tools, and accommodating agreements will be developed to commit authorities to resolving and enforcing illegal deforestation complaints raised by the youth network.

Asociacion Bosques del Mundo, also known as Forests of the World (FoW), will work in two illegal deforestation hotspots in the Pico Bonito National Park in Honduras to strengthen forest monitoring and enforcement with the goal of reducing the number of GFW deforestation alerts in the hotspots by 10%.

The Aru Islands in Indonesia lost 18.2 thousand hectares of tree cover from 2001-2021, mostly due to illegal logging. The primary forests of the Aru Islands are a crucial source of life for the Indigenous Aru people. <a href="https://fwi.or.id/">Forest Watch Indonesia</a> will work to make local communities aware of regulatory timber administrations such as the Sustainability Legality Verification System (SVLK) that can be leveraged to eradicate illegal logging. By training local community members in information building activities such as data gathering and analysis through the GFW platform Indigenous Peoples and local communities can produce information to then report cases of illegal logging in the Aru Islands.

Forest Watch Indonesia aims to keep at least 70% of the Aru Islands covered by primary forests, which serves as a vital source of life for the Indigenous Aru People of the area. This project will build the capacity of the local community to use the alerts and data of GFW to eradicate illegal logging in the area.

The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor is home to rich biodiversity but competes with 335,886 people settled in and around formal and informal conservation areas and the expansion of extensive cattle ranching and slash-and-burn agriculture that puts pressure on these important forests. <a href="https://www.ecologic.org/">EcoLogic Development Fund</a> will work in Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras to equip local community monitoring brigades with trainings on monitoring tools such as GPS, drone footage, and the use of GFW&#8217;s GLAD and VIIRS alerts for more effective forest monitoring and management. Local stakeholders and government agencies will be engaged in a collaborative effort to improve conservation efforts informed by the data provided by monitoring brigades.

EcoLogic Development Fund will work in Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras to train and improve the participation of community monitoring brigades to better respond to direct threats to 128,002 hectares of forest.

Grants & Fellowships

MEET THE GRANTEES AND FELLOWS

Categories

Medellin Botanical Garden

Medellin Botanical Garden