CGIAR AGM-Mexico, October 25-29 2004
It was smiles all round for CIFOR staff and their partners in central America when it was announced at the CGIAR AGM they had won the “Innovation Marketplace” award.
Valued at $10,000, the award recognizes successful and innovative partnerships between community service organizations and CGIAR research centers in Latin America and the Caribbean
Since 2003, through the support of the Ford Foundation, CIFOR and the Indigenous-Peasant Office of Central American Community Forestry have been conducting a participatory research project together with two forestry grassroots organizations: the Association of Forest Communities in Petén, north of Guatemala, and the Campesino-to-Campesino Programme of the Municipality of Siuna, in Nicaragua.
Both community-based organizations have developed a vision of self-sustainability to take control of their livelihoods and their environment through the innovative and sustainable management of their natural resources. Their highly-regarded achievements have won them the support of international donors and development cooperation agencies. Based on these experiences the project has been identifying, analyzing and disseminating methods and mechanisms to strengthen technical and managerial capabilities of community forestry grassroots organizations.
Their self-directed efforts have played a significant role in bringing peace and stability to the management of large areas of forest in both countries - forests that were once home to widespread conflict and corruption in the late 1980s and early 1990s following years of civil war and unrest. With peace and stability have come more sustainable forestry management practices and better livelihoods for those communities working with the two community service organizations.
The Innovation Marketplace is both a competition and an exhibition. In the first stage, CSOs were invited to submit descriptions of current programs or projects demonstrating innovative approaches to collaborative work leading to adoption or adaptation of CGIAR and national institutes’ research. A jury selected 10 cases to be presented in a second stage poster session at the CGIAR Annual General Meeting in Mexico City in October 2004.
Winning the award was a great honour for Peter Cronkleton and Carmen Garcia, the two CIFOR researcher’s who worked closely with their partners in Guatemala and Nicaragua.
Perhaps the happiest person on the day was Marcedonio Cortave, Executive Director with Association of Forest Communities in Petén. “I couldn’t believe it. I was in shock. I thought we’d be last because the other entrants looked so good. So, winning has made all of us very happy. It is wonderful recognition of some truly wonderful team work,” Cortave said.
For Cortave, it was not the prize money that was important. It was the sense of achievement it would bring to all of the people and families involved in the forestry grassroots organizations in Guatemala and Nicaragua. "Perhaps the key benefit of being involved in these groups is the self-esteem these people have in their ability to look out for their own needs.” Cortave said.
Says Deborah Barry from the Ford Foundation’s Mexico office, the process undertaken by the communities and their local organizations “has been crucial in building collective goals and CIFOR's work has played an important part in this.” GC.