Projects

To combat deforestation and improve livelihood resilience in Madagascar, this programme co-produces research data and strategies with communities to develop sustainable and resource-based enterprises. It explores socially acceptable and ecologically safe ways to use bamboo as an alternative to hardwood for fuel and construction. At the same time it strives to prevent bamboo becoming invasive by identifying native trees for replanting.

In the eroded coastal areas of Taltali and Kalapara Upazilas, Bangladesh, this programme supports Indigenous Peoples to strengthen land use, governance and climate-resilient livelihoods. It combines participatory research with mangrove restoration and sustainable enterprise development, targeting 5,300 direct beneficiaries.

The Upper Guinea Forest in Sierra Leone and Liberia is severely affected by agricultural expansion, illegal logging, mining and fuelwood collection, depleting biodiversity and threatening the livelihoods of rural communities that rely on forest resources. This programme combines research and community action to promote sustainable land use and forest conservation. Co-developing restoration strategies with local communities, it blends traditional knowledge and science to identify deforestation drivers and inform decisions.

In the Sahel, one of the most drought-affected regions globally, ecosystem degradation threatens rural livelihoods and increases poverty, malnutrition and conflict. Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) is a proven solution but faces barriers such as insecure land tenure, especially for women, young people, people with disabilities and pastoralists.

Rapid economic growth in Viet Nam has come at the cost of severe environmental degradation, resulting in biodiversity loss, pollution and climate vulnerability. This programme supports the scale-up of locally led ecosystem restoration by developing ecosystem-based enterprises (EBEs), led by women and young people, in peri-urban wetland and coastal mangrove areas. 

Urban ecosystem degradation across African cities is worsening health, livelihoods and vulnerability to climate risks for millions of slum dwellers. This programme supports community-led restoration in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe through the locally managed grant system Urban Ecostewards Grant Facility (UEGF). A co-developed research framework grounds the work in local knowledge and international standards, using research-to-action to drive advocacy and influencing policy.

Nepal’s escalating wildfires threaten the critical farm-forest-water nexus that sustains rural livelihoods, food systems and biodiversity and disproportionately affect smallholder farmers, Indigenous Peoples and climate-vulnerable communities. The ‘PunarUtthan’ programme addresses these risks by combining participatory risk assessment with action research to pilot tailored nature-based solution across four districts, benefiting 25,000 families and restoring 40 hectares of degraded forest.

The Leyte Sab-a Peatland Forest is one of two major peatlands in the Philippines, yet this vital ecosystem is rapidly disappearing. Combined with extreme weather events, its loss is driving thousands of people in surrounding communities into poverty. This programme places those communities at the heart of nature stewardship by co-developing legal tools, strengthening governance and promoting ecosystem-based enterprises.