Time period
12 Apr 2012
Venue
Traders Hotel, Pasay City, Philippines
ICRAF organizes the 1st Environmental Service (ES) Market Fair in the Philippines
The World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF), together with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Forest Management Bureau (DENR-FMB) and funded by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), will organize the first Environmental Service (ES) Market Fair this April 12, 2012 (Thursday) at the Traders Hotel, Pasay City from 8:00AM to 5:00PM.
The event aims to involve and link the private and public sectors to projects that will help indigenous and poor communities enhance their livelihood while conserving the environment by giving updates on current payments/rewards for environmental services (PES/RES) activities and experiences in the countries from the NGOs, government organizations, and private sectors; bringing together communities (ES providers) and private and public sectors (potential ES buyers); and providing a venue to showcase the various ES projects in the country.
The ES Market Fair is one of the key component activities of an ICRAF project funded by FAO entitled "Connecting Ikalahans to the Voluntary Carbon Market". The said project aims to help the Kalahan Education Foundation (KEF), an indigenous organization from Nueva Viscaya, in building their capacity to handle a voluntary carbon market project.
PES/RES is a popular mechanism being implemented around the world for environmental protection, and conservation of these environmental services. The mechanism aims to influence the actions of forest and coastal communities for the benefit of the environment by providing them with rewards or payments as protectors or retainers of the environmental services. In this mechanism, there are those who are seen as ES providers (communities protecting the ecosystems) and ES buyers (communities or groups of people benefitting from the continuous provision of ES). Rewards or payments can come in various combinations and forms such as monetary, infrastructure, livelihood programs and other benefits that could uplift the lives of the local communities. PES/RES is also seen as an alternative to mining and other known activities detrimental to the environment.
In the Philippines, several variations of PES schemes are being tested in different parts of the country. The ES Market Fair encourages different sectors to understand and contribute in the development of the PES schemes in the country, as not only do we try to achieve environmental protection, but community and livelihood development as well.
For more details of the event, please contact Romnick S. Baliton (r.baliton@irri.org) or Ailene M. Florece (a.florece@irri.org) at (63-2) 845-0563 / 845-0569 local 2860 / 2675.