Philippines 2022

Asia

Philippines

Zambales

Aeta Ancestral Domain at Sitios Yangil and Banawen, San Felipe municipality, Zambales province

We are using a people-planet-profit model, where we will rebuild the forest alongside a forest economy where things can be sustainably harvested by the community. For our agroforestry plan, we will have 3 different forest types, along with crop farms for the tribes. These are the following: Forest Trees for Water Fuelwood Forest and Buffer Zone (Fire Proofing, Charcoal Friendly Trees, Honey Hives) Fruit and Industry Trees (Possible Permaculture Farm and Forest)

We are restoring an area which was affected by the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991, the second-largest of the 20th century. While the volcano was erupting, the country was also hit by a typhoon, causing all the ash to blow towards the land. This caused the entire region to be covered in lahar, severely damaging the forest land and agriculture of the Aeta tribe in the region. After the eruption cleared, due to the land being rendered unusable, it was further damaged by illegal logging. All this led to an estimated USD 440 million in damage to crops, infrastructure, and personal property due to the eruption and its aftereffects. Through our restoration project, we hope to take steps into preventing future degradation of the environment; rehabilitate damaged ecosystems; mitigate further destruction caused by natural disasters such as landslides, flash floods, and the like; regenerate underground water systems and wildlife in the area; contribute to reducing the global temperature while also producing oxygen, storing carbon, and lowering air pollution. Our goal is to rebuild this area, for the future. We hope to plant 3 main forests, namely, (1) a native tree forest, (2) a buffer zone forest, with fire proofing and charcoal friendly trees, and (3) a fruit and industry permaculture forest. Altogether, these forests will come together to restore the land in a way that nature will be able to regrow on its own, while sustaining the communities that live in this area. * We are still in the process of conducting and commissioning studies to get a better grasp of the quantitative benefits of the project.

88K Trees is a part of a holistic community development project which we are collaborating on with the communities in the area. We are working with two Sitios (Villages) in the region, namely, Yangil - a community of around 50 families, and Banawen - a community of around 75 families. The overarching project includes working with the tribe to give them access to basic necessities; scholarship programs; seminars for business development, financial literacy, first aid, legal, and the like; and more. In terms of the restoration project, this will be able to benefit the community mainly through job creation, disaster mitigation, and business development. For disaster mitigation, as the region is very susceptible to floods, landslides, and the like, restoring the forests and planting trees with deep roots will help lessen the damage of these. In terms of job creation, in the initial stages of the project, we will be providing the community with a salary for growing seedlings, preparing, planting, and maintaining the land. It is our long-term goal though for the tribe to reach a stage in which they are sustainable enough to plant and restore their land on their own, something which we will be working with them to attain through the business development program. For this, we will be putting up a demo farm and coop with the community. This will be privately-funded but community-managed. It will be used to create jobs, host seminars and workshops, provide supplies and capital for farmers, connect farmers to processors, suppliers, and buyers, and introduce new technologies and practices. It will also include internship and scholarship programs for the youth, with the goal of turning over full operations of this to the community once the scholars graduate and can take lead.

There are 3 Forest Types, and additional farmlands, with the following percentage breakdown. We are continuously working with different groups to advise us on the best species to plant and/or introduce into the region if needed. As of now, we do not yet have a detailed percentage breakdown per species. 1. Forest Trees Molave (Vitex parviflora) - native, IUCN LC Palosapis (Anisoptera thurifera) - native, IUCN VU Apitong (Dipterocarpus grandiflorus) - native, IUCN EN Red Lauan (Shorea negrosensis) - native, IUCN LC White Lauan (Shorea contorta) - native, IUCN LC Kupang (Parkia timoriana) - introduced, IUCN LC Agoho (Casuarina equisetifolia) - native, IUCN LC Aure (Acacia auriculiformis) - introduced, IUCN LC Ipil (Intsia bijuga) - native, IUCN NT Anahaw (Livistona rotundifolia) > Saribus rotundifolius - native Yakal (Shorea astylosa) - native, IUCN EN Malaruhat (Syzygium subcaudatum) - native, IUCN VU Narra (Pterocarpus indicus) - native, IUCN EN 2. Buffer Zone Kakawate (Gliricidia sepium) - introduced, IUCN LC 3. Fruit and Industry Trees Binun or Samak (Macaranga tanarius) - native, IUCN LC Banaba (Lagerstroemia speciosa) - native Cashew (Anacardium occidentale) - introduced, IUCN LC Tibig (Ficus nota) - native, IUCN LC Rattan (Calamus spp.) Talisay (Terminalia catappa) - native, IUCN LC Bignay (Antidesma bunius) - native, IUCN LC Tamarind (Tamarindus indica) - introduced, IUCN LC Calamansi (Citrofortunella macrocarpa)