emPOWER

EmPOWERing forest farmers’ organizations for driving landscape restoration through timber value chain governance in the tropics (emPOWER)

emPOWER is funded by:

Duration: 01.07.2023 – 30.06.2027
A project of the call “Forestry research with a focus on mitigating climate change, fostering biodiversity and sustainable forest management”

emPOWER Project description:

The value chain approach to forest landscape restoration posits that producer-driven high-value chains with regulated governance will engender positive landscape transitions. This implies considerable trade-offs between socio-economic and environmental objectives in a landscape. The project aims at the empowerment of forest farmers’ organizations as actors within timber value chains and wider value networks based on an analysis of socio-economic, governance, and environmental trade-offs to optimize mosaic landscape restoration in Vietnam and Tanzania.

The aim will be achieved through five scientific work packages (WPs), ranging from the farm to landscape level, following a multiple embedded case study approach. At the farm forestry level (WP 1 & WP 2), the impact of membership will be analyzed by comparing the livelihood contribution, and farm biodiversity and resilience of members and non-members. Key forest farmers’ organizations (WP 3) will be purposefully selected in each landscape. Their financing mechanisms and financial performance will be analyzed in order to derive strategies for improvement. By employing participatory methods, the financial performance will be analyzed and the know-how on financial literacy will be transferred to the participating organizations.

Timber value chains (WP 4) in the study landscape, including those involving forest farmers’ organizations, will be analyzed and merged with value networks through the actor-centred power approach. Participative Innovative Platforms will be conducted, involving actors along the timber value chains, thereby permitting knowledge transfer and developing strategies to empower forest farmers’ organizations with increased power capabilities. The trade-offs (WP5) at the landscape level among farm biodiversity and resilience (environmental aims), farmer’s livelihood, the organizations’ financial performance, and timber value chain and value network (socio-economic and governance aims) will be analyzed, thereby facilitating future decision-making for policy and practice.